Where Fiction and Reality Meet
Title: The Case of the Missing Maid Series: Harriet Morrow Investigates: Book One Author: Rob Osler Publisher: Kensington Publishing Length: 321 Pages Category: Historical Mystery Rating: 4 Stars At a Glance: Not fast paced but paced perfectly for the time in which the story is set, when life was a little slower than we know... Continue Reading →
Titles: Beneath Strange Lights and Against Fearful Lies Series: Amelia Temple: Books One and Two Author: Vivian Moira Valentine Publisher: Self-Published Length: 269 and 334 Pages Category: Cosmic Horror, New Adult, Historical Rating: 5 Stars At a Glance: If you love your cosmic horror with a heaping side of intelligence, sympathetic heroines, evil-doers and alien... Continue Reading →
Title: The Woods All Black Author: Lee Mandelo Publisher: Tordotcom Length: 153 Pages Category: Historical Fantasy Rating: 4 Stars At a Glance: Horror is not always about the things that go bump in the night or hide in the places that light can’t touch. Horror is as often about the inhumane masking as human, the... Continue Reading →
Title: Fever Author: Jordan L. Hawk Publisher: JordanLHawk.com Length: 241 Pages Category: Historical, Horror Rating: 5 Stars At a Glance: This is not a cozy story; it's claustrophobic, which is a feat unto itself. The vast and barren environment, nothing but sky and an eerie silence, closes in, and it didn't take much for my... Continue Reading →
Title: An Education in Malice Author: S.T. Gibson Publisher: Redhook Length: 346 Pages Category: Dark Fantasy, Historical Rating: 3.5 Stars At a Glance: An Education in Malice is not meant to be light on drama. It foments darkness, steeps in a soup of its own secrets, complicates itself with a fixation on a decades-long separation... Continue Reading →
Title: The Captain's Holiday Homecoming Series: Christmas Masquerade: Book Four Author: Meg Mardell Publisher: Self-Published Length: 97 Pages Category: Historical, Holiday Romance Rating: 3.5 Stars At a Glance: The heart of this story is also its appeal. Kindness and empathy are its hallmarks. That I wanted more isn't a criticism, merely a wish gone unfulfilled.... Continue Reading →
Title: Death by Silver Series: Lynes & Mathey: Book One Authors: Melissa Scott and Amy Griswold Publisher: Queen of Swords Press Length: 375 Pages Category: Historical Mystery, Fantasy Rating: 3.5 Stars At a Glance: While I remain perplexed by all the accolades heaped up this book, if you like a good procedural mystery, Death by... Continue Reading →
Title: Lavender House Author: Lev AC Rosen Publisher: Tor Forge Length: 288 Pages Category: Historical (1950s), Murder Mystery Rating: 4 Stars At a Glance: I'm not sure what the author's plans are for Andy, but the Evander Mills Mysteries seems like a great title for a series, and Andy is a character I'd happily get... Continue Reading →
Title: The Tower Series: The Spell Saga: Book Two Author: Cari Z Publisher: Amazon/Kindle Unlimited Length: 118 Pages Category: Fantasy, Steampunk Rating: 4 Stars At a Glance: The setting has changed in The Tower, but the suspense and threats to life and limb are no less absolute or intense. More magic, more curiosities, and surely... Continue Reading →
Title: Some by Virtue Fall Series: The Seven Gods: Book One Author: Alexandra Rowland Publisher: Self-Published Length: 150 Pages Category: Alt U, Historical Rating: 4 Stars At a Glance: The subtly self-referential aspect of Some by Virtue Fall is that this story itself would have made for a brilliantly entertaining play, with heroes and villains,... Continue Reading →
Title: Dust to Dust Series: The Sutter & Adler Mysteries: Book One Author: Jess Faraday Publisher: Self-Published Length: 54 Pages Category: Historical, Mystery Rating: 4 Stars At a Glance: I’m so excited to see Ira Adler and Calvin Sutter again and to see where Jess Faraday is taking them as they get down to the... Continue Reading →
Title: The Lights of Prague Author: Nicole Jarvis Publisher: Titan Books Length: 342 Pages Category: Gaslamp Fantasy Rating: 2.5 Stars At a Glance: I had such high hopes for this book, which makes it all the more disappointing that I failed to engage with it. Sadly, the story didn’t captivate me like I’d hoped it... Continue Reading →
Title: The Bayou Author: Arden Powell Publisher: Amazon/Kindle Unlimited Length: 97 Pages Category: Southern Gothic, Horror, Fantasy, Historical Rating: 4 Stars At a Glance: Arden Powell melds the feral and predatory with the fantastical and dreadful. Their writing is claustrophobic in the best ways, capturing the sultriness of the setting, and that special something for... Continue Reading →
Title: Incubus Author: Leighton Greene Publisher: Self-Published Length: 431 Pages Category: Noir Mystery, Historical Rating: 4 Stars At a Glance: Incubus most certainly won't be everyone's cuppa. The cruelty is the point in this dark, twisted, base, deviant, and yet ridiculously compelling story. I couldn't put it down. Reviewed By: Lisa Blurb: Los Angeles, 1956.... Continue Reading →
Title: The Fall and Rise of Peter Stoller Author: M. Pepper Langlinais Publisher: Amazon/Kindle Unlimited Length: 304 Pages Category: Historical, Espionage, Spy Thriller At a Glance: At its heart, this novel is a character study, something it succeeds at and I feel falls short in too. If you are a diehard completionist, be aware that... Continue Reading →
Title: Pyre at the Eyreholme Trust Author: Lin Darrow Publisher: Self-Published (2nd Edition) Length: Novella Category: Historical Fantasy At a Glance: Magic, intrigues, blackmail, double-crosses and fun all come together in a 1920s gangland setting born from Lin Darrow's imagination. I'd have happily read many more pages of story set in the seamy and sensational... Continue Reading →
Title: No Good Men Series: The Caro Mysteries: Book One Author: Thea McAlistair Publisher: NineStar Press Length: 225 Pages Category: Historical, Mystery At a Glance: While I enjoyed a variety of aspects of this story and its intrigues, what really sets the mood is the 1930s setting. The title of the book is a nice... Continue Reading →
Title: Gentleman Wolf Series: Capital Wolves Duet: Book One Author: Joanna Chambers Publisher: Self-Published Length: 216 Pages Category: Historical, Paranormal/Fantasy At a Glance: There were some very fine elements of suspense and imagination in this novel as well as several side characters who supported the story in interesting ways. Joanna Chambers leaves readers with a... Continue Reading →
Title: Ziggy, Stardust and Me Author: James Brandon Publisher: G.P. Putnam's Sons Length: 368 Pages Category: YA/Teen Fiction At a Glance: Ziggy, Stardust and Me is author James Brandon’s debut novel, and it is a stellar entry that has left its mark on me in the way only a book can. Reviewed By: Lisa Blurb:... Continue Reading →
Title: The Man Who Fell in Love With the Moon Author: Tom Spanbauer Publisher: HarperCollins Length: 368 Pages Category: Historical, LGBT Fiction At a Glance: The Man Who Fell in Love With the Moon is a book unlike any I’ve read before, and my head was so full of its story when I finished that... Continue Reading →
Title: Colina de Lavanda Series: Warmest Wishes: Advent Calendar 2018 Author: August Li Publisher: Dreamspinner Press Length: 50 Pages Category: Historical, Holiday Romance At a Glance: Colina de Lavanda was a bit muddled for me, and seemed to need a lot more page time to unravel the love story that suddenly blossomed in the final... Continue Reading →
Title: The Fruit of the Poisonous Tree Series: Stoker & Bash: Book Two Author: Selina Kray Publisher: Self-Published Length: 401 Pages Category: Historical, Mystery/Suspense At a Glance: This is another excellent outing for Stoker, Bash, and company and once again, the cover is a beautiful complement to the story inside. Reviewed By: Lisa Blurb: When... Continue Reading →
Title: Mammoth! Series: Repeating History: Book Three Author: Dakota Chase Publisher: Harmony Ink Press Length: 180 Pages Category: Historical, Teen Fiction, Time Travel At a Glance: Although some parts of the story fell flat, the author has again done a wonderful job on portraying the time-period. Reviewed By: Kel Blurb: To replace another of the... Continue Reading →
Title: Eye of Ra Series: Repeating History: Book One Author: Dakota Chase Publisher: Harmony Ink Press (2nd Edition) Length: 180 Pages Category: Teen Fiction, Time Travel At a Glance: This is a great way to start out a very interesting series. I hope the author can keep up the great work, with a bit of... Continue Reading →
The Novel Approach Reviews 