Now THOSE are Big Dogs!

 

TITLE: Mega-Dogs of New Kansas

AUTHOR: Dan Jolley and Jacques Khouri

PUBLISHER: Graphic Universe

PUBLISHING DATE: October 6, 2020

PAGES: 144

SOURCE: Library

FROM GOODREADS: 

The story of a girl and her dog--in space. 

Sienna Barlow loves nothing more than riding around New Kansas on top of her mega-dog, Gus. He's one of the massive pooches protecting the human settlers of a strange planet. In fact, Sienna connects better with Gus than with other kids. So when a visiting official threatens to shut down the mega-dog program, Sienna sneaks off with her best friend. After she, Gus, and a stowaway crash their escape ship, they discover a danger to every human in their community--and launch a wild plan to save New Kansas.

MY THOUGHTS: Sienna lives with her mother is space in an area known as New Kansas.  Her mother is a scientist and has created a new program to help everyone - the Mega Dogs.  Sienna loves helping with the pups and even has her own Mega-Dog, Gus.  However, when her actions are misunderstood by a new kid, the whole program and even Gus's life, is threatened by visiting officials because they are deemed dangerous.

This was a great graphic novel and I thoroughly adored it.  The artwork is a tad primitive but in my opinion, that works great for the story it tells.  It's told in primary earth tones which sets the mood for the new settlement. I also really liked Sienna.  She suffers from anxiety and has a hard time making friends which is just one of the reasons Gus is so important to her.  The overall plot teaches a few lessons along the way and I think it would be a great book for parents to read with their kids to open up various discussions.  

Overall, a fun read which would be perfect for the younger generation or anyone who just loves a tale featuring adorable and cute dogs.  

RATING: 4 PAWS

What's Happening (02-20-21) - A Long Time Coming

 

So once again I'm going to try to make this a regular feature.  I got really bad about updating at the end of 2020.  Hopefully I'll get better at checking in regularly.  As always, I'm linking up with Stacking the Shelves at  Tynga's Reviews and The Sunday Post at The Caffeinated Reviewer.

So it's been about a month since I've done a life update and what can I say except life has been trying.  I can't really complain because we are all safe and healthy and even though we've had a few weeks of rough weather, it's not even close to what others have been going though.  My thoughts and prayers go out to so many people who have experience horrible things in the past month.

Also, Gpa's dementia has been getting worse and I've trying to get Stupid Uncle to step up and do something because I've been at my wit's end a few times.  I love my Gpa dearly but he's stated taking off at night and I worry about his safety.  Luckily the past few weeks have mellowed a tad.

So on to the positives!  Cass and Apollo are doing great.  Cass has been having some sensitive stomach issues but overall he's good.  He also got to see his girlfriend Emma when we walked today so that made his week. Also, the job I mentioned in my last update... I got it!  My first day is March 1st so I've been wrapping things up at my old job and will be enjoying a week's vacation this coming week before starting my next chapter.  Also, Mr. Barb got a promotion at work and is now running his own substance abuse treatment unit within the work release.  I'm so proud of him

On to reading and watching.  Movies have been scarce but we did watch Pretty Little Things with Denzel Washington.  It was decent but slower than I anticipated.  We watched the entire new The Stand limited series and I loved it!  Of course, I REALLY disliked that book and the series cut so much out of it that I am sure that's why it was such a hit for us.  However, the last episode came out of nowhere and I'm not really sure why they went in that direction unless that wanted to try to set things up for a season 2.  We also watched the new Wrong Turn which was nothing like the original and actually had a more Viking feel to it which was VERY odd.

I've been reading quite a bit and am behind on reviews.  Hope to get three dog related titles up next week to end up They Call It Puppy Love month on a high note.  Here's what I'm currently reading.  

And here are some awesome ARCS that have been sent my way.

So I hope you all are fine and I will be visiting you all lots next week.  Stay warm and safe!

Flame Tree Press Blog Tour - The Searching Dead

 

TITLE: The Searching Dead

AUTHOR: Ramsey Campbell

PUBLISHER: Flame Tree Press

PUBLISHING DATE: February 16, 2021

PAGES: 256

SOURCE: ARC

FROM GOODREADS: 1952. On a school trip to France teenager Dominic Sheldrake begins to suspect his teacher Christian Noble has reasons to be there as secret as they're strange. Meanwhile a widowed neighbour joins a church that puts you in touch with your dead relatives, who prove much harder to get rid of. As Dominic and his friends Roberta and Jim investigate, they can’t suspect how much larger and more terrible the link between these mysteries will become. A monstrous discovery beneath a church only hints at terrors that are poised to engulf the world as the trilogy brings us to the present day…

MY THOUGHTS: Everyone who visits here regularly knows how much I love Flame Tree Press publications and honestly, I think this is just another of their releases everyone needs to add to their TBR.  Just know going into this book that it's the first one in a trilogy and I can't wait for the rest of the series to come my way.

The tale is set in Post WWII Liverpool.  The main character Dominic, is on a school trip and starts to suspect that his history teacher, Mr. Noble, has ulterior motives for being there.  Also, his neighbor is convinced that her dead husband has returned.  Dominic and his friends begin to try to piece together what is going on and figure out how it all might connect to Mr. Noble and something mysterious beneath a church.  

I'll admit that I'm having a tad time explaining this plot because I'm afraid of giving too much away. Plus, I went into this book pretty blind and based primarily on the author and having liked some of his past works.  Truthfully, I think it might work best that way.  Dominic is the star in a coming-of-age horror story and I loved traveling with him on his unknown journey.  I also loved Dominic relationship with his friends Roberta and Jim.  

If you love horror and haven't read Campbell yet, I have to ask why?  Although this one is somewhat of a slow burn, it's one I enjoyed each step of the way!  Bring on the next book!

RATING: 4 PAWS

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:  The Oxford Companion to English Literature describes Ramsey Campbell as “Britain’s most respected living horror writer”. He has been given more awards than any other writer in the field, including the Grand Master Award of the World Horror Convention, the Lifetime Achievement Award of the Horror Writers Association, the Living Legend Award of the International Horror Guild and the World Fantasy Lifetime Achievement Award. 

2 Bloggers 1 Book - Don't Move

 

Stormi and I had several books we wanted to read together this month which is why you are seeing double this feature.  We both had this book on our TBRs for a while and decided it was finally time to crack down and read it.  So read on to see my thoughts and then make sure to hop over to Stormi's at  Books, Movies, Reviews! Oh My! to see her opinion! 

TITLE: Don't Move

AUTHORS: James S. Murray and Darren Wearmouth

PUBLISHER: Blackstone Publishing

PUBLISHING DATE: October 20, 2020

PAGES: 250

SOURCE: Kindle Library

FROM GOODREADS: 

Megan Forrester has barely survived the unthinkable. Six months ago, she witnessed a horrific accident that killed her husband and son, and lives with the guilt of knowing she could have done more to save them. Now, Megan hopes to mend the pieces of her broken spirit by attending a local church group's annual camping trip. But the church group members-riddled with dark secrets of their own-make a catastrophic navigational mistake, leaving them stranded in an untouched canyon in the West Virginian national forest. 

Isolated from any chance of help or rescue, Megan and the others quickly realize why this side of the canyon has never been surveyed by mankind: it's home to a terrifying prehistoric arachnid that patiently stalks its prey through even the slightest movement or vibration in the forest. And it's desperate for a meal. 

Grief-stricken and haunted by her tragic loss, Megan now faces her ultimate test of endurance. Can she outwit a bloodthirsty creature hellbent on ensuring that no one gets out of alive? When a single wrong turn can mean death, she only has one option: DON'T MOVE.

MY THOUGHTS:  I wanted to really love this book.  I was so excited to finally read it and while I did enjoy it, it didn't quite live up to my expectations.

The book starts off with a bang when Megan's husband and son are killed in a tragic accident.  And let me tell you, the authors left nothing to the imagination on that one.  Six months later she is joining church group on a trip from New York to a national forest in West Virginia.  Megan is trying her best to function again after her life was destroyed and she is using the trip to heal.  However, not only does she not have an idea what is waiting for her, she also didn't count on a ragtag group of characters which made up one strange church group in my honest opinion.

Let's just say that West Virginia might have some caves with some big bad-ass spiders living in them.  Being a West Virginian myself, I want to know EXACTLY where they are so I can either avoid them, or lead clueless victims toward them 😜  I really liked Megan and she was a very strong and independent characters.  Everyone on the trip needed to thank their lucky stars that she was with them.  The rest of the crew I could do without.  There was an elderly couple who had their grandson in tow and he was so annoying that sadly I was not-so-secretly wishing for his demise.  Emma, the Pastor's daughter, might have  been okay if it weren't for both her ex-boyfriend and current boyfriend both being on the same trip.  And the lead tour guide, I never did trust him and everyone believed that because he worked in the Lowe's garden department he was capable of leading them into the hills of West Virginia.

The book had lots of action and if  you like creature horror, it's a decent enough read.  However, the ending fell flat for me and I think had it been done differently, I might have enjoyed it more. Overall it was a decent read and it really wasn't a long one so if you want a quick read it might be one to grab.  

RATING: 3 PAWS

Can't Wait Wednesday (310) - Romance is in the Air!

 

 

Can't Wait Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted at Wishful Endings to spotlight highly anticipated books.  It is based on the Waiting on Wednesday meme which used to be hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine.

FROM GOODREADS: Danica Waterhouse is a fully modern witch—daughter, granddaughter, cousin, and co-owner of the Fix-It Witches, a magical tech repair shop. After a messy breakup that included way too much family “feedback,” Danica made a pact with her cousin: they’ll keep their hearts protected and have fun, without involving any of the overly opinionated Waterhouse matriarchs. Danica is more than a little exhausted navigating a long-standing family feud where Gram thinks the only good mundane is a dead one and Danica’s mother weaves floral crowns for anyone who crosses her path.

Three blocks down from the Fix-It Witches, Titus Winnaker, owner of Sugar Daddy’s bakery, has family trouble of his own. After a tragic loss, all he’s got left is his sister, the bakery, and a lifetime of terrible luck in love. Sure, business is sweet, but he can’t seem to shake the romantic curse that’s left him past thirty and still a virgin. He’s decided he’s doomed to be forever alone.

Until he meets Danica Waterhouse. The sparks are instant, their attraction irresistible. For him, she’s the one. To her, he’s a firebomb thrown in the middle of a family war. Can a modern witch find love with an old-fashioned mundane who refuses to settle for anything less than forever?

WHY I CAN'T WAIT:  I guess February has me craving something light for a while and this one has one of my buzzwords in the title so I couldn't resist sharing it.  It sounds like it will  be a cute read and I do tend to use romance for a palette cleanser between lots of my darker reads. Plus I've read some of this author's urban fantasy books and enjoyed them.

CASSIUS'S PICK:

FROM GOODREADS: First in a sparkling new romcom series about two Dalmatian owners who constantly butt heads, but soon realize that sometimes love isn’t black and white

The arrival of a new fire marshal in the small seaside town of Turtle Beach, North Carolina, turns the community upside down when his partner, a rescue Dalmatian trained as a fire safety demonstration dog, accidentally gets switched with a naughty look-a-like Dalmatian belonging to the free-spirited daughter of the local police chief. The two Dalmatian owners constantly butt heads, but by the time the 4th of July Fireman's Ball rolls around, they begin to realize that sometimes love is more than black and white.

WHY I CAN'T WAIT:  Mom asked me to find her a romance book featuring dogs and I think I delivered a good one if I do say so myself.  I can't wait to see how two crazy dogs (I've always heard that about dalmatians) brings two adults together.  

HEY MOM! Are you sure Apollo isn't a dalmatian??? 

WHAT BOOK CAN'T YOU WAIT FOR THIS WEEK???

Black Widows Blog Tour

 

TITLE: Black Widows

AUTHOR: Cate Quinn

PUBLISHER: Orion

PUBLISHING DATE: February 4, 2021

PAGES: 419

SOURCE: ARC

FROM GOODREADS: 

The only thing the three women had in common was their husband. And, as of this morning, that they're each accused of his murder. 

Blake Nelson moved into a hidden stretch of land - a raw paradise in the wilds of Utah - where he lived with his three wives: 

Rachel, the chief wife, obedient and doting to a fault. Tina, the other wife, who is everything Rachel isn't. And Emily, the youngest wife, who knows little else. 

When their husband is found dead under the desert sun, the questions pile up. But none of the widows know who would want to kill a good man like Blake. Or, at least, that's what they'll tell the police...

MY THOUGHTS:  I can honestly say I don't think I've read a thriller before where the victim was married to three different women and they all lived together happily... or did they?  Blake, Rachel, Tina and Emily live on a piece of land in Utah.  One day, Blake is found dead and all three wives are suspects.  What unravels is a story that kept me reading late into the night and provided enough twists and turns that I couldn't figure out what was going on.

Black Widows is an exciting domestic thriller which focuses on cults, polygamy, and abuse.  And while it would be easily to think that the Tina, Rachel and Emily didn't like each other at all, Quinn did a wonderful job of showing how much they actually cared for each other.  Told in the POVs of all three women, the book is very character driven which is something I like in a novel.  I will say that the whole unreliable narrator aspect which usually drives me crazy and turns me away from books, really worked in Black Widows and I really glad I picked the book up.  

If you like domestic thrillers, this is one that shouldn't be missed.  While I never really felt any sympathy for Blake's death, I sure had a lot of fun learning about each of his wives might have wanted him dead.

RATING: 4 PAWS

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:  Cate Quinn is a travel and lifestyle journalist for The Times, the Guardian and the Mirror, alongside many magazines. Prior to this, Quinn's background in historic research won prestigious postgraduate funding from the British Art Council. Quinn pooled these resources, combining historical research with first-hand experiences in far-flung places to create critically acclaimed and bestselling historical fiction.

 

Orenda Blog Tour - Deity

 

TITLE: Deity (Six Stories #5)

AUTHOR: Matt Wesolowski   

PUBLISHER: Orenda Books

PUBLISHING DATE: February 18, 2021

PAGES:320    

SOURCE: ARC

FROM GOODREADS: 

Online investigative journalist Scott King investigates the death of a pop megastar, the subject of multiple accusations of sexual abuse and murder before his untimely demise in a fire … another episode of the startlingly original, award-winning Six Stories series.  

When pop megastar Zach Crystal dies in a fire at his remote mansion, his mysterious demise rips open the bitter divide between those who adored his music and his endless charity work, and those who viewed him as a despicable predator, who manipulated and abused young and vulnerable girls. 

Online journalist Scott King, whose ‘Six Stories’ podcasts have become an internet sensation, investigates the accusations of sexual abuse and murder that were levelled at Crystal before he died. But as Scott begins to ask questions and rakes over old graves, some startling inconsistencies emerge: Was the fire at Crystal’s remote home really an accident? Whose remains – still unidentified – were found in the ashes? Why was he never officially charged? 

Dark, chillingly topical and deeply thought-provoking, Deity is both an explosive thriller and a startling look at how heroes can fall from grace and why we turn a blind eye to even the most heinous of crimes…

MY THOUGHTS: First of all, I think this cover is stunning, and if it doesn't scream "horror" than the author's promotional pick does!  And you know how much I love horror.  I was a tad hesitant going into this one because it is part of a sequel but seriously, that didn't create any reading problems for me. Well, maybe that isn't true because now I need to go to back and read his previous works.  

I adored the concept of this novel. It focuses on a podcast investigator which is an element I love to see in books.  It also has the celebrity connection I also enjoy.  Zach Crystal, a huge popstar, dies when his mansion burns.  This is all fresh upon allegations of abuse of young girls.  Scott King, opens an investigation on his podcast in which he interviews six people, and then leaves the listerer/reader to determine what they thing really happened.  

This book really showed the dark side of fame and how people can sometimes be the biggest monsters of all.  In addition, it takes a real hard look at how people in the public eye can often get away with things because of who they are and their standing in society.  I can't stress enough how much you should pick up this book.  I will definitely be going back and starting at the beginning of this series and Wesolowski is definitely an author to watch.  I see great things in his future and I'm so glad I was able to participate in the blog tour for this one!

RATING: 5 PAWS

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Matt Wesolowski is an author from Newcastle-upon-Tyne in the UK. He is an English tutor for young people in care. Matt started his writing career in horror, and his short horror fiction has been published in numerous UK- and US-based anthologies, such as Midnight Movie Creature, Selfies from the End of the World, Cold Iron and many more. His novella, The Black Land, a horror set on the Northumberland coast, was published in 2013. Matt was a winner of the Pitch Perfect competition at the Bloody Scotland Crime Writing Festival in 2015. His debut thriller, Six Stories, was an Amazon bestseller in the USA, Canada, the UK and Australia, and a WHSmith Fresh Talent pick, and film rights were sold to a major Hollywood studio. A prequel, Hydra, was published in 2018 and became an international bestseller. Changeling, the third book in the series, was published in 2019 and was longlisted for the Theakston’s Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year. His fourth book, Beast, won the Amazon Publishing Readers’ Independent Voice Book of the Year award in 2020.