Andie Robertson has relied on her mentor and PhD adviser, Dr. James Corwin for much of her life, especially after her mother left.  All of Andie's life, she has had strange hallucinations that take her into an eerie shadow world.  After Dr. Corwin is mysteriously murdered in Italy, Andie finds some research of Dr. Corwin's that is out of his field of study along with  drawings that looks exactly like her hallucinations.  With the drawings, Andie finds the Star Phone, a strange device that leads her on an adventure with a series of clues.  The clues are associated with a secret society, The Leap Year Society and The Ascendants.  On the other side of the US, a disgraced investigative journalist, Cal, is desperately trying to find the people who ruined his career.  Once Andie and Cal figure out that they are both being hunted by a very dangerous and secretive group, they team up to help one another on the perilous path that has befallen them

Unknown 9: Genesis is a complex science fiction thriller featuring secret groups, code breaking, hidden history, conspiracy theories and mind bending scientific breakthroughs.  This is the first book of a trilogy and the beginning of the book was a gradual set up of characters, events and background before getting too heavy into the plot.  The writing gripped me from the beginning, building suspense as Dr. Corwin is running for his life.  After that, the set up bounces back and forth between Andie, Cal, Omer who is contracted to deliver them, and Ettore in the 1930's.  This lends to a slower pace in the beginning, however it does a wonderful job of creating deep characters and intriguing story line that is compounded, but easily followed.  I enjoyed the fast paced adventures in Egypt and Italy's historical spaces.  I'm deeply interested in the Leap Year Society and the secrets they want to protect.  I was absorbed by the idea of The Fold and the potential it could unlock.  There is much more to explore with all of the characters and the journey they are on, I can't wait to read more. 

This book was received for free in return for an honest review. 

Mythical Girls is a short story collection that focuses around what happens when girls are given control of mythical objects.  With eleven stories total, there is a good variety of stories, objects, and characters.  With any anthology, there were stories that I liked more than others and some that I disliked.  Luckily, I really enjoyed most of the stories in this anthology.

The book started out strong with Daybreak where Queen Rajakumari takes leadership of a kingdom after the King dies.  The writing quickly sets the scene and allowed me to get to know Queen Rajakumari and what she was up against.  I loved how she didn't take crap and used the other Queens as allies instead of enemies.  This was definitely a story that I wanted to stay in longer.  

Another story I enjoyed was An Unexpected Weapon. I have read other stories by this author and with the same characters that are in this short, so I really enjoyed being with the characters again and seeing them gain confidence in a new situation. 

The Witch's Staff  is also a story I enjoyed, incorporating fun otherworldly characters and a great message about bullying and forgiveness in two different worlds. 

 The Rishika of the Manika  was another great story.  I really enjoyed the fantasy elements and the mythical object.  The lessons in power, leadership and getting what you wish for are very strong. 


Most of the stories are aimed at Middle Grade readers, however some seem more appropriate for young adult or even new adult readers.  I love the idea of giving girls the power of all of these mythical objects that are generally controlled by by men and seeing the choices that they make. 

This book was received for free in return for an honest review.

​Dalia is a member of a Mayan tribe whose members rarely have contact with the outside world.  Her family has been chosen to keep the secrets of the Temple Cave and be the Bloodborne priestess to save her people.  In a prophetic dream, Dalia's mother saw her living in the city, so for the past several years Dalia has lived in the city with the nuns and away from her people; but with the Mayan calendar coming to an end, Dalia is called back home.  When she arrives, Dalia finds that the stories she has heard might just be true, her sister has died of a mysterious illness and now another sister is missing.  It is now up to Dalia to face the dangers and save her tribe.

This story intrigued me since it was set within a modern Mayan tribe and featured some Mayan lore.  Dalia's character grabbed me in her struggle between her two worlds.  I also enjoyed all of the supernatural elements, it was interesting how vampires and dragons were melded into the Mayan stories to fit so well.  I am very interested in the lohil- Carrick as well as the force within Dalia's amulet.  I really want to know what will happen between Dalia and Carrick as well as what Dalia decides to do with her life.  The story ends on quite a cliffhanger, so I will definitely be reading on. 

This book was received for free in return for an honest review. 

​A woman so determined to be famous, she'll try anything.  So will her reflection.  Together, woman and reflection travel around until they find a place where they belong.  However, when they get separated, one is not sure how to function without the other. 

Written in the style of flash fiction, each chapter of Madam Velvet's Cabaret of Oddities ranges from a sentence to several paragraphs.  I have only read a few flash fiction short stories before, so reading an entire book in this style was definitely a new experience for me.  It did take me a few chapters to get into the story, but once I was in the groove, I was devouring page after page.  Much like the shards of the broken reflection, the story is told in bits and pieces.  Information is received out of order and sometimes out of context, there are flashbacks to the woman's childhood as well as visits from her future self.  There are peeks into the lives of other carnival workers like the Four-Legged Woman and the Human Skeleton as well.  With this style of writing, my imagination went wild creating the settings and characters in my mind.  Some of the settings and scenarios were outrageous, such as the Fantasy Hand-Job brothel, but the themes of self-worth and longing will be able to connect with any reader. Madam Velvet's Cabaret of Oddities is an eerie and different flash-fiction read, easily consumed in one sitting.
This book was received for free in return for an honest review. 

​Lore is a collection of six short stories that re-imagines folktales and mythology from around the world and places interesting and romantic twists into each.   Written by six different authors, each story has a unique feeling and setting.  


Shimmer takes the mermaid tale and gives it a fresh spin with Draven and Coral.  Draven is spending the summer at his father's cottage after a heartbreak when he sees Coral alone at night, seemingly drowning herself. Draven is compelled to help Coral, but she may not need it.  I really enjoyed these characters for the short time that we know them as well as the modernized mermaid mythology.  I did think it wrapped up a little too quickly, but that is the nature of short stories.

Between is a modern story of the Arabic djinn brought to a modern high school. Lucy and Natasha have made peace with their bodies and have found love with each other at fat camp this summer.  When Lucy returns home skinny, everything changes.  She is finally accepted into the popular group, the Royals.  However, being a lesbian does not fit their mold.  This one made it difficult to like any of the characters, but there was growth even within the confines of the short story.  I enjoyed the arc of the djinn the most and that Lucy and Sienna were able to realize that love wins over popularity. 


Sunset Moon incorporates lore from the Blackfeet Native American mythology in order to reawaken a troubled teen.  Eloise takes the rap for her boyfriend and now has one strike too many, it's either jail time or nine months at a juvenile work home.  While there, Eloise is forced to learn about her heritage and meets Ven.  Ven is bound to help Eloise through the darkness, but she must accept the light.  I really liked learning about the dreamcatcher lore as well as watching Eloise find hope in her life.  This is one that I would have loved to see develop into a longer story.


The Jewish Golem and Frankenstein's monster are combined in The Maker.  After Brett is left with a traumatic brain injury, courtesy of his now ex-girlfriend Cassandra, his life is changed forever and he is bent on revenge.  Unable to get out and about much by himself, Brett unearths his family's hidden manuscripts and makes a creature that will be sure to seduce Cassandra and humiliate her.  The Maker is definitely the creepiest story of the bunch, but also the most surprising.  The Golem is the best character of this story.  

A Beautiful Morning was one of my favorite stories, a tale of the Mayan sun god Kinish and flower goddess Ishel.  Their love for one another made perfect sense, but was forbidden.  This was a sweet romance that incorporated the destructive nature of some of the other Mayan gods that may have led to the downfall of the civilization. I really enjoyed these characters and the glimpse into the complicated lives of the Mayan deities.

The Barricades turned out to be another favorite of mine even though the premise seemed really strange to me.  Set in the future on another world, the Fae and humans have escaped a dying Earth.  They were set to live as equals, but the Ethernal Fae's powers have placed the above the humans in every way.  When the dying Eternal prince Daniel is found within the human area, a very caring human girl, Casey risks everything to save his life.  This was a very sweet and action packed story laced with magic, greed and romance.  A lot of development was packed into this short story that made it seem like much more.

The planet of Eldon, formerly Earth, controls its citizens with religion and a strict, but corrupt moral code that holds great consequences when broken.  Women are not allowed to go to school, except to train as wives upon their 19th birthday.  They are property of men that are held in high regard.  Education for all has gone by the wayside and knowledge of religion is revered.  Infrastructure is crumbling, everything is polluted and  people are dying.  Zelenka is unique, her parents married for love and educated her including how to read and write.  Now, Zelenka is spying for the  Amaryllians, the people who defected from Eldon.  Fianna, an Amyrillian is trying to set up an interplanetary trade in order to rescue some of the more enlightened Eldon's.  Zelenka makes the decision to follow Fianna to a new planet when the man she believed loved her, Fraco, refuses a love match.  With Zelenka's 19th birthday approaching, leaving Eldon is her safest bet.  Amyrillis is paradise for Zelenka, but not for long.

Days of Reign is a unique dystopian read that takes common elements of our current society and brings them to the extreme to create a horrific world, but one that is not to different from our own.  Zelenka's character was easily relatable, an educated women in a society where women were supposed to be owned or kept, she is working for a way out and takes it.  Fraco is a very interesting character, he seems motivated by love, but is stunted by the world he lives in and how he has been raised.  He is willing to destroy an entire planet in order to get back the woman he believes he owns.  The world building on Eldon and Amyrillis is detailed, I could easily picture degradation of Eldon and the serenity of Amyrillis.  The books is written from multiple points of view, some of which I didn't quite understand the purpose of, at least yet.  The first part of the book takes place on Eldon and is fast paced and laced with danger.  The second half takes place on Amyrillis and is idyllic and refreshing, but slower paced as Zelenka takes in a new culture.  There is foreboding danger lurking, however which rises to a shocking and sudden cliffhanger ending.  
​
This book was received for free in return for an honest review. 

​Far in the future, there are no remnants of human life left. In a distant solar system, the uplifted elephant-like species of Barsk, the Fant live out their daily lives excluded from the many other uplifted species.  However, Barsk is the only planet that can grow the plants for a variety of medicinal drugs.  One drug, called koph helps those with the talent of Speaking to interact with the dead.  Jorl is a Fant who is a Speaker and a historian who has specialized in the prophesies of the Matriarch.  Jorls often Speaks to his best friend, Arlo and helps to take care of his son, Pizlo.  While Speaking, Jorl notices that he cannot connect with several Fant's that have just passed, this knowledge combined with some interesting visions that Pizlo has begun to see, causes Jorl to believe that he is part of one of the prophesies.

Barsk: The Elephants' Graveyard is a unique fantasy that pulled me into a different world.  This is a story that you have to allow yourself to go with the flow and immerse yourself into the world of Barsk.  The inhabitants of Barsk and the other worlds are all mammals that have been somehow integrated with human thought process, language and emotions while still having traits of the animal they originated from.  This made for an interesting conflicts between beings as well as a mystery as to why everyone else disliked the Fant.  Since there was so much going on, I focused on Jorl and his insights as well as Pizlo.  Pizlo was the most intriguing character for me.  He is an outcast, since he was born to parents who were not fully bonded.  Fant- besides his mother and Jorl ignore Pizlo, however Pizlo seems to have the greatest sense about what is going on with Barsk and those who are after its resources.  Once Jorl and Pizlo begin to investigate the issues with the dead, things get complicated. The draw of koph has pulled in many other inhabitants from around the galaxy and they are not about to play nicely.  Tensions rise as Speakers try to draw out knowledge from deceased Fant as well as almost deceased Fant.  From here the story got very political and could easily relate to many trade situations happening on Earth.  Pizlo's character added the elements of innocence and fantasy to keep the story on track for me.  The ending also surprised me with what they were all hiding.  Overall, a distinctive fantasy that has a lot to offer. 


This book was received for free in return for an honest review.