by Jasmyn | Jan 22, 2019 | Book Reviews, Mystery, Thriller, Suspense, Readers
I’m a big fan of shared worlds and cozy mysteries so when I saw that Sweet Promise Press was releasing the Funeral Fakers series shared world of unusual cozy-style mysteries, I jumped on board. Mourning Routine introduced me to the concept of what a funeral faker is – a person paid to show up at a funeral to mourn for someone they don’t know. But this particular job is a little different.
Kitty Crawford finds herself hired to play the part of the deceased’s girlfriend – a girlfriend that no one really liked. But as she gets to know the family, she begins to think there’s more to this death than it seems. Kitty begins to investigate with the unwelcome (but very handsome) help of the very man that ended her budding acting career.
I loved the playful feeling of Mourning Routine. There was a ton of great banter the characters, and the mystery, while not so mysterious, was fun to watch play out through Kitty’s eyes. I had a big question mark after one scene though, and it still bothers me after finishing the book. If you get something poisonous on your hands, how does throwing up help expel it from your system? Did I totally miss something? I feel like I might have, so feel free to jump in and tell me what it was.
**I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book**
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Title: Mourning Routine (Funeral Fakers #1)
Author: S.E. Babin
Genre: Cozy Mystery
Content Rating: PG
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Restrained Crying: $50
Banshee Wailing: $100
Crying & Rolling on the Ground: $150
Threatening to Jump in the Grave: $250
Uncovering a Murder Mystery: PRICELESS
Kitty Crawford reached for stardom and fell hard. Now, in desperate need of some way to make ends meet, she skulks back to her hometown of Asheville. Unfortunately, the employment offers are slim pickings for a has-been whose sole talent is being able to cry on cue.
That is, until one odd turn leads to another, which leads to the little-known profession of Personal Mourning. Here, the better Kitty can fake it, the more dollars she’ll find stacked up in her bereft bank account. Talk about a role she was born to play!
And townsfolk are just dying to hire her. Her first gig casts her as the bereaved girlfriend of one newly deceased Chase McCormick, someone she would never have dated in life. Still, Kitty will have to act like her life depends on it, because–OMG!–it does.
Can she perform an investigation that could turn out to be murder before she gets her own curtain call? Find out whodunit in this hilarious mystery series filled with fake tears and a very real body count… Order your copy and start reading today!
Mourning Routine is book one in The Funeral Fakers series. Each book stands completely on its own, but you’ll have more fun if you read them all together!
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by Jasmyn | Jan 21, 2019 | Book Reviews, Readers, Romance
The King takes us back to the very first couple in The Black Dagger Brotherhood series, Wrath and Beth. I really loved these two, and I was excited to see an entire book revisiting their relationship and showing that there’s still life after the initial HEA. And that life isn’t always roses.
As the war with the Lessening Society rages on with no end in sight and the Band of Bastards has taken a toll on the king himself. When Wrath makes the announcement that he wants no children to follow him into this life, it comes at a time when Beth was deciding that children were something she desperately wanted to have.
I feel like this was one of the most “real” issues faced in the series so far. I imagine many married couples end up on opposite sides of the having kids coin for various reasons. It made them seem like like fictional characters or more like a couple that could be living right next door (minus the whole everyone is out to kill them part).
Both seek their friends and family for advice – some of which was quite on point and some of it was quite hilarious. There’s a lot to consider before bringing a child into the world, and I think Ward did an excellent job of highlighting that part of the relationship between Wrath and Beth.
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Title: The King (Black Dagger Brotherhood #12)
Author: J.R. Ward
Genre: Paranormal Romance/Urban Fantasy
Content Rating: R
Format: AudioBook
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Long live the King…
After turning his back on the throne for centuries, Wrath, son of Wrath, finally assumed his father’s mantle—with the help of his beloved mate. But the crown sets heavily on his head. As the war with the Lessening Society rages on, and the threat from the Band of Bastards truly hits home, he is forced to make choices that put everything—and everyone—at risk.
Beth Randall thought she knew what she was getting into when she mated the last pure blooded vampire on the planet: An easy ride was not it. But when she decides she wants a child, she’s unprepared for Wrath’s response—or the distance it creates between them.
The question is, will true love win out… or tortured legacy take over?
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by Jasmyn | Jan 11, 2019 | Book Reviews, Readers, Science Fiction, Fantasy
TS901: Anomaly was an amazing start to a series and the beginning a beautiful, if very flawed and post-apocalyptic, world. When a chemical intended to help humanity was introduced into the water, it had some surprising results. Individuals with certain DNA were mutated and forced into the Hive – picture detainment camp.
Thia makes it her mission to escape the Hive and expose the truth behind the TS901 chemical and how the government has been using the people mutated by it. There are a lot of twists and turns as the escape progresses and Thia and crew attempt to infiltrate a government facility to free the people held there.
Thia was an intriguing character that really draws the spotlight in the story. Even though surrounded by strong males and females she managed to shine, but somehow without taking away from the other characters. I can’t wait to get started on the rest of the series.
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Title: TS901: Anomaly: Rise of the Rebels (TS901 Chrinicles #1
Author: Stacey Rourke and Tish Thawer
Genre: Dystopia
Content Rating: PG-13
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Tainted water for the good of the people. Fluoride and vitamins to sustain the health of the human race. Added ingredients to extend and elevate the quality of life. All good things, right?
Wrong.
Thia Kelly has been changed by the TS901 chemical in the world’s water supply. Now, forced into hiding with the other inflicted outcasts, she struggles to survive as her powers emerge.
Evan Daniels hunted for others like himself, and finding Thia suddenly brought meaning back into his life. Love blossomed between the strange couple while they searched for a way to reverse the effects. Unfortunately, the Government had something else in mind.
Super-soldier creation on a mass scale was their end goal, and thanks to an unfortunate family tie, Evan became Patient #1.
Good-guy? Bad-guy? The world isn’t sure, but Thia is left with only one choice––save the ass of the world’s first Anomaly who just happens to be her boyfriend.
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