Between Worlds by Yolande Krueger

In this world, there is no make-believe. Just because you haven’t seen something doesn’t mean that it doesn’t exist.

Olive was adopted by two sisters. Once they figured out that they couldn’t have children of their own, they decided to adopt a child and live their lives together. Her mothers are witches. They make potions and cast magic spells.

Olive cannot yet cast spells, but she does make potions.

Olive works at the only coffee shop in town. It is an eccentric place. They name their muffins and drinks after the effects they have on you. If you want coffee for comfort or for warmth, you would order the drinks named, simply, Comfort or Warmth.

She practiced her alchemy skills with the drinks and food options available at The Black Brew. They would tell people that the effects of the food and drinks were magic.

Between Worlds is a coming of age story for a young witch. She doesn’t know the extent of her abilities, but throughout the book, she begins to realize what she is capable of.

It is also a love story between an unlikely couple – a witch and a giant. Olive’s life changed completely once she met Dah-Vid. She really started to realize her true potential, even if she didn’t know how to completely control her powers.

The characters in this book were all around likable. Plus there was a great supporting character that was a dog. That always makes the story a little more fun to read.

It is a pretty light and fun read. There was more conflict towards the end, but leading up to that, it was nice to just read the story about a young witch and her dog.

It was written well. The conversations flowed nicely and felt natural for the most part.

It did end a little abruptly for me. I would have liked for it to explore the outcome of the portal drama. The book was still moving a steady pace towards the end, so it could have gone on a bit longer.

If you are looking for a cute YA/fantasy/paranormal book, you should go ahead and pick this one up.

3/5 stars

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Vigilare by Brooklyn James

When the authorities do not handle cases in an acceptable way, who is going to get justice on those who have caused irreversible damage to a victim’s life? Who will step up when no one else will to punish rapists and sex offenders? Vigilare.

Vigilare is watching over everyone in Vanguard. Vigilare punishes sex offenders for their crimes when they get off too easy in the court system.

When Detectives Gina DeLuca and Tony Gronkowski are assigned to a case that appears to be serial murders, the details get weirder and weirder. There is talk of a vigilante, a superhero of Vanguard who is punishing these men for raping women in the city. The name they give this superhero, Vigilare.

They talk about Vigilare having glowing green eyes that captivate its victim. It can look into their soul.

When Detective Gronkowski goes investigating on his own one night in pursuit of a known molester, what he finds turns the case completely upside-down.

This book is completely different from Brooklyn James’s other book that I reviewed recently, The Boots My Mother Gave Me. That one was heavy and memoir-esque.

Vigilare is pure fiction mixed with paranormal and science fiction story lines.

It builds suspense well, and while I guessed the twist, I was never 100% positive that was it until it happened. I always love a good twist.

Also I am a sucker for a good courtroom scene, and this book delivered that.

The writing was great. It pulls you in right from the beginning. I really like how Brooklyn James goes into plenty of detail in her books, but it isn’t so overdone that the chapters drag on. Every detail is important to the story in some way and that really keeps it interesting.

It ended sort of abruptly, but there is a sequel to it so it makes sense to leave off where it does.

The character development was spot on. I liked the characters that you are supposed to root for, and I disliked the ones you are supposed to be skeptical about.

The dialogue flows naturally, it doesn’t feel forced which is one of my biggest turn offs with reading sci-fi/paranormal books. Sometimes the dialogue is really forced and hinders the flow of the novel. The dialogue complements the novel and was written very well.

Overall, I enjoyed this book. If you are a fan of sci-fi books or “superheroes” you might want to pick this one up.

It has a very strong female character, so if you like all of those things, I do not think you will be disappointed with this read.

4.5/5 stars

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Demon Inhibitions by Gary Starta

Have you ever thought about there being someone out there in the world (or a different world) that looked just like you and was your alternate self?

Well, in this novel, Caitlin Diggs does not have to wonder about this. She is forced to confront this notion.

Caitlin is a former FBI agent that left the force because she came into having some supernatural powers. 

When a case calls for her to hunt down a truly evil demon and try to bring him to justice, her life is changed forever.

From discovering a world where demons are as common as humans, to evolving into a goddess herself, Caitlin must reevaluate all of her previous thoughts about everything mystical and paranormal to fit into this world and do the job that put her there in the first place.

There isn't much else to say about this one other than: READ IT. It is exciting and keeps you hooked from the very beginning.

5/5 stars It was pretty hard to put this one down. I don’t normally read books about demons, vampires, etc. But this one was really good!

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Black Book Part 1: The Devil's Blood by Dylan Jones

Warning: If you don’t like gore, this may not be for you.

This short story is just part one of a larger series involving the protagonist, Sheriff Jack.

It introduces Jack coming face-to-face with evil, even the Devil himself.

It lays down a good beginning character arc for the Sheriff to introduce you to this character and understand the tone of the series.

Sheriff Jack is the bad-ass protagonist that you want in any action series, and when you finish part one, you will not be disappointes.

I enjoyed the feel and tone of this story. It is dark and mysterious. It is also full of action and gore.

5/5 – This series has a lot of potential, stay tuned for more!

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The Last Judges by Jedi Gong

This book has elements of survival, war, and is semi-apocalyptic. And even more than than that, it is spiritual and paranormal. It offers a little bit of everything, and there is even some romance near the end.

This is a book that starts out by telling the stories of strangers that are all experiencing the weird natural disasters that are popping up all over the country.

Then, it turns into a book about destiny.

These individuals come together and learn how to survive these crazy events with limited resources, ...and a psychic.

It will take you on a crazy ride, and an emotional one at that. You will hate some characters and you will love others, but you will end up rooting for this group of strangers in the end.

It takes the story of the anti-christ and the mark of the beast to a whole new level.  With witches and warlocks, mysterious twins, and a gun-happy girl with two pups, there is never a dull moment in this book. It will keep you hanging on until the very last page.

I enjoyed how every character had their own distinct personality. It made reading this fun because you got to know the characters along the way.

There are also two badass female characters, so that was fun as well!

I would give this a 4.5 just because of one highly uncomfortable moment which I will place in he spoiler section.

Other than that, it was well written. I felt a connection to the characters and was rooting for this group the whole way through.

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Read ahead for spoilers

Last Regress by Rachael Thorne

This book is a wonderful combination of paranormal, Sci-fi, and romance. These are three different genres (though paranormal and sci-fi can sometimes go hand in hand), but the way they are woven together makes this story captivating.

The main character, Alyssa, works for a company that investigates the paranormal. She is interested in cases that are unusual and go unsolved.

When she opens the case file of the deceased Cain Andrews, her life is changed forever. Whether that is for better or worse is up to the reader to decide after finishing the book!

The story of Alyssa and Cain is wonderful, tragic, heart-breaking, and scary all wrapped up in one. You get a dose of everything.

There is also Alyssa’s best friend, Greg, He doesn’t believe anything Alyssa is going through, and after a while, as the reader, he begins to put doubt in your mind as well.

This book is written beautifully; the characters all have a wonderful story arc, and are completely developed. You have a sense of each of their personalities and feel as if you know them personally.

5/5 stars. Beautiful story, Wonderfully written.

It also leaves open the possibility for a sequel!

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Supernatural Freak by Louisa Klein

The title of this book is very fitting. That is exactly what it is about, a supernatural freak. The main character is Robyn. She has abilities that no human has, and abilities that many people that do have supernatural abilities don’t have, and that makes her a target.

Many strange things happen around her that she has no explanation for, so she enlists the help of her wizard and witch friends, and also the ghost that conveniently lives in her attic.

This book is packed with action, but is also packed with tons of humor and wit, with a dash of romance... just a dash!

I find books a lot more enjoyable to read when there are good characters. That was the case with this one. I enjoyed all of the characters. They all had their own unique personalities, and they meshed well together to make this book exciting to read. You never knew what was going to come out of their mouths next.

Also, I wish I had an awesome ghost that lived in my attic.

5/5 This was thoroughly enjoyable. It was hilarious, it was suspenseful, and it was full of action! AND the characters were awesome!

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Horrorism by Scott M. Goriscak

Horrorism is a collection of short stories that are either gruesome and filled with gore or haunted by the paranormal. Instead of spreading out the reviews for each story, I will post them all in this one post. Get ready!

The Game

Warning: This is not for anyone who cannot handle some gore.

This story is about a sick game that takes a turn for the even sicker. It starts out as a game made up by a bunch of teenage boys looking to cause trouble. They want to run over small animals with their cars.

After the competition heats up, the game becomes more than any of them thought it would, and gets out of control.

What lengths would you go to to be the point leader?

Scott Goriscak’s writing is very interesting, and I look forward to seeing what the next story holds.

5/5 Disturbing. Very, very disturbing. But, very well written and remained interesting throughout the whole journey. 

Home Sweet Home     

       

Have you ever thought there was an odd presence in your home?

Your thoughts come alive in this story. A man and his wife plan on getting divorced. When the woman finds the man a house to live in, she gets herself into more than she can handle.

The house is a rat-infested mess, and has a dark history.

When the man discovers the truth behind this residence, he becomes a little too comfortable.

Then, at the end, a huge twist is thrown at you.

It is a very creepy story, but I enjoyed it a lot. Well written, the characters were well developed, and the story was interesting.

5/5

Peepers

This story was very… odd. I shall explain why.

A man and his family decide to move from the city into the country.

When he decides he wants to fix something up in his daughter’s room, he discovers little creatures that will ruin his life.

Now, usually little creatures with extremely sharp teeth and claws would be terrifying, but I could not take it seriously, because as soon as I read it, I pictured the little worm from The Labyrinth.

Remember this little guy?

It made the whole story funny – in a sick humor sort of way.

That being said, it had a very eerie vibe to it – which proves good writing to me even though I could not take it seriously, and the end was actually pretty creepy.

4/5 Stars. The plot of little furry monsters ruining someone’s life is a little too out there for me, but it was good nonetheless.

Shadows of the Night

I have to say, this is the weakest link of the series so far.

It is about a man that has to take a roadtrip for business and winds up in a ghost town that was abandoned after a government experiment.

Things are not as they seem to him, and he begins to be haunted by the dead residents of the town.

While it may seem like the premise for a good story, it runs pretty dry throughout.

It also ends pretty abruptly, but you don’t really see that ending coming.

3/5 it was  okay, but not as good as the others. 

Parenting – Not For the Faint of Heart

This story started off with a very scary beginning, but then it evolved into something else.

It became a story of love – laced with losing limbs and eyeballs… but a story of love nonetheless.

When parents of an adopted child are forced into a situation they were not prepared for, they must learn how to cope with it, because it is their child.

It is really a great story. I found myself really enjoying it.

Oh, and there are werewolves involved.

5/5 great story. Love, blood, and violence. HOORAY!

Congratulations

WHAT DID I JUST READ.

Okay, back up.

A man is given a great promotion at work. His co-workers decided it would be a great idea to take him out to the bar at lunch time and get him completely drunk. He decides he is okay to drive after blacking out in the parking garage.

What he experiences next is something that no person should ever go through in their entire life. That is where I am going to leave you, because there is no way I can give away the ending to this one.

WHAT DID I JUST READ.

This story was so emotional I was on the verge of crying while reading that. Not many stories affect me in that way – especially short stories. But, wow.

5/5 even though I almost cried, and the story line was terrible (terrible as in very depressing) it was a great story. 

Blinded by the Light

This story was very interesting.

A man is killed by a secret experimental weapon that two fools were messing around with. To avenge his death, he begins to torment one of the men responsible.

It is sort of entertaining for a while with how he uses his abilities to get back at the man.

I wasn’t expecting the ending. It was a bit extreme, but it was pretty emotional.

4/5 It was odd, but interesting.  

Pet Co-Dependent

And I thought I was a cat person….

This story takes the “cat lady” term to a whole new extreme.

This story is about a man and his wife, and the cat that destroys the man’s life. It was sort of humorous because it seemed like it was mocking cat ladies, but to a gruesome extreme.

The end was pretty shocking as well.

5/5 It was silly, but it was also kind of scary

Playing with Dolls

This one was really creepy. Dolls in general are creepy to me after seeing the movie Dead Silence. This story reminded me of that movie in a way.

A man reconnects with one of his old girlfriends. As they begin to hang around each other more, he learns of her dark hobby. She places dark magic into the dolls she creates and sells to people.

He begins to distance himself from her, and once she sees him on a date with another woman, she decides to make his life a living hell.

This story was very interesting. It kept my attention the whole way through because I did not know what was going to happen next.

5/5 stars. Super creepy, but entertaining as well.  

To purchase, click here!

Read ahead for spoilers!

Ghost Writer by Nick Wisseman

Book Three:

A young writer, a special quill, and one final death wish.

Will you help bring justice to this young man’s life? Is it justice, or is it just murder?

We are met with a tragic story told from the eyes of boy met with tragedy.

His writing work was going to be published. But, his life came to a tragic end, and justice must be brought.

Was it because of the quill? Was there more to it than he knew?

That is up for you to decide!

5/5 Better than the second. Very mysterious!

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Read ahead for spoilers:

Vengeance Is Sacred by Peter Healy

Im going to start off by saying that Historical Fiction/Supernatual is not usually my genre' of choice. When Peter approached me and asked me to read his novel, I was more than willing. I figured it would be interesting to dive into a genre that I am not used to reading!

When I started off the novel, I often found myself spacing out because it was just not what I was used to. 

As soon as the second chapter though, I started to get used to it, and began appreciating his writing style. As I have said numerous times, I am a huge fan of James Patterson novels, and those are the majority of the novels I have read for a good year now, so being faced with a whole new writing style threw me off for a little bit. 

Peter uses longer chapters and much more description, which I have begun to notice throughout the novel, is needed for the type of story he is telling! There are breaks in the chapters which allowed me to put the novel down for a few minutes, get something done, and pick it up again. I don't like leaving a book mid-chapter because I will likely forget what I had been reading, but the way he split up the chapters made it much easier for me. Not everyone is like that, though, which is where the length of the chapters would be good for those people!

Vengeance Is Sacred is based around Paolo Calefati. He has to run from his home country of Italy to "L'America" "The New World" or most commonly used today -- The East Cost of the USA. He ends up in Jersey City, NJ and faces the problems of new immigrants with finding work and love. Paolo’s battle between remembering his past, and trying to move on with his future is a reoccurring theme, as well as him striving to be an honest loyal man. The power of the Deva that he possesses makes him more powerful than people believe at first sight.

The way Peter tells the story expresses knowledge on the topics he is speaking about which makes me ask the question -- How much research did he do on the topic? I feel like he knew the information all very well. I was impressed. Especially with the different dialects, accents, and languages -- as well as customs of different cultures. 

Being a girl myself, I like the fact that Paolo really respects the female gender. I feel that is Peter's own personality showing through his character!

Overall 4/5 Stars!

The chapters were a bit long for me, but it was very well written and interesting!

I have found myself missing reading about Paolo, Maria, and Augie.


Please visit Peter's website to learn more information:
http://www.vengeanceissacred.com/

Read ahead for spoilers