Reading

Thoughts on THE WHISPERWOOD LEGACY

~ shawnaborman ~ Leave a comment

Howdy, howdy! How’s everyone doing this wonderful Wednesday? I’m not going to complain. After all, it’s the last Wednesday of May and you know what that means. Book review time! This month, I decided to go with some dark fairy tale vibes. The Whisperwood Legacy by Jo Schulte was released yesterday (May 27th) from Little, Brown Books for Young Readers. As usual, I must thank them and NetGalley for access to an ARC in exchange for an honest and unbiased review. Let’s do the thing!

The Whisperwood Legacy follows Frankie through the turbulent time after her grandmother abruptly closes the family amusement park, the main source of the family’s income. Frankie spends most of her time carrying groceries and other necessities to her grandmother after the rest of the family basically disowns the old woman unless they need something from her. After a scene at an unwanted celebration, her grandmother disappears and things start going very wrong at the park, but Frankie and the rest of her family are trapped there along with the mysterious new groundskeeper. It’s up to her to figure out what’s going on and fix it before everyone dies.

The plot is interesting and there was a lot of potential with it. The story is built around fairy tale magic and family legacies and all that fun stuff. It sounds like it will be great. But the pacing is off. There are tiny hints of maybe magical things, but then the blatant magical stuff is just plopped on the page without any natural growth towards it. It’s abrupt and jarring and a bit unsatisfying. Also, there’s this big reveal that Frankie knows exactly what’s happening with the park even though she’s clueless about other things, but there’s zero foreshadowing to clue in the reader, so it totally feels like an afterthought. I was afraid I just missed something, but other people complained about it as well. Things are just awkwardly timed or have little to no build up. It’s meh.

As far as the characters go, Jem is pretty much the only decent person, but he just feels like a caricature of the “ideal dude.” Everyone else is disgusting and I wanted them all to die. If mommy/grandma was such a horrible person (which she was), then cut ties with her and get a job instead of relying on her money. Don’t just sit around wishing her dead, then get pissed when you’re left out of the not-will. And Frankie isn’t much better than the rest of her family, despite the fact that she pretends to be. The book itself was meh, but the characters ruined any chance I had of actually enjoying anything about it.

The writing was fine. It relied far too heavily on pop culture references that are already becoming dated, which I don’t particularly care for, but I guess some people like that kind of thing.

Ultimately, I was not a fan of The Whisperwood Legacy. I was originally just glad to be done with it, but the more I think about it, the more I actively dislike it.

Overall, I gave it 2 out of 5 stars. More like 1.5, but I rounded up. If you’re super into everything fairy tales, check it out. Otherwise, you’re not missing anything.

Reading List

~ shawnaborman ~ Leave a comment

Howdy, howdy! How’s everyone doing this lovely Wednesday? I’ve been trying to think of things to blog about, but everything will either make me angry or sad. The administration and how they’re apparently taking blatant bribes (a fucking jet is a sus as hell “gift”) right there in front of everyone and the MAGAts are apparently okay with that (and so much worse). There’s also some cripple stuff I thought about sharing, but it’s depressing and no one wants to hear about that kind of thing except maybe other cripples who would appreciate knowing they aren’t alone (you’re not alone). I also briefly acknowledged (in my head) that it’s my mother’s birthday, but she’s dead and doesn’t deserve anymore emotional effort on my part to explain what a horrible person she was. So! I suppose I’ll just give you a list of books I’m going to read in the foreseeable future.

I currently have a review book for May that I’m working on, plus two books for June and one for July. Here they are:

1. The Whisperwood Legacy by Jo Schulte.

2. R.A.T.S. Revolutionary Army of Teens by Claudia Daher. This is supposedly due out the beginning of June, but apparently there are issues so there’s not even a GoodReads page yet and I can’t find an official cover release either, which is making me question if this book is even happening. We’ll see. I’m reading it anyway just in case.

1. A Magic Deep and Drowning by Hester Fox.

4. Murder at the Wham Bam Club by Carolyn Marie Wilkins.

I don’t usually plan ahead with my for fun reads, but I do have a few I will definitely get to soon.

1 and 2. Rogue Community College by David R. Slayton. The fourth Adam Binder book comes out later this year, so I figured I’d check this one out in case there is character crossover. I also have a second Slayton book (unrelated to this one) that is on my list. Dark Moon, Shallow Sea.

3. The Eternal Ones by Namina Forna. I finally read book two of the Gilded Ones a couple of months ago and want to finish the series.

Beyond that, I have a couple of other series I should finish and a bunch of cozy mysteries I’ve collected and never read, but it all depends on what comes out and if I’m forgetting books that I pre-ordered. What’s on your reading list?

Thoughts on LOVE AT SECOND SIGHT

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Howdy, howdy! How’s everyone doing this wonderful Wednesday? Things here are still fine considering the dumpster fire we’re living in. But we’re not here to talk about that. It’s the last Wednesday of April, so you know what that means… book review time! I cheated a little. I picked a book by an author whose work I’m fond of, so I went in with the assumption that I would enjoy the book. It’s fluffy gay stuff wrapped up in a supernatural cozy mystery. Of course I’m into it. Love at Second Sight by F. T. Lukens was released yesterday (the 29th) by Margaret K. McElderry Books. As usual, I must thank them and NetGalley for access to an ARC in exchange for an honest and unbiased review. Let’s do the thing!

Love at Second Sight follows Cam, a regular teenage human boy, who just wants to spend the new school year hanging out with his bestie Al, who happens to be a witch, and moon over his crush, Mateo (a werewolf). And most of all, he wants to stay hidden in the background. An unfortunate spectacle in the hallway ruins any chance Cam has of a normal year. He has an obviously supernatural episode that can only mean one thing: he’s clairvoyant. On top of bringing him some seriously unwanted attention, the vision he has is one of blood and death. Was it real? Who’s the girl? If it hasn’t happened yet, is there any way to stop it? Along the way, Cam collects a ragtag group of supernatural friends who might help or might hinder his investigation. The only thing for certain is he’s not alone and there’s no disappearing into the background for Cam.

The plot was great, if a little predictable. Some of the clues were a little heavy handed, like they didn’t want to be overlooked. But it was fun and had everything you can really ask for from a cozy mystery meets teen supernatural fantasy. Uncontrolled powers. The encourager of all the mystery shenanigans. That weird teenage compulsion to not involve the adults. It’s adorable. My only real problem with the book is the pacing. It starts out super slow for the first three quarters of the book, then everything is kind of crammed into the last quarter. There’s not even much character development early on. Some stuff happens then everything stagnates for far too long before things start happening again. The action could definitely have been woven throughout the story better.

The characters are where this book really shines. They’re all super relatable. It’s a fun group with someone for everyone to adore. Cam is the typical teen trying to find his place in the world. When it turns out he’s special but he doesn’t know what to do about it and his support system fails him, he chooses to let new people into his life even though it’s risky. Al grows a lot. Mateo proves that even seemingly perfect people need help. Gemma is nuts and I love her. Reese is probably my favorite, but I wish he could have had a bit more to do. Kaci starts as the mean girl, but abruptly changes into the spacey friend which could have been handled better. But overall, I loved everyone.

The writing was cute. There are a lot of references and current slang that will surely date the book in a few years (some of it is already dated), but I enjoy that kind of writing some times. Especially when I’m looking for something that I can look back on for nostalgia purposes.

Ultimately, I really enjoyed Love at Second Sight. It’s not my favorite book by Lukens, but it’s not something I feel was a waste of time. It was cute and that’s all I was hoping for.

Overall, I gave it 4 out of 5 stars. Probably closer to 3.75. If you’re not familiar with the author, I’d definitely recommend one of their other books first.

Thoughts on ONE SHARP STITCH

~ shawnaborman ~ Leave a comment

Howdy, howdy! How’s everyone doing this wonderful Wednesday? Things here are okay other than Sophia having a severely sprained back. Pupper parent life is at it again, but at least there wasn’t an anal blood crime scene this time. Anyway, it’s the last Wednesday of March! It’s book review time! I went back to the cozy mystery genre this month. One Sharp Stitch by Allie Pleiter is the first in a new series. It was released yesterday (the 25th) from Kensington Books. As usual, I must thank them and NetGalley for access to an ARC in exchange for an honest and unbiased review. Let’s get to it!

One Sharp Stitch follows Shelby Phillips as she returns home to sort her life out after being laid off and manage her mother’s needlepoint store while her parents go on a road trip. Her strained relationship with her seemingly perfect sister doesn’t equal a particularly pleasant homecoming. Throw in the murder of an old school acquaintance and things get even more complicated. Can Shelby solve her own problems, let alone a murder? She’s sure going to try.

The plot is pretty standard, but with some family drama thrown in for fun. There’s a love interest, an annoyed police chief who isn’t quite as useless as she thinks he is, and a blossoming friendship that is definitely the shenanigans-encouraging bestie. There’s a lot of talking, but not a lot of going out and actually investigating, so the story moves slowly. The actual clues kind of just fall into Shelby’s lap. I’m fine with that, but I admit it’s not as engaging as other series with similar crafting themes. However, there are some nice twists that made me second guess myself for a couple of pages before going back to my main suspect (which was the correct one).

As far as the characters go, I liked them. At the least, they have potential. Shelby and her family are fairly fleshed out. As is the chief. Most of the other side characters are pretty flat, but they each have potential to be more in future books. I found Shelby’s and her sister’s aversion to their parent’s fun weird and annoying. So what if they wear matching shirts and stop at all the corny roadside attractions and take silly pictures? It’s not cringe if they’re enjoying themselves. So, I got a little tired of the teenager-esque “ew my parents still have fun” attitude from a couple of 30+ year olds, but that’s a me thing. Otherwise, the characters were interesting enough to keep me entertained when the plot dragged.

The writing was unobtrusive and nothing special. Sometimes, themed cozies can get carried away with all the technical jargon relating to the topic (needlepoint in this case) because the author wants to prove they know what they’re talking about, but this one doesn’t do that. There’s a nice balance of technical terms and explanations of those terms without feeling like the author is craftersplaining (like mansplaining, but crafters instead of men).

Ultimately, I enjoyed One Sharp Stitch. It has some issues, but nothing major. Most first books in a series have issues that either get better or worse as the series continues, so I’m willing to give this series another shot. I’ll keep an eye out for book two.

Overall, I gave it 4 out of 5 stars. If you’re into cozy mysteries or cross stitching, it’s definitely worth a look.

Women Authors

~ shawnaborman ~ 2 Comments

Hello, hello! How’s everyone doing this wonderful Wednesday? Things here are usual. I was going to show pictures of Dad’s hydroponics system and plants, but he’s busy and can’t take pictures right now, so I’ll do that next week. Today, since it’s women’s history month, I’ll share some books by women authors that I enjoy. I’ll try not to use repeats from recent posts. In no particular order, books by women!

1. The Library of Legends by Janie Chang. This is my current for fun book, but I’m about 75% of the way through and really liking it.

2. Agnes Sharp and the Trip of a Lifetime by Leonie Swann. It’s the second book in a cozy mystery series, but I think it’s better than the first book.

3. The Witch of Blackbird Pond by Elizabeth George Speare. An old book, but a lovely read.

4. Light from Uncommon Stars by Ryka Aoki. A strange combination of horror and sci-fi and life in general that I found lovely.

What are some books by women that you recommend? As always, feel free to share your thoughts or questions here or on my social media pages!

Thoughts on GRIM

~ shawnaborman ~ 5 Comments

Howdy, howdy! How’s everyone doing this lovely Wednesday? Things here are still very much dystopian, but I’m trying hard not to dwell on it all. So, let’s focus on the fact that it’s the last Wednesday of February instead! You know what that means… book review time! This month, I decided to try a little horror (not that I needed it with the state of everything, but yeah). Grim by David Cinnella is being released via The Book Whisperer today (the 26th). As usual, I must thank them and NetGalley for giving me access to an ARC in exchange for an honest and unbiased review. Let’s get to it.

Grim follows Gabe Matthews from childhood into those angsty teenage years. As a young boy, he loses his father, but discovers a secret silent friend dressed in black robes and carrying a scythe. The problem is that no one else can see this being. At 17, his mother is diagnosed with cancer. In a desperate attempt to save her, Gabe makes a deal with his friend. But can Gabe pull off his end of the bargain and save both his mother and himself?

The plot. It’s a pretty standard “deal with Death” scenario. Gabe’s a momma’s boy and doesn’t have the coping skills to deal with her potential death. He’s a bullied outcast in a small town. So, he talks to his Grim Reaper friend and ends up making a deal that doesn’t go as planned. There’s nothing new or surprising about it. Some of it doesn’t really make sense. Gabe’s leap to “I must murder people” instead of “I have to temporarily take over this dude’s job” when he sees the contract is weird, but I put it off to the whole being a teenager thing. The contract itself is pretty straightforward, so the ending felt like a giant leap. I mean… you wrote the contract. You can’t just randomly add something to it in order to create a plot twist. It feels like author interference rather than a natural progression of the story and that’s not good. It knocked the plot from a solid standard but not bad, down to mediocre.

The characters were mostly fine. I didn’t really connect to Gabe because he was pretty stupid for a supposedly smart kid. I had no idea where his anger at his stepdad came from. Basically, there were far too many things that I had to attribute to his being a teenager rather than being shown why he was the way he was. It was all very surface level. His stepdad was awkward but nice enough. Mom was the perfectly imperfect mother in the hopes that the reader would empathize with Gabe’s plight. Everyone played the role they were made for without much work to flesh them out. They were solidly standard which isn’t bad, it’s just not memorable. And that’s fine.

I’m going to be honest. I finished this book about a week ago and I don’t remember much about it. I remember the parts that didn’t quite make sense and the general story, but nothing really sticks out. Which means I didn’t dislike it, but I didn’t particularly like it either. Nothing about the writing sticks out. I’ll forget it entirely in a few days. A lot of books are like that.

Ultimately, Grim is a thing that exists. It’s neither good nor bad enough to hate. It just is. I’m not going to go looking for more books by Cinnella, but I won’t actively avoid his stuff.

Overall, I gave it 3 out of 5 stars. Actually, 2 and a half. I don’t think you’re missing anything if you skip it, but it’s not something I’ll tell you not to read. Unless you take issue with the whole “killing off/harming a woman simply to motivate the hero/villain” trope. Then you should probably steer clear of this one.

Black Women Authors

~ shawnaborman ~ Leave a comment

Hello, hello! How’s everyone doing this lovely Wednesday? I’m sure it’s lovely somewhere. It’s cold here. Anyway, there’s nothing to ramble about that won’t send my blood pressure skyrocketing, so you get another list post. It’s still February, so I thought I’d share some of my favorite books by black women. They’re older books, but I love them, so I still recommend them to people. So, in no particular order, here are some books/authors you should check out.

1. The Sound of Stars by Alechia Dow. Standalone novel.

2. The Gilded Ones by Namina Forna. Book one of a series.

3. Children of Blood and Bone by Tomi Adeyemi. Book one of a series.

4. Skin of the Sea by Natasha Bowen. Book one of a series.

Feel free to leave your book recommendations here or on my social media pages!

Thoughts on THE DARK HOURS

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Howdy, howdy! How’s everyone doing this wonderful Wednesday? I think it’s supposed to be a little dreary and moist today, but hopefully it’s still lovely. Anyway, it’s the last Wednesday of January, so it’s that time again. Book review time! This month, I went for more of a mystery thriller type book. I was looking for something engaging and quick paced like thrillers should be. The Dark Hours by Amy Jordan was released yesterday (the 28th) from MIRA Books. As usual, I must thank them and NetGalley for giving me access to an ARC in exchange for an honest and unbiased review. Let’s do the thing!

The Dark Hours follows Garda (Irish policeperson) Julia Harte as both a young woman and as a retired Detective Inspector. It’s a braided narrative where two storylines play out by alternating back and forth. In 1994, Julia’s partner has been murdered by someone who has just killed two young women and has set his sights on Julia for some reason. In 2024, after Julia has retired to a small town, it’s announced that the original perpetrator is dead, but why have two young women just been found murdered in similar circumstances to the 1994 murders? Can Julia figure out what’s going on and why she seems to be in the middle of both these cases?

I didn’t realize this was a braided narrative with present and past storylines or else I wouldn’t have requested it. I’m always bored with at least one of them in crime fiction. This was no exception. The present storyline gives things away about the past and vice versa, but not in a good way. In the past, the main character can be in mortal danger, but there’s absolutely no tension because you already know she survives. It just ruins a lot for me. But aside from that, both plotlines were fairly standard. Retired detective gets on the nerves of the current detective who doesn’t think he needs assistance. Random past cases somehow merge into one convoluted Frankencase. No real twists if you have any experience with mystery thrillers. It was standard and that’s okay. Not bad, but not great.

The main problem I had with this book was that none of the characters were particularly likeable. Young Julia was an idiot with zero sense of self-preservation. Old Julia was stuck pining over someone who wasn’t worth her time. I know I was supposed to feel bad about what happened to her husband, but he was a douchebag. She insists he was wonderful, but every time we see him, his whole vibe boils down to “I knew you wanted to be a cop and focus on your career, so I supported you until we got married, at which point you were supposed to quit and start popping out kids, and since you didn’t do what I wanted, you’re a bitch.” Like, dude… get over yourself. Everyone else were cardboard cutouts. There was no one to really root for or get attached to.

I also had issues with the way the story unfolded. I knew who the murderers were as soon as they were introduced, which isn’t a problem, but their motives just felt random and weak. I think this was because all of the aha moments were pretty random as well. In good crime fiction, you can usually trace a thread of connected events that is subtly woven in with red herrings and character development and all the other stuff that makes a book a book. But once in a while, a book will throw random major plot points at you without the thread. There’s nothing you can look back at and say “oh, that makes sense now.” It’s disconcerting and dissatisfying. This book does the latter and hopes the reader will be satisfied with the explanation that “it’s got to do with one of hundreds of past cases that aren’t connected and weren’t mentioned earlier.” I, for one, wasn’t happy with that.

The writing style was fine. I was hoping for a more exciting story, but it was a pretty quick read, so I can’t really complain about the writing.

Ultimately, The Dark Hours was not for me. It had potential, but the execution was mediocre across the board. If another book by Amy Jordan fell in my lap, I’d give it a shot, but it’s nothing I’m going to look for.

Overall, I gave it 2 out of 5 stars. A lot of the reviews love it, so maybe I’m being too harsh. I wouldn’t recommend it to a fellow writer since a lot of my complaints come from that angle, but if you’re super into mysteries, check it out and tell me if I’m wrong.

Happy 2025!

~ shawnaborman ~ Leave a comment

Hello, hello! Happy New Year, everyone! I hope 2025 is kind to you and isn’t anywhere near as dystopian as I think it’s going to be. Actually, the future is looking more bizarro with a dystopian subplot and I’m not entirely sure if that’s better or worse. But I’m not here to rant or share my fears. It’s a new year! Time for things to begin afresh. I’m going to try to focus on things that I can control, which isn’t much. I’ll keep my goals simple this year. That’s what this post is going to be about. As always, feel free to share your goals or thoughts or questions here in the comments or on my social media pages (which I’ve made some changes to, so see my social media goals for more info)!

Writing Goals: I wrote a couple of short stories in 2024, but not much else. This year, I’m planning to finish a cozy mystery novel that I started and gave up on because of a lack of will to write. I read through what I have and I really like it, so it’s not like I was stuck or anything. There’s even an outline with it. I’m going to set a deadline of July 18th (Dad’s birthday) to finish the first draft. Feel free to prod me occasionally for updates on how it’s going. No short stories unless I see a call for submissions that conjures an irresistible idea right away. I’m just going to focus on this book and see how it goes.

Social Media Goals: Leave X in favor of Bluesky. Ever since Musk implemented algorithm changes to prioritize paid accounts and bury free ones, I’ve gone from daily interactions to one a month if I’m lucky. It’s not worth my time anymore. I’m going to give Bluesky a shot as one of the sites (along with Facebook and Instagram) that I post to every day except Sunday. I’ll still check X occasionally and probably post major updates there (book releases and such) if they should occur, but it will be mostly inactive. This starts today.

Reading Goals: I read 38 books in 2024. I’m sticking with a goal of 35 books for 2025. It gives me room to read a couple of super long books if I want or just to go slow on some shorter books. I’m not looking to push myself or read a book a week or anything, so this works for me.

Year End Goals

~ shawnaborman ~ Leave a comment

Hello, hello! How’s everyone doing this wonderful Wednesday? Not much going on besides end of year stuff. There’s not really much to ramble about. I’ve been trying to think of ways to get this blog more active. I don’t read fast enough to do a review every week. If you have ideas, feel free to share them. But for now, I think I’ll just ramble about my plans for the next couple of weeks. It’s nothing exciting. Just trying to get motivated for next year. So, here’s what my December looks like in no particular order.

1. Benefits stuff. I just had my yearly meeting to assure the state I’m still cripple and need the benefits I receive. The nurse is supposed to come out on Friday so they can do even more paperwork assuring the state that I am indeed still cripple. After which, I’ll keep pestering my case worker until my plan is approved so we don’t end up in the same clusterfuck that was 2024. But that’s a rant I don’t want to get started on. Deep breath. Big smile. Scream into the void. That’s it. Everything is fine. Moving on.

2. Reading. I have one more book to finish for reviewing this year. I’m a little more than halfway through it. I’m also reading one “for fun” book. I would like to finish it before the end of the year, but I’m not going to rush it. It’s supposed to be fun. And I’ve already passed my book goal for 2024, so yay me. I’ve read 37 so far, which means I’ll at least end the year at 38. For me, that’s great.

3. Open the files. Starting in January, I want to get back to writing a novel. Before then, I need to read over what I’ve already written (only one chapter) and study my notes. Yes, this one has notes! There are character names/descriptions and a broad strokes plot outline with key points planned out. I just need to refresh my memory and decide if I want to tweak anything before I let the characters destroy my lovely little mystery with their own ideas.

That’s it, really. There’s also a vet appointment for Sophia (yearly check up) and we need to schedule one for January for Bonnie, but that’s it. (Mardi doesn’t go until April for anyone wondering about her.) What do you need to do before January? As always, feel free to leave your thoughts or questions or whatever here or on my social media pages!