Games Creatures Play (Sookie Stackhouse #13.5 - The Blue Hereafter)

Games Creatures Play (Sookie Stackhouse #13.5 - The Blue Hereafter) edited by Charlaine Harris and Toni L.P. Kelner

Pages: 356

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Charlaine Harris and Toni L. P. Kelner co-edit another fun collection of paranormal short stories, this time using the theme of sports and games. Harris gives Sookie Stackhouse fans another short story featuring Sookie and introducing her readers to Manfred, the main  character of the Midnight, Texas series. 

The Blue Hereafter by Charlaine Harris

Hide and Seek by William Kent Krueger

False Knight on the Road by Mercedes Lackey

Ice by Laura Lippman

Jammed by Seanan McGuire

Dreamer by Brandon Sanderson

Case of the Haunted Safeway by Scott Sigler

Stepping into the Dead Zone by Jan Burke

Dead on the Bones by Joe R. Lansdale

The Devil went down to Boston by Caitlin Kittredge

On the Playing Fields of Blood by Brendan Dubois

The God's Games by Dana Cameron 

Prise de Fer by Ellen Kushner

Hide and Shriek by Adam-Troy Castro

Bell, Book and Candlepin by Toni L.P. Kelner

The Raven King by Maggie Stiefvater

The Raven King by Maggie Stiefvater
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Chaotic perfection with just enough Henrietta charm to keep things grounded. Would have loved just a tiny bit more closure for a few characters, because I'm greedy, not because the story demands it.

Pages: 439

PREVIOUS REVIEW:
I have no words that seem right for reviewing the final book in this series. I have tried, but they are all wrong.

Listen to the audiobook, as Will Patton is a fantastic narrator.

Blue Lily, Lily Blue by Maggie Stiefvater

Blue Lily, Lily Blue by Maggie Stiefvater
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This time through, I have realized how much I enjoy Blue. She is such a strong and opinionated character, and I appreciate that. She has a lot of feminist values, which is a nice contrast, especially considering the significant number of important male characters in this series, many of whom have traditional Southern values and perspectives. She does a good job of reeducating her Raven Boys to see her as something more than just the girl they hang out with.

I do love me some Raven Boys, but Blue is equally admirable and enjoyable on the main character front.

Pages: 400

PREVIOUS REVIEW:
I’d watch these characters sit for a whole novel and discuss paint drying. That’s how freaking much I love them and everything they do and say and are to each other.

Luckily, this story contains an actual plot, so all the above is unnecessary. I just wanted you to realize that I’m not the best equipped to discuss the story line (nor will I), because when you’re in love with all the Raven Boys and desperate to spend just a bit more time in their world, it’s very hard to take off the blinders and worry about something as seemingly insignificant as story structure. ;)

The Dream Thieves (The Raven Cycle, #2)

The Dream Thieves by Maggie Stiefvater
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

#BecRereads2019

I love all the new layers that appear and are exposed in the second book. Plus, I think that I missed some of the small moments in this book, particularly with Adam and Ronan. It's really easy to brush right by those understated interactions when you have no idea where things are headed with the broader storyline of the series. So I overlooked small interactions in the past that I now know were/are part of something bigger and worth paying attention to.

Pages: 439

PREVIOUS REVIEW:
I feel sure these characters are my neighbors and friends, for despite their issues and strife, I desperately want to be a part of their world, preferably within their inner-circle. This second novel was equally fascinating, and I can’t wait for the third! I listened to the audiobook which is superb. Something about the setting of this book makes me want to say words like superb, and it would be quite sufficient as a word choice and not at all pretentious, especially if I eased it out with a gentle Henrietta accent.

I highly recommend this series. You will appreciate the unexpected nature of these stories, as well as the carefully woven mysteries and gentle uncovering of truths.

The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater

The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

#BecRereads2019

It was such a pleasure to revisit these old friends and make them new again. Also, my perspective on some aspects of this story seems to shift a bit as I age, so I love how that makes the story just a bit different every time I revisit it.

The Raven Boys continue to charm me, even though the majority of them could never be called charming. Will Patton's narration for the audiobook is beyond stellar, and I can't read these in print anymore. I have to listen to the Audible version, because Patton has become such an inherent element to the atmosphere of this story that I cannot accept it any other way at this point. It's audio perfection.

Page: 409

PREVIOUS REVIEW:
Wow! I had no idea what this novel was about when I started, and it shocked me in a very good way. The concept is fascinating and unexpected. The characters are unique and surprising. Some of the plot twists blew my mind. It definitely took me to new and interesting places.

I listened to this on audiobook, and the reader is outstanding. I’m picky about being read out loud to, but I really enjoyed this audio. In fact, I think the excellent reading totally added to the overall experience. My favorite part of the story was the richness of the characters though. They were so captivating and strangely charming, even when they weren't necessarily being pleasant.

Only a Breath Apart by Katie McGarry

Only a Breath Apart by Katie McGarry
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This book releases January 22, 2019: Go pre-order a copy right now!

This book fronts as a YA contemporary romance, but it has this delicious undercurrent of magical realism that just takes my breath away.

It reminded me of being a kid, when I also felt so tied to the land that I haven’t set foot on again since I was about 13 years old. It’s funny the way the things that shape us as a child can suddenly seem so distant once you are 38. This story threw me back into the shell of an emotionally fragile teenager who fought through the challenges life served up in a far less graceful and mature fashion than Jesse and Scarlett. Granted, I didn't have the sort of mentors they had to help guide me on my way.

This story basically scratched me raw from the insides out, and I spent the better part of the story trying not to cry, not because it’s so painfully sad but because it hit home in so many ways that just left me feeling vulnerable and emotional.

Katie McGarry understands characters and relationship dynamics in a way that is so real and honest. She creates characters that I fall so hard in love with that it hurts just a bit when I have to admit to myself that they aren’t real. The writing is excellent. The plotting and pacing are spot on, and this story is gritty and aches in all the right and wrong kinds of ways. It ran me through the full emotional spectrum, and the end result is that it was such a satisfying read that I expect this story will cling to me, even after I have moved on to other books.

I will definitely reread this one, and while I received it free from Netgalley to review, I suspect I’ll pop on Audible and pre-order the audio, as this is a story I could reread again and again and likely take something a bit different away from it each time I revisit it.

Like the land, this story has life and breathes.

Book 7 read in 2019

Pages: 368

Sisterland by Curtis Sittenfeld
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I enjoyed this novel about twin sisters with psychic abilities set in Saint Louis. One twin, Vi, has embraced her supernatural powers and the other, Kate, has not. Vi has a vision that there will be an earth quake and seeks to warn her community of its impending devastation. The reader must read on to find out what happens.

Meanwhile, Kate, embraces a life of tradition and predictability as a stay at home mom of two children. I really liked this book for the reason that many reviewers disliked it. Kate's day to day of caring for small children is represented in a way I could really relate to. For example Sittenfeld writes, "Rosie’s clothes smelled like the teachers, which wasn’t to say the teachers smelled bad—just that there was no denying Rosie had been elsewhere." I just sent my son to daycare two weeks ago. While I love that he is cuddled and cared for while I am away, it is strange to have him come home to me smelling like another woman. 416 pages.

Lair of Dreams by Libba Bray

Lair of Dreams by Libba Bray

My Rating: 5 out of 5 stars.

This is book two in The Diviners trilogy by popular teen fiction author, Libba Bray. This series combines all my favorite fiction genres: historical fiction, mysteries, Gothic and paranormal. Character driven with enough detail to recreate 1927 New York City and weaves in consequences of real historical events.

You do not have to read the first book in the series: The Diviners, but it would give you background information on the main characters that could be helpful in understanding their group dynamic and who knows whose secrets. The conclusion of the first novel is  also alluded to throughout this story.

 Set in 1927 New York City the story begins with the readers meeting, Ling Chan, a dream walker. She can enter other peoples dreams and she can speak to the dead when she is dreaming and deliver messages to the living from them IF they want to be found. Ling meets Henry, a hopeful Broadway musician, who is also a dream walker and he can influence people's dreams and change them from sad to happy. Ling agrees to help him try to find an old friend of his in the dream world. Little do the two of them know, that a mysterious force has been released in New York City and people are going to sleep and not waking up. The sleeping sickness slowly destroys the body while the person sleeps.

Meanwhile, fresh from her adventure in Diviners, Evie O'Neil publicly announces that she is a diviner and has become the newest media darling with her own radio show doing psychic readings on objects that belong to the audiences dearly departed. But she has alienated her uncle and most of her friends with her new high-flying, partying life-style. But Henry and Ling will need Evie and all of her and Henry's friends to help them figure out what is causing the sleeping sickness and poisoning the dream world.

Pages: 624 but it is sooooo worth the journey with these characters!