1 Star – Page 2 – Looking For a Good Book

July 5, 2018

KILLING RACHEL – Anne Cassidy

I have often enjoyed YA novels but it’s only been in the last couple of years that I’ve come to enjoy mysteries so this is possibly one of the first books I’ve read that is a cross between the two. It also happens to be one of the oldest books in my Advance Reading Copy Continue reading

MYSTERY, YA

1 Star, Book Reviews, Books, Mystery, Reviews, Young Adult

June 28, 2018

BUNYAN’S GUIDE TO THE GREAT AMERICAN WILDLIFE – Quentin Canterel

Oh, dear. I was only a few pages into this when the style seemed familiar and I looked back to see that I had previously reviewed the author’s book, The Jolly Coroner. That had been a crazy book with a strange but enticing story and wrapped up in an unusual form. Bunyan’s Guide to the Continue reading

OTHER, Uncategorized

1 Star, Book Reviews, Books, Reviews, SF/Fantasy

June 20, 2018

52 SERIAL SHORTS – Harold Cobert, et al

Way too many years ago, when I was in high school, some friends and I had listened to a couple of authors talking about how they had written a couple of books together. We thought it might be fun to do something similar and write a few shorts stories jointly. We’d each start a story Continue reading

SHORT FICTION, Uncategorized

1 Star, Book Reviews, Books, Reviews, Short Stories

February 9, 2018

LET THE GAMES BEGIN – Niccolò Ammaniti

Writing humor/satire is difficult. Black humor can be even trickier to make sure that the reader is understanding that it’s humor, and dark. The fact that Niccolò Ammaniti is being translated probably isn’t helping him at all. But bottom line – I found nothing redeeming in this book at all. According to the Goodreads description, Continue reading

HUMOR, Uncategorized

1 Star, Book Reviews, Books, Humor, Literature

November 21, 2017

THE STEAMPUNK TRILOGY – Paul Di Filippo

This book features three novellas: Victoria, Hottentots, Walt and Emily. It also includes some of the most excruciatingly dull genre fiction that I’ve ever come across. In “Victoria,” the soon-to-be queen disappears and so as to not worry the people, a scientist has created a Victoria-look-alike. This doppelgänger is created from a human/lizard hybrid, though Continue reading

SF/FANTASY, SHORT FICTION, Uncategorized

1 Star, Book Reviews, Books, Reviews, SF/Fantasy, Short Stories

September 29, 2017

FIENDISH SCHEMES – K. W. Jeter

I… Oh, boy. I don’t know what to say. I can’t recall the last time I was so bored with a book. This book is a sequel to K.W. Jeter’s Infernal Devices, which I have not read. And based on this, I’m going to stay away from it. Jeter is credited with coining the phrase Continue reading

SF/FANTASY, Uncategorized

1 Star, Book Reviews, Books, Reviews, SF/Fantasy

January 30, 2017

JERRY’S MAGIC – W. W. Rowe

Nope. This middle grade reader falls apart on just about every level. Jerry Shore is ten years old and is now the man of the house after his father is killed in the Big War. As such, he finds the need to start bringing home money, but instead of going out to get a job, he finds Continue reading

CHILDREN’S, Uncategorized

1 Star, Book Reviews, Books, Children’s Books, Reviews

January 27, 2017

MARS AND HOUSTON – James Crowley

There’s a really beautiful idea behind this story, but the story fails. Joey is an autistic young man who dreams and play-acts at being an astronaut. Joey’s mother has a difficult time dealing with Joey’s autism and tends to discourage anything he does, being quite over-protective. One day a new boy moves in to the Continue reading

CHILDREN’S, Uncategorized, YA

1 Star, Book Reviews, Books, Children’s Books, Reviews, Young Adult

January 16, 2017

ONCE A CROOKED MAN – David McCallum

I’m typically not a big fan of actors/celebrities turning to fiction writing, but I’ve enjoyed David McCallum’s acting work since his days on The Man From U.N.C.L.E. and again more recently with N.C.I.S. and I was really hoping to enjoy this book. Unfortunately, I didn’t. Harry Murphy is a talented actor who gets caught up Continue reading

MYSTERY, Uncategorized

1 Star, Book Reviews, Books, Mystery, Reviews, Thriller

November 4, 2016

TAINTED – A. E. Rought

Tainted is the second book in the “Broken” series. I did not read the first book prior to reading this. I suspect that I might have had a better handle on the back story of the characters and their ‘situation’ had I read the first book, but author A.E. Rought does a fine job of Continue reading

YA

1 Star, Book Reviews, Books, Reviews, Young Adult

November 1, 2016

THE PRINCESS AND THE CLOWN – Ian Thomas Malone

Oh. My. God. What the hell did I just read? If you cross bizarro fiction with hard-core erotica you might get something that resembles The Princess and the Clown by Ian Thomas Malone. Ralph is a down-on-his-luck clown who has seen better days. Known as Jango the Clown he was once quite popular. Now he’s Continue reading

OTHER, Uncategorized

1 Star, Book Reviews, Books, Reviews, Sex

September 7, 2016

WHO YOU CALLIN’ SILLY? – Kimberly R. Lock

First off – I am NOT the intended audience for this book. This book, written by the devout wife of a pastor, is directed toward other women of faith and is a guide for how to be a virtuous woman. The author was aware that I was not the intended audience when she sent the Continue reading

NON-FICTION, Uncategorized

1 Star, Biography, Book Reviews, Books, non-fiction, Religion, Reviews