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Review: Stumptown Spirits (Legend Tripping # 1) by E.J. Russell

What price would you pay to rescue a friend from hell?

For Logan Conner, the answer is almost anything. Guilt-ridden over trapping his college roommate in a ghost war rooted in Portland’s pioneer past, Logan has spent years searching for a solution. Then his new boyfriend, folklorist Riley Morrel, inadvertently gives him the key. Determined to pay his debt—and keep Riley safe—Logan abandons Riley and returns to Portland, prepared to give up his freedom and his future to make things right.

Crushed by Logan’s betrayal, Riley drops out of school and takes a job on a lackluster paranormal investigation show. When the crew arrives in Portland to film an episode about a local legend of feuding ghosts, he stumbles across Logan working at a local bar, and learns the truth about Logan’s plan.

Their destinies once more intertwined, the two men attempt to reforge their relationship while dodging a narcissistic TV personality, a craven ex-ghost, and a curmudgeonly bar owner with a hidden agenda. But Logan’s date with destiny is looming, and his life might not be the only one at stake.

Review:

Dear E.J. Russell,

This book was chosen as a buddy read in our group. The good part about it? I finished it within 24 hours and yes, I did manage to get a good night sleep, so basically I started it in the evening and finished on the long commute to and from work. It was very engaging, for that it gets solid three stars. I was entertained, and if the book manages to entertain me, I appreciate that a lot.

The bad part? Not even bad, because I am sure there are readers who loved Logan and Riley’s relationship, but an annoying one for me. Let me just say I am not one of those readers who love Logan and Riley together, because Logan made me want to slap him, shake him, yell at him for the pretty much the whole book. Riley gets his part of yelling at too, because man in the last part of the book he gets on his own high horse. Oy.

Very very flawed characters can work perfectly well for me in romance, I certainly do not require perfection and often hate it, but I have to believe at the end of the book that the characters have a future together and I’m sorry but that would be a NO from this reader.

I can just imagine the next time a big problem arises that Logan feels only he could solve, is he going to take off again? Because see at the beginning of the book I had very little problem with Logan taking off actually. Did I wish he actually talked to Riley normally and, if he did not want to give him a full version of the story, would give him something? I sure did, but I can totally sympathize and relate with the idea that you do not leave a close friend (any friend) in such an awful, horrible situation that Logan’s friend landed in. I get the need and guilt and trying to save him by all means possible.

But when Logan and Riley meet again, oh my god. If you want to “protect” Riley, maybe stay away from Riley, eh? Do not be such a selfish idiot, who is not thinking except with his dick?

And Riley deciding to save the world and save Logan from himself no matter whether Logan wants it or not? Very little irritates me more in stories than characters who think they know better than anyone else.

The paranormal storyline was great though and had a nice emotional punch at the end for me. C

Grade: C

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Review: A Spooky Legacy (Spectral Files #5) by S.E. Harmon

Rain Christiansen is settling into married life with fellow cold case detective, Daniel McKenna, and life is good. Better than good, even. But when it comes to the topic of expanding their family, Rain isn’t so sure he’s ready. Yes, a new addition could enrich their lives. But it could also tear down the delicate balance they’ve worked so hard to achieve. Do they really want to take that risk?

He’d love to brood over that a little more, but murder never takes a day off. A decade-old mystery of the missing Parker family is heating up. Most seem to think the Parkers pulled a disappearing act to get out of financial debt. It isn’t before the PTU finds out the reality is far grimmer than that. It seems that Quinn stumbled upon something better left hidden. Now that Rain has stumbled upon it, too, he has to be careful that he doesn’t meet the same fate.

Sometimes it amazes him how far he’s come from strait-laced FBI agent who couldn’t admit—even to himself—that he saw ghosts. He’s done the work, learning to get some measure of control of his paranormal side. And while his relationship with ghosts may not be perfect, it’s evolved into something symbiotic… which is a very good thing. Because in order to protect himself from the living, he might need a little help from the dead.

Review:

Dear S.E. Harmon,

I did not expect to see book five about two characters who will always have a fond place in my heart, but when I did, I grabbed it right  away.

Readers since this is a book five in the series, I do not recommend starting the series here, because you will miss a lot of the character development not just for Rain and Danny, but for a couple of the secondary characters as well. And Rain and Danny have been through a whole lot by now, so them being sweet and funny and *together* was really a pleasure. Granted, I have serious doubts about one more book like that with almost no internal conflict between them, but this was lovely.

I mean there was Rain not sure about him wanting to be a parent, and Danny being *really* sure, but to me it was not a real conflict in a sense that it did not cause any rift between the characters. It made sense Rain feeling that way, it felt real based on who he was, but he seemed to realize pretty fast that he does want the adoption to happen.

I think the main reason why I thought Danny and Rain making sweet (and Rain’s were on the sarcastic side as well) comments to each other and having hot sex so often worked because it counter balanced a really dark and ambiguous mystery storyline. Until the investigators zeroed in on at least where the killings were happening, I had no idea. When the “how” the Parker family was murdered (but not why yet) was revealed I was so confused as to why and I very much did not expect that the first murder had happened that way. I thought the mystery storyline was really good and the extension of Danny and Rain’s family was really nicely done too.

I just wrote above that the mystery storyline was ambiguous, but honestly the more I am thinking about it, to me it really was not, but it is really hard to explain why without spoilers. Let me just say that the murderers seemed to be convinced that they were doing a good thing and helping people to get justice.

Fine, I mean, I am very much on the side that one cannot be judge, jury and executioner in the real life, but sure I can understand the motivation in a fictional story. But it seemed to me that the whole thing for certain people just became a Pet project and it did not matter who would get hurt in the process, because seriously some really, really innocent people got hurt in the process, so I cheered at the end without any reservations.

And yes, the epilogue had an unexpected surprise and it was lovely.

Grade: B

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Review : The Streaming Staircase and The Whispering Skull (Lockwood and Co #1 and #2) by Jonathan Stroud

*NOW A NETFLIX SERIES*

Dive into the first book of this frightfully fun series and join the ghost-hunting gang as they defend our world from the most fearsome phantoms!

A sinister Problem has occurred in London: all nature of ghosts, haunts, spirits, and specters are appearing throughout the city, and they aren’t exactly friendly. Only young people have the psychic abilities required to see and eradicate these supernatural foes. Many different Psychic Detection Agencies have cropped up to handle the dangerous work, and they are in fierce competition for business.

In The Screaming Staircase, the plucky and talented Lucy Carlyle teams up with Anthony Lockwood, the charismatic leader of Lockwood & Co, a small agency that runs independent of any adult supervision. After an assignment leads to both a grisly discovery and a disastrous end, Lucy, Anthony, and their sarcastic colleague, George, are forced to take part in the perilous investigation of Combe Carey Hall, one of the most haunted houses in England. Will Lockwood & Co. survive the Hall’s legendary Screaming Staircase and Red Room to see another day?

Readers who enjoyed the action, suspense, and humor in Jonathan Stroud’s internationally best-selling Bartimaeus books will be delighted to find the same ingredients, combined with deliciously creepy scares, in his thrilling and chilling Lockwood & Co. series.

 

Please note that this is a review of book one and book two in the series

Review:

Dear Jonathan Stroud,

I have noticed that the show based on these books appeared on Netflix, however I did not watch it. Then I heard a book blogger mentioning the series very favorably and I decided to give it a try. I believe Janine reviewed the Bartimaeus trilogy here at DA a while ago. (I found the review of the first book of that trilogy in 2013, but did not search any further).

The blurb is excellent and gives you a good set up.  Only kids and teenagers (presumably their talents start to fade around nineteen or twenty based on at least one character we are meeting in the first book, but I am not hundred percent sure) have an ability to fight ghosts and other evil spirits which appear in England after dark and cause all kinds of problems.  Kids may start their training and sometimes even their work when they are as little as eight years of age. Once again this is my observation based on things mentioned in the first book, there was no definite rule mentioned at least in the first two books which I have read so far.

Now let’s back track a little bit. The reading age of these books is stated as ages 8-12, however in all honesty I could not put these stories down being an adult several decades older than the target audience.  I thought the author wrote these with such a skilled touch. The dark atmosphere of the “after dark” London full of ghosts and other evilness that may attack you, the constant danger to the kids that fight them, a lot of really great action. I really liked all that. I have to specify that ghosts are not necessarily evil per se, but very often because of the unfinished business they have, our heroes still have to put them away.

I think what I liked the best is that the author does not downplay the dangers our characters face, even writing for a younger audience. Kids with psychic abilities do die in the books and even though so far we saw very episodic characters die, I am not at all sure that the main trio will make it out alive at the end of the book five.  I both appreciate it and dread it, so if anyone who read the books can spoiler me (just tell me that you know the ending and I can email you, or do the spoiler tags which I forgot how to do :)) as to their fates, it will be much appreciated. I don’t want to read book five and be very annoyed.

Lucy narrates this book and the next one. I suspect she will narrate the rest of them too, but I do not know that. I loved her voice.  I at first thought that she sounded older than her age, but then I decided that she sounded like someone who had to take a very dangerous job at the very young age.

The first book gives us the backstory of how she came to work for Lockwood and couple of cases they did together.  I am glad that the author clearly knows what he wants to do with the story and things they have done in the first book, the characters that appear clearly appear there for a reason and I suspect will have a role to play in the later books.

I think the second book has one big case and the events taking place here would have even bigger repercussions in the next book.  The action was almost non stop and if there was a criticism I wanted to offer, it would probably be wanting more breathing room.  I loved the chemistry our trio has with each other, so I certainly would have wanted them to have more interactions when things are quieter, at least temporarily. To be fair, the author does offer some of those. I guess for the target audience more action is better than less action .

I also have to note that normally ghosts, corpses and evil spirits are very much not my kind of thing, but I really loved the main characters and the writing, so no matter how dark and grim the books can get (and yes, I got scared a few times, but I have a very low barrier for being scared, so that means nothing), I loved it and looking forward to their further adventures – if they won’t die that is.

One more thing, reading as an adult, it is often hard to convince me that kids have to do dangerous stuff without adult supervision in kids adventure books.  However, of course kids like books where kids, not adults do dangerous stuff and I thought that the author’s explanation here was as good as it gets. I mean, adults really cannot help here,  because they just do not see or hear the ghosts anymore as they get older.

Grade: B+. (for both books)

The Screaming Staircase buy links

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The Whispering Skull buy links

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REVIEW: The Lost Library by Rebecca Stead and Wendy Mass

A classic middle-grade novel about a little free library guarded by a cat and a boy who takes on the mystery it keeps by New York Times–bestselling authors Rebecca Stead and Wendy Mass.
When a mysterious little free library (guarded by a large orange cat) appears overnight, eleven-year-old Evan plucks two books from its shelves, never suspecting that his life is about to change. Evan and his best friend Rafe discover a link between one of the books and a long-ago event. The two boys start asking questions whose answers will transform not only their own futures, but the town itself.

Told in turn by a ghost librarian named Al, an aging (but beautiful) cat named Mortimer, and Evan himself, The Lost Library is a timeless story from award-winning authors Rebecca Stead and Wendy Mass. It’s about owning your truth, choosing the life you want, and the power of a good book (and, of course, the librarian who gave it to you).

Dear Ladies, 

I’ve said it before but I’ll repeat that if there’s a cat on the cover, especially a gigantic fluffy cat, I will pay attention to a novel. Mortimer dre me into this one. A cat, a library, books, and a slight mystery – I should have been in heaven. Instead I was a bit confused for far too long.

Mortimer used to be a library cat. His heart aches at the memory of what was lost and his feeling of guilt. But why does he feel guilty? Evan is both happy and sad that he’s finishing up the last week of fifth grade. He has liked his teacher and enjoys walking to school but the thought of starting at a new school next year makes him nervous. AL has made the decision to start a library in Martinville after a long absence of one. The actions of the three of them coming together will indeed change the town and each of them.

With three narrators and a lot of stuff going on, it takes a long time for this book to finally come together. First this happens, and then this person – or cat – tells this information, then another small clue is dropped, and then … I knew it all had to come together somehow but I wasn’t seeing the forest for the trees. Frankly I got a little bored waiting for it all to make sense. I was more than willing to believe in a cat who could understand people and ghosts but there’s one revelation at the end that just made me say “What?!” in disbelief. 

I did enjoy the town rediscovering the delight in a library and the contributions each made. The friendship between Evan and his bestie Rafe was great. I wanted Mortimer’s guilt to be eased and what he was told at the end of the book was fantastic. But AL? Really? Come on! As an adult, this book didn’t quite work for me as a whole and I wonder if middle graders would have the patience to wait for all the answers. C

~Jayne   

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