Big News!

Hello all! I wanted to let you know that I will be moving all of my posts on this blog to my new website Matina's Bookcase.

This website will be much the same as the blogger just with a different name. I will still be posting book reviews, writing stuff, and other fun tidbits so don't think I'm going anywhere.

For the time being I will still post reviews here as well, but all of my reviews will also be posted there. Most links will redirect you to Matina's Bookcase as well.

Thanks for sticking with me through all of the moves and changes going on lately!

~Dawn

The Chase Book Review

The Chase

Janet Evanovich 

Lee Goldberg 

Rating (out of 5): 4.5

Genre: General Fiction/Heist Fiction

Release Date: February 25, 2014

Series: Fox and O'Hare

Series Number: 2

Profanity: mild

Violence: Mild

Sexual Content: mild 

Age Recommendation: 16+

Author Website: http://www.evanovich.com/ and http://www.leegoldberg.com/



Summary: 

Janet Evanovich and Lee Goldberg, bestselling authors of The Heist,return in this action-packed, exciting adventure featuring master con artist Nicolas Fox and die-hard FBI agent Kate O’Hare. And this time around, things go from hot to nuclear when government secrets are on the line.

 Internationally renowned thief and con artist Nicolas Fox is famous for running elaborate and daring scams. His greatest con of all: convincing the FBI to team him up with the only person who has ever caught him, and the only woman to ever capture his attention, Special Agent Kate O’Hare. Together they’ll go undercover to swindle and catch the world’s most wanted—and untouchable—criminals. Their newest target is Carter Grove, a former White House chief of staff and the ruthless leader of a private security agency. Grove has stolen a rare Chinese artifact from the Smithsonian, a crime that will torpedo U.S. relations with China if it ever becomes public. Nick and Kate must work under the radar—and against the clock—to devise a plan to steal the piece back. Confronting Grove’s elite assassins, Nick and Kate rely on the skills of their ragtag crew, including a flamboyant actor, a Geek Squad techie, and a band of AARP-card-carrying mercenaries led by none other than Kate’s dad.  A daring heist and a deadly chase lead Nick and Kate from Washington, D.C., to Shanghai, from the highlands of Scotland to the underbelly of Montreal. But it’ll take more than death threats, trained henchmen, sleepless nights, and the fate of a dynasty’s priceless heirloom to outsmart Fox and O’Hare.


Review:

The Chase is a great addition to the brilliantly crafted Fox and O'Hare series by Janet Evanovich and Lee Goldberg. This book takes readers along with Nick and Kate after former White House chief of staff, Carter Grove who's stolen more than meets the eye. The Chase dives further into Kate's relationship with Nick and gives us glimpse into Nick's past. 

The story and con in this book were good, not as great as in The Heist but they were still enjoyable to read. The book was full of great moments and some really funny scenes. My favorite thing about this book was getting to learn more about Nick's past as well as see his relationship with Kate move forward, if only a little. The two are not only a great team, but generally great together. As for Nick's past, lets just say it's as colorful as he is. We got to see some repeat characters return and meet new one's including Duff MacTaggert a key person in getting Nick into the con game.

The one problem I had with this book was the pacing. I found it to be rocky and slow in the middle. The start the book was good and then fell a little flat as Nick and Kate worked to steal back a rare Chinese artifact from a plane. The pace finally picked back up later when the duo moved on to hitting the man who stole the artifact in the first place and we were finally treated to a real con. 

There was a lot of character building in The Chase, which I enjoyed. I feel like this book did a lot for the characters, especially Nick and Kate. It built up a lot of what was started in the first book and gave readers a good look into how this team is going to work in the future. I am eager to see where their relationship goes from here and how their work together changes and molds over this series.

Overall The chase was a wonderful read. I wish that the pacing had been a little better but I know that in the next book that should be rectified. This was a good sequel to a great series and I am eagerly awaiting the third book in this series The Job.  

~Dawn

You can find my reviews for the other books in this series here:
The Shell Game
The Heist
The Job

Dreaming of Mr. Darcy Book Review

Dreaming of Mr. Darcy
Victoria Connelly

Rating (out of 5): 3.5

Genre: Romance

Release Date: January 1, 2012

Series: Austen Addicts

Series Number:2

Profanity: mild

Violence: none

Sexual Content: Very Mild  

Age Recommendation: 16+

Author Website: http://victoriaconnelly.com/





Summary:

Fledging illustrator and Darcy fanatic Kay Ashton settles in the seaside town of Lyme to finish her book, The Illustrated Darcy, when a film company arrives to make a new adaptation of Jane Austen's Persuasion. Kay is soon falling for the handsome bad boy actor playing Captain Wentworth, but it's the quiet screenwriter Adam Craig who has more in common with her beloved Mr. Darcy. Though still healing from a broken heart, Adam finds himself unexpectedly in love with Kay. But it will take more than good intentions to convince her that her real happy ending is with him.


Review:

 Dreaming of Mr. Darcy is a sweet story set in the beautiful backdrop of Jane Austin's Lyme. It focuses on Kay and Adam  but also delves into the lives of the other characters, mainly Gemma and her love interest. I enjoyed reading this book and liked it's sweetness.

I loved the idea of a film being shot in Lyme, it made way for lots of good story to happen. And the fact that the writer, Adam was from the area helped as well because readers were introduced to his wonderful Gran. The setting, and how it affected the characters was one of my favorite parts about the book. I also loved Kay's bed and breakfast. I've always liked the idea of them and it was a great part of the story. The romance however felt a little strained. It felt like Victoria Connelly was trying to do too much with each character romantically and the only place she really hit the mark for me was with Oli's romantic line. It felt like the other two romantic focuses, Kay and Gemma took too long to develop and ended up being love at first sight leaving me shocked out of the story. 

I liked the entire cast of characters and really found myself drawn to Gemma and Adam. Their shy personalities resonate with the way I often feel and I liked seeing them change through the book. Oli was another character that caught my interest with his carefree attitude that hid more than he was willing to say. I really liked Kay in the stories opening, she made for an interesting character but after she moved and fell head over heels for Oli she began to loose her charm. It almost felt like the author wrote two different characters with the same name, the Kay from before Oli shows up and the Kay after he does. All her spunk and spontaneity fell away to be replaced by a pile of romantic mush. 

 Overall I give Dreaming of Mr. Darcy a 3.5 rating, it was sweet but that's about all it was. I recommend it as a good beach read or something to take with you on a long flight. Anyone who wants a snugly romance should take a look at this book. 

~Dawn  

Suspicion Book Review

Suspicion

Alexandra Monir

Rating (out of 5): 4.5

Genre: Young Adult Romance/Mystery

Release Date: December 9, 2014

Series: n/a

Profanity: Mild

Violence: None

Sexual Content: None 

Age Recommendation: 14 +

Author Website: http://www.alexandramonir.com/




Summary:

“There’s something hidden in the maze.”

Seventeen-year-old Imogen Rockford has never forgotten the last words her father said to her, before the blazing fire that consumed him, her mother, and the gardens of her family’s English country manor.

For seven years, images of her parents’ death have haunted Imogen’s dreams. In an effort to escape the past, she leaves Rockford Manor and moves to New York City with her new guardians. But some attachments prove impossible to shake—including her love for her handsome neighbor Sebastian Stanhope.

Then a life-altering letter arrives that forces Imogen to return to the manor in England, where she quickly learns that dark secrets lurk behind Rockford’s aristocratic exterior. At their center is Imogen herself—and Sebastian, the boy she never stopped loving.

Combining spine-tingling mystery, romance, and unforgettable characters, Suspicion is an action-packed thrill ride.

Review:

Just the title, Suspicion makes you begin to wonder about this book. It manages to mix mystery, romance, and magic into a delightful, fascinating, and sometimes chilling young adult novel. I found myself drawn into the mystery of this book from the first page, and subsequent pages only served in increase my interest until I found myself at the end of the book delighted with what I had just read.

Imogen Rockford is the heir to something almost every young girl dreams of at some point, a dukedom, or in Imogen's case the title of Duchess. But with that appointment everything changes for Imogen, she's suddenly the only one left of her family facing not only the responsibility of being a duchess, but she's also thrown headlong into a mystery who's truth can only be reviled as she delves deeper into her families history.

As I read this book I found myself distrusting almost every character. I, like Imogen, wasn't sure who could be trusted and who was hiding something deeper. Alexandra Monir does a great job of building suspense through the story, filling the pages with ghostly apparitions and more questions than answers. I really felt like I was taking this journey with Imogen as she struggled to find her way to the bottom of things.

The mystery was probably my favorite part about this book, who was Imogen's late relative Lady Beatrice? What really happened to Lucia? What was with Sebastian and what did all of this have to do with Imogen's strange powers? I found myself questioning everything, eagerly reading through the book in order to find out the truth behind it all.

As things began to play out in the book I was shocked and surprised often to my delight. Characters that I had pegged as obviously untrustworthy were suddenly thrust into new light and secrets that I hadn't even begun to think of were reveled. The story reached a feverish pace when we returned to where the story had stopped at the beginning (due to a flashback) and I couldn't stop myself from reading to the end.

While I was pleased with how things turned out I was also a little disappointed, by the end of the book my questions had been answered, I was just left feeling a little flat. I had really been hoping that the truth behind Imogen's ancestor along with Imogen's powers herself would have been given more focus than it received. I was very intrigued by it all, and it seemed to be an important part of the overall story that I had been expecting there to be a bigger picture with it.

The only other thing that really bothered me about this book was the overwhelming amounts of description that were done. It felt like everything that could be described was described. I can understand the desire to paint elaborate pictures of beautiful English manors and gardens but there comes a point when the reader doesn't want to read anymore description and just wants to move on to the story. I came to this point numerous times while reading this book. This is not to say that I didn't like some of the descriptions, they just felt overwhelming. Nothing throws me out of a book like too much description, it makes me stop and have to re-adjust my mind's eye to fit the exact image that I have been given instead of allowing me to fill in the blanks where the author has generously left them.

Overall this book was a wonderful read and I'd love to see a sequel, the book wrapped up cleanly enough but I'd still like to see more. Imogen was an interesting character and I can see a lot more being done with her and her friends and family. I'd recommend this book to anyone who likes a good mystery, romance, or even a story with a little magic to it.

Note: I received an electronic copy of this book from Netgalley for my fair and honest review which I have stated above.

~Dawn 

Shades of Milk and Honey Book Review

Shades of Milk and Honey

Mary Robinette Kowal

Rating (out of 5): 5

Genre: Fantasy

Release Date: August 3, 2010

Series: Glamourist Histories
Series Number: 1

Profanity: None

Violence: None

Sexual Content: None 

Age Recommendation: 14 +

Author Website: http://maryrobinettekowal.com/





Summary:

The fantasy novel you’ve always wished Jane Austen had written

Shades of Milk and Honey is exactly what we could expect from Jane Austen if she had been a fantasy writer: Pride and Prejudice meets Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell. It is an intimate portrait of a woman, Jane, and her quest for love in a world where the manipulation of glamour is considered an essential skill for a lady of quality.

Jane and her sister Melody vie for the attentions of eligible men, and while Jane’s skill with glamour is remarkable, it is her sister who is fair of face. When Jane realizes that one of Melody’s suitors is set on taking advantage of her sister for the sake of her dowry, she pushes her skills to the limit of what her body can withstand in order to set things right—and, in the process, accidentally wanders into a love story of her own.

Review:

Initially Shades of Milk and Honey caught my attention with it's beautiful cover and curious blurb, 'The fantasy novel you've always wished Jane Austen had written'? As a Jane Austen fan I knew I had to read it. And after starting the book it didn't take me very long to realize how true that statement had been. 

Shades of Milk and Honey reads, feels, and is every inch something I could see Jane Austen herself penning if she'd ever had the inkling to write a fantasy. Mary Robert Kowal does a great job of capturing the time period and language of of the late 18th and early 19th century. Her writing is beautiful and the story flows in the general shape of an Austen novel. One of the things that the author does in this book is keep it very clean there is little to no profanity and absolutely no explicit content of any kind. This makes it a safe read for the young, old, and anyone in between.

The story itself was very well written. I tend to really enjoy books written in this time period so it's no wonder that I loved each of the little secrets that were revealed and I enjoyed getting to see each of the characters grow and change through the story as well. Mary Robert Kowal's pacing kept me interested even in places where the story could have stalled or at least grown stale. And by the end it had picked up to such a pace that I felt like I was reading as fast as Jane was riding to catch up to her family.

All of Kowal's characters shine in their own way and for different reasons. She does an excellent job of really making each character feel fleshed out even if they have very little time in the story. Jane and her sister Melody stood out to me in the way their relationship played out. It wasn't the perfect relationship I sometimes come across in books, and it wasn't a constantly stormy one like I encounter in others. It had it's ups and it's downs like any sisters would. Jane herself stood out to me because she had flaws and readily stated that she did, she also often acted out of jealously and love. Her character felt the truest to me of all of the wonderful characters populating Shades of Milk and Honey. Vincent however came off a little odd to me, he just didn't pull my attention like many male leads do. That's not to say I didn't enjoy his character, I did. I just felt like he could have been a little more in the story, but I believe that will be rectified in later books. 

Kowal's incorporation of glamour into the story is done in such a way that I felt like I'd always lived life with people around me able to manipulate glamour. She didn't waste time explaining it or trying to get readers to understand exactly how it worked she simply wove it into the story naturally.  While glamour played a large part in the story I don't think it did it in such a way that would alienate readers who are either not familiar with fantasy or don't care for it.

Shades of Milk and Honey turned out to be a wonderful find for me, and I am eager to read the rest of this sure to be astounding series. I'd recommended it to Jane Austen fans and fantasy fans alike. I hope you all enjoy it as much as I did.

~Dawn  

Doctor Who The Crawling Terror Review

Doctor Who: The Crawling Terror

Mike Tucker

Rating (out of 5): 5

Genre: Science Fiction

Release Date: September 9, 2014

Series: Doctor Who 

Profanity:Mild

Violence: Mild

Sexual Content: None 

Age Recommendation: 15 +

Author Information:
http://www.themodelunit.co.uk/
and
http://tardis.wikia.com/wiki/Mike_Tucker


 Summary:

"Well, I doubt you'll ever see a bigger insect."
Gabby Nichols is putting her son to bed when she hears her daughter cry out. 'Mummy there's a daddy longlegs in my room!' Then the screaming starts... Alan Travers is heading home from the pub when something rushes his face - a  spider's web. Then something huge and deadly lumbers from the shadows... Kevin Alperton is on his way to school when he is attacked by a mosquito. A big one. Then things get dangerous.

But it isn't the dead man cocooned inside a huge mass of web that worries the Doctor. It isn't the swarming, mutated insects that make him nervous. It isn't an old man's garbled memories of past dangers that intrigue him.

With the village cut off from the outside world, and the insects becoming more and more dangerous, the Doctor knows that no one is safe. Not unless he can decode the strange symbols engraved on an ancient stone circle, and unravel a mystery dating back to the Second World War.

Review:

The Crawling Terror is the first Doctor Who book I've read featuring the 12th Doctor as portrayed by Peter Capaldi. This book did a great job of highlighting some of the new Doctor's personality traits and using them to really fuel the story. It follows a basic Who plot line, with the Doctor and Clara getting involved in a situation that is far larger than they first realized. The story starts fast paced and never lets up pulling readers along on an adventure that takes them from a tiny town to far off planets and back in time to WWII.

Despite the basic plot the story really takes off and deals with some of the more interesting qualities of the new Doctor. Mainly his aversion to/ irritation with soldiers.Soldiers play a key role in the entire plot of The Crawling Terror and it's wonderful to see how the Doctor reacts to each new situation with them. Clara's relationship with the Doctor is also explored briefly. For a lot of the book I felt like Clara wasn't getting as much time seen as she could, but by the end she really got her chance to shine and I felt like it made up for the lack of her in the beginning.

This story takes place sometime after the second episode of the new series of Doctor Who. I began reading it shortly after watching the first episode and I was a little confused on a few points because there are a few things mentioned that take place in Into the Dalek. I would recommend watching at least the first two episodes before diving into this book and not using it as an introduction to Capaldi's doctor.

I really liked the fact that the Doctor did use the TARDIS to go back in time in this book. It's the first time I've seen him do that in one of the DW novels and I really enjoyed getting to see it utilized for more than just the opening and closing of a book. Not to say that the TARDIS doesn't play key roles in other Doctor Who novels, I just really liked the way it was used here.

Overall The Crawling Terror was a great addition to the Doctor Who franchise. I really enjoyed it and would read it again. I was introduced to the Doctor Who novels with Mike Tucker's earlier DW book The Nightmare of Black Island and I'm glad to have had my first 12th Doctor book experience from the same talented author.

I would recommended this book to any Doctor Who fan, just as long as you've seen a few episodes of the new season. It truly has the feel of Doctor Who.

Note: I received an electronic copy of this book from Netgalley for my fair and honest review which I have stated above.

~Dawn

The Diamond Thief Review

The Diamond Thief

Sharon Gosling

Rating (out of 5):5

Genre:Young Adult

Release Date: October 1, 2014

Series: Diamond Thief

Series Volume: 1

Profanity: Very Mild

Violence:Very Mild

Sexual Content:Very Mild

Age Recommendation: 14+

Author Website: http://sharongosling.wordpress.com/





Summary: 

No one performs on the circus trapeze like 16-year-old Rémy Brunel. But Rémy also leads another life, prowling through the backstreets of Victorian London as a jewel thief. When she is forced to steal one of the world’s most valuable diamonds, she uncovers a world of treachery and fiendish plots.

Meanwhile, young detective Thaddeus Rec is determined to find the jewel and clear his name. Will Thaddeus manage to rescue the jewel? Or is it really Rémy that he needs to save?

Review:

I've said before that I have a weakness for a good thief story and so it comes as no surprise that I was immediately attracted to The Diamond Thief. The fact that it was also set in Victorian London with a steam punk/fantasy twist had me hooked almost before I began reading it. And after I finished it I loved it even more.

I really enjoyed the story, it could have gone many different ways and still been wonderful, but I like the direction Sharon Gosling took it in. I really enjoyed the sprinkle of both steam punk and a little bit of fantasy into the story. There were so many mysteries dotted through the story I had fun wondering which would tie into what and how everything would turn out. There were a few moments where I wondered why a character was brought in so suddenly or how someone could have possibly survived a few of the more crazy situations but overall I really enjoyed the story.

The characters were all very fun to get to know as well. I really enjoyed Rémy's fiery attitude and Thaddeus was absolutely charming with his always do the right thing attitude. I also really enjoyed the other characters especially J and Desai. J was endearing while Desai had a mysterious charm to him that I'd love to see more of in the next book. The only character who really bothered me was the Professor, his personality seemed to shift a little too often for me.

Another thing I loved about this book was the dialog and syntax. Many times when I'm reading everyone sounds the same when they speak. This was not the case in the Diamond Thief. The cast of characters were from many different places and walks of life and the way they spoke reflected that. This aspect of the book was one of the charms that really made me like it.

There were a few plot holes and many things that seemed too easy or coincidental through this book. Despite that I really enjoyed reading this book and I am eager to see the next one. I hope that the holes in this book will be fixed in the next book and I am eager to read The Ruby Airship. I see a lot of potential in Sharon Gosling and I hope to see more from her. 

I would recommend this book to teens about 14+. mostly because there is a little coarse language in the book but it is infrequent and very mild when used. Anyone looking for a light read, a steam punk adventure, a Victorian era book, or even a little romance should take a look at The Diamond Thief.


Note: I received an electronic copy of this book from Netgalley for my fair and honest review which I have stated above.

~Dawn

Princess of the Silver Woods Book Review

Princess of the Silver Woods

Jessica Day George 

Rating (out of 5): 5

Genre: Fantasy 

Release Date: December 11, 2012

Series: Twelve Dancing Princesses 

Series Volume: 3

Profanity: Very Mild (if any)

Violence: Mild

Sexual Content: None 

Age Recommendation: 12 +

Author Website: http://www.jessicadaygeorge.com/

Summary (found on Author's website):

Princess Petunia has been kidnapped! Except...it was really more like an accident. Oliver, the leader of a band of thieves known as the Wolves of the Westfalin Woods, didn't mean to do it. And now he must make things right. He will confess to the king and deliver the princess to the grand duchess's estate.

But Petunia's safety is far from secured. As children, she and her eleven sisters had been cursed to dance endlessly at the midnight ball of the fearsome King Under Stone. Troubling dreams of the ball are once again haunting Petunia, and she can't be sure they are mere nightmares. When she and her sisters fall into a carefully laid trap, who but a handsome woodsman can save the day?

Jessica Day George's romantic and adventurous new tale is part Little Red Riding Hood, part Twelve Dancing Princesses, and wholly enchanting.

Review:

Princess of the Silver Woods is the third installment of Jessica Day George’s fantastic Princess of the Midnight Ball series. This book focuses on the youngest of the 12 sisters, Petunia. When she first appeared in Princesses of the Midnight Ball she was very young so I was excited to see how she’d progressed. We also get to see more of her other sisters and get a glimpse into their lives and what’s been going on since the events of the previous two books. 

Petunia has grown up to be quite loveable. She is dead set on making it on her own and can be deadly with her pistol when needed, but she’s not quite as tough as Poppy. When the story starts she is on her way to meet old friends.  Her plans run awry when her carriage is attacked by a pack of wolves, or rather a pack of thieves calling themselves the Westfalin wolves. Things are further thrown into disarray when she finds out the reason they are robbing carriages and meets their handsome leader, Oliver. Her spunk seems to fade a little bit as the book progresses, but she never loses her charm. 

Oliver as a character is your pretty basic ‘prince’ and while others may see him as bland I thought he was perfect for Petunia. This story was more about action and unraveling the mystery behind the Palace Under Stone and I thought Oliver fell into place very well with how late he’d been pulled into the girl’s predicament.

As with the other two books in this series Jessica Day George paints a beautiful story filled with romance, adventure, mystery, and suspense.

Princess of the Silver Woods is a perfect finish to this series. In this book we finally get to find out more about the origins of the King Under Stone and his sons as well as unravel more of the mystery behind the curse the sisters have been fighting against since the first book. I was very excited to see the big reveal and it wasn’t anywhere near a disappointment.  

Princess of the Silver Woods was a great wrap up for this whole series. I really enjoyed seeing all of the princesses back, and loved getting to know Petunia more. I’d recommend this series to any fan of Fairy tale retellings or just good princess stories.

 

~Dawn