I. Am. Aliiiiiive....

Wowza, it's been a while. I just got on bookmooch for the first time in ages, and requested way more books than I should have, while adding books to my inventory as well. Love that site, but it's almost too much for someone with little self-control in the way of books.

Anyway, I promise more reviews are coming soon. I've been neglecting my Netgalley account as well. *slaps myself on the wrist* bad, bad Ashleigh. I have not entirely forsaken reading though. I've been reading mostly library books. Which is a first for me, because I have so many books on my own shelves to read, but it hasn't been bad. Not bad at all.

IT'S HERE!!!

Love getting packages in the mail. Especially when they contain new books!!! Yay!!!!! Yes, I realize that the Cainsville series is not a new one, but hey, guess what! This blog isn’t JUST about “new” books!!!

Besides, did YOU know that there’s a novella based in the Cainsville series due to come out April 1^st, 2017? And guess who’s got an ARC. That’s right! This gal!!

Kelley Armstrong holds a special place on my shelf, because she wrote the first adult series I ever finished reading (Women of the Otherworld). While she is a great writer, I have also gained an appreciation for her on a human level. First of all, she actually writes her own books even though she’s gotten famous enough she probably doesn’t have to (what a concept). Secondly, she donated the proceeds from her book, “Men of the Otherworld”, to charity. How cool is that?! Oh, and thirdly, her publisher accepted ME for an ARC. If that doesn’t deserve appreciation, I don’t know what does.

Anyway, once I was accepted for the novella, “Lost Souls”, I felt like frolicking through a field of daisies with unicorns and fairies quick in toe. This. This is why I love Netgalley. THANK YOU NETGALLEY!!!!

Quickly thereafter, I had an, “Oh, dang,” moment, “I haven’t read any of this series yet. I can’t just start the story randomly in the middle. Guess I gotta buy and read those first books.” *slight smirk*

So yes, I am excited. It. Has. Arrived. In the mail, because I live in a small town without a real bookstore *sobs*. Hey, it’s on my list of future aspirations, Open a Bookstore. That would be just…*harmonic angelicy type music…clears throat* Anyway…

Fear not! More reviews soon!!!

Miles McHale, Tattletale by Christianne C. Jones Illustrated by Elina Ellis *Review*

WhAt!?! I write reviews on kids’ books as well?!

…why yes, yes I do, and this one is a goodin’

Let us start this review with a Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!...for writing this book! It needed to be written. More books like this would be a wonderful addition to the library. I love children’s books like this. “Miles McHale, Tattletale” is well-written, entertaining, and holds some quality lessons.

Miles McHale is a smart, funny, sweet little chick with one major character flaw: he likes to tattle. Like, ALL THE TIME! Seriously, it’s a shocker this kid has ANY friends.

Because, as we know this is not just an issue for any one student, in steps the teacher. She’s come up with a game. Everyone in class is broken into teams, and whichever group tattles the least within the week wins.

At this point I was a little iffy about the story. It’s a fine-line our kids must learn to walk. You don’t want your kids to be THAT kid: the one who tells on everyone for EVERYTHING. You also don’t want your child to feel uncomfortable telling you when something is seriously wrong. So here is where my true appreciation for this book comes in. The teacher has a little pledge:
If a friend is sick,
hurt, or in harm’s way,
Then telling someone
is OKAY.

Thank you for that. I think I’ll be putting that on my daughter’s wall in BIG. BOLD. LETTERS. Ha. Okay, maybe not, but it’s still a pretty good pledge, and a lesson worth stating.

This game ends up making it so that nobody wants to hangout with little Miles (honestly, if I were on another team, I’d probably hangout with him just to cause some subterfuge), and while some may disagree with showing this outcome, it’s realistic and understandable.

The end is happy yet, though it’s not the kind where everyone gets a blue ribbon. Yet another lesson in the making here, I think. We don’t always win, but that’s okay, because such is life.

So if you couldn’t tell, I thought this was a wonderful read. I think I’m going to have to buy it for my daughter’s kindergarten teacher, and possibly another copy for her first grade teacher next year. It’s a great story that’s written well, with some cute pictures as an added bonus.

Love it!

5 out of 5 stars!!

**This book was given to me through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review**

Something (Wisteria, #1) by Shelby Lamb *Review*

BE FOREWARNED, this is probably just a really long rant, but I had to get it out there. So here we go.

When I posted my original review on Goodreads I was frustrated. I just wanted to throw all of my frustrations out into the world so that others who didn’t enjoy this book knew that they weren’t alone (You’re not alone! I swear!!!). Now that I’ve had the chance to breathe and let the book settle, I figure it’s time for the lengthened revised review that goes on the blog. Sit tight, because this may not be pleasant.

First impressions: Okay, I’m a sucker. I fell for the creepy yet intriguing cover photo. Just look at it. It’s simply beautiful, isn’t it? What is it about floating, dismembered legs that works so well for a horror novel? I don’t know, but it sure as heck does!

Yeah, yeah the title’s a bit off. “Something”, really? Just doesn’t work quite as well as “IT”, huh? I thought, “Oh, but look at that cover. There’s gotta be ‘Something’ great (in a morbidly creepy sort of way) hidden within that binding.” (See what I did there with the word “Something”? You didn’t miss it, did ya? Feel free to go back and read it again if you didn’t catch it. I’ll wait…Yeah, I’m sure I won’t be the only one. Moving on!)

Unfortunately, I was partially…if mostly... wrong. (*grumble mumble* stupid cover photo people leading me astray. And fellow Goodreads reviewers too! What the heck?)

After reading the book, I feel a bit sad about it. Not that the characters or actual story made me sad. We’ll get to how I felt about the storyline in a moment.

Did you notice earlier how I said I was “partially” wrong? There IS “Something” (…OK, OK, I won’t make the joke again…) great within the confines of this book, and it’s the writing style. I was sad because the writing style is simply beautiful and fits the cover perfectly. It has a descriptive and creepy, and oftentimes had an unsettling tone to it. It’s languid, intelligent, but easily read.

The issue I had with this book was with the story itself. There really isn’t much of a story here at all. It’s all about the characters, and the characters just aren’t strong enough to hold the book together.

I think that once Ms. Lamb finds a good story to write about, with more interesting characters, she’ll be able to create something wonderful. Seriously, with her writing style she could keep you up at night. Provided she had the story to back it up.

So what went wrong with the story? Oh, don't worry, I'll tell ya. The very beginning of the book was jolted and jumbled.

-On page one; we’re taken to a bookstore where Aubrey finds the book, “Something”.

 -On the second page we jump to Aubrey having sex with a random guy in an alley. This is supposed to set the stage to show that Aubrey is still heartbroken over Nathan and trying to get over him (Who’s Nathan? That’s a very good question, because unless you read the book blurb and remember it, you don’t have a clue. You can guess, but I would have much preferred to have been introduced to him in a different way than this.). I was a little jarred by this segment, and had to go back and read to see if I missed something. Nope, it’s just a random sex scene, not my favorite.

-At the bottom of that second page there’s another break, and we’re taken to a home for Developmentally Disabled Adults (I know the term keeps changing, according to what’s politically correct at the time, but for now we’re going with this one) where Aubrey works. It seems she lives there as well? I quickly became confused about this last bit, because she goes to her room at the home, but then later it says that she lives at the school she goes to. On the weekends she lives with her grandparents. So she has three homes, I guess? I’m not entirely sure. I think all of this may have gotten lost in the writing somewhere.

-Aubrey then pulls out pills she’s collected from some of the residents, obviously stashing them just in case she wants to kill herself later. You know, as depressed people do. This is when she starts going on about how alone she is and how she has no friends.

Ok, so that’s all within the first three pages. We’ve been introduced to Aubrey, and in all honesty I felt like I knew her a little too well at this point. There’s no mystery here. All of this is thrown at you, and it makes Aubrey look like a whiney little girl, with an obnoxious self-pitying attitude, and serious issues.

It also doesn’t take long to see WHY Nathan broke up with her (her ex. If you didn’t catch that), as it is also soon revealed that even after over a month of him breaking up with her she texts him an average of about 20 times a day. And he hasn’t responded back once!!! Basically, she uses him as a diary, because she’s pretty much just talking to herself. Texts include thing like, but not limited to:

 "NATHAAAAAN"

"No one will ever love you like I do"

"I'm never talking to you again"

"Why don't you love me anymore?!"

Yeah, you probably could have guessed, but that's the gist.

I just have to say here, that I feel sorrier for Nathan than anyone else in this story. He really did get the raw end of the deal. Poor guy should have broken up with Aubrey a lot sooner, or better yet never gone out with her in the first place, though once you meet his mom you see why his relationship with Aubrey even happened. He also made the stupid decision to start dating Aubrey’s best friend. On that note, I really feel like the best friend was more in the wrong there. I almost wanted to give Nathan a pat on the back for that one, finally doing what makes him happy.

Anyway, back to Aubrey, because her “character building” takes up entirely too much of this story in my opinion. I feel that I disliked her so much, because too much of her character was shoved down my throat from the get go without telling me WHY she acted the way that she did. She may have had the potential to be a more sympathetic character, but by the time I was told why she was so self-loathing I really didn’t care.

Ugh, and I was downright tired of reading about how she had no friends. OK, we get it, nobody likes you. Get over it and figure out WHY, if it bothers you so much.

She really is your typical kid who sets themselves up to be bullied. Judge me if you will for that statement, because I'm not advocating bullying. It is awful and cruel (especially when done by catty girls), and there is so much of it in this book it's downright depressing, buuuut there are kids that allow it to happen, and Aubrey is one of those kids.

There should have been more plot to keep things moving along, with the characters sprinkled in here and there. It got to the point where the whole book was more about getting to know these characters than anything else, and every main female character had the SAME! EXACT!! VOICE!!!

It wasn’t long before we were introduced to another character: Bella. Aaaaand she’s naked. In her bedroom with friends. Chugging booze. Oh, and it’s announced that she has decided, as she has just turned 18, that she will soon become a porn star. As you can imagine, she has also had a rough life, and while honestly she’s just as depressed and self-pitying as Aubrey, she shows it in her own way, partying it up and shoving her boobs in any guy’s face that will have her.

As charming as Bella is (isn't she just?), if I had to choose one female character that I liked the most it would probably be her. At least she had spunk, though I’d never be friends with someone like this. She pretty much seems to hate everyone else as much as herself, and has no control over herself when it comes to sleeping with friend’s boyfriends (Whoopsy).

As our final female protagonist (though they sure as heck antagonized me), we have Kendra, a pregnant teenager, living in her dad and grandfather’s home, with her teenage boyfriend. While Kendra is the least developed character of the leading ladies (ladies being a loose term here. Loose. Haha.), I probably liked her the least. She was just as whiny as the previous two characters, but didn’t seem to hate her life as much. Yet, even though she had her darker side and doubts, it was like her boyfriend wasn’t allowed to feel the same way.

Pretty much what I gathered was Kendra’s situation was a mirror image of what poor Nathan would have gone through had he gotten Aubrey pregnant. Only they wouldn’t have had the support of her family, it would have been his to help out (Thank god you got out when you did and dodged that bullet, huh!) All in all, while I would never advocate getting a girl pregnant and ditching, I could see why Kendra’s boyfriend might not want to stick around.

So, we’re introduced to the characters, and we’re about 60 pages in, and I’m bored. I’ve realized at this point that while the writing style is great, nothing else is. We have these three unlikable female characters, who probably could have been made interesting but just aren’t, and we’re waiting for "Something" to pick up the plotline.

Sure, we get a few glimpses here and there of "Something" creepy hiding in the bushes, but it’s just not enough to keep the story afloat for me. The story has pretty much been dedicated to the main characters at this point, numerous (way too numerous) other characters thrown in as a bland supporting cast, and I just don’t care about them. They’re all the same person, placed in different lives.

…Woah. Wait. Maybe that was the whole point. Put the same person in different lives and see what she becomes… Nah, I doubt it, but I guess that could have been interesting, had the character herself been made interesting. Ok, I’ll stop saying the word interesting, because this story was anything but.

Something else I noticed were all of the adults in this book blending together. They were all one dimensional and unhelpful really for anything. That’s when I realized the biggest issue this book has, it’s going for too old of an audience. I’m okay with adult stories that have young characters, but when they’re all so immature it makes it hard to enjoy. If there were less sex and other adult situations, I would suggest this book to a YA audience, and it probably would have done a lot better there. The characters would have for sure appealed to a younger audience.

Along the same lines, the dialogue could have used some work. At times it didn’t feel natural, a bit choppy, and overdramatic. Everyone was VERY dramatic in this story. Again, this might have appealed to a younger audience base. This book just does not work as an adult horror novel.

Mentioning genre, let’s finally move onto that. The main reason I wanted to read this book was because it was marketed as a horror novel. So, what did I think of that? Eh, there’s potential here. It might have been a good one. Everything is just so overshadowed by all of the unneeded obnoxious characters, that I couldn’t bring myself to be even the slightest bit creeped out.

Also, Ms. Lamb might have benefited from writing it more like a horror novel and less like a movie in these spots. For the most part we’re focused on the characters, but then when something creepy happens we’re transferred to an omnipresent narrative voice, seeing things the characters don’t. Scenes were written with statements like, “she didn’t notice…” Rather than that, I might have made the character see these things, but not register them as odd. Though of course we the reader would, because we’re looking for something creepy to happen.

Through all of this there is the slight, sliiiiight, possibility that I would give this author another chance a few years down the road (though no way in hell from this series). The writing is there, she’s just got to come up with a good story to tell, about interesting characters (I said interesting, not likeable. I’ll settle for interesting.). Give me variety in voices, please, pleeeeaaaase, and some story arcs along the way.

When all is said and done it’s a 2 out of 5 star read. I’ll give you that star for the writing style, BUT NOT A STAR MORE!!!

**I received this book through Netgalley in return for an honest review**

Kin of Cain: A Short Bernicia Tale by Matthew Harffy *Review*

FINALLY!!! a book that delivers. I am so tired of books with beautiful covers and great titles that just don’t quite reach my expectations. This one. This one was it.

Before we get into the nitty gritty of this review, I just have to say on a personal note, I seriously need to start reading more novellas. It really is the perfect length for a booklover with a busy life. When life’s got me running around I’d normally pick up an anthology, but this gave me new hope for the world of novellas. Thank you for that Mr. Harffy.

Onto what you came here for:

“Kin of Cain: A Short Bernicia Tale” is a historical fiction and the retelling of a very, veeeery old story. I’m not going to tell you which one, because that’s part of the fun.

We start this tale in the great hall, partying it up with all the kings horses and all the kings men (well…minus the horses). The celebration is interrupted by screams from outside. After a slight hesitation, everyone arms themselves, and then someone opens the door, and so a terrifying beast is introduced.

The creature is known by many names: Nightwalker, Kin of Cain, nihtgenga (I rather like this last one, though I have a hard time pronouncing it). It’s known by so many names, because no one knows what it actually is. All that is known is that its flesh cannot be penetrated by spear, and it has killed time and again, ripping livestock, women, and boys to shreds. And from the sounds of it, it only strikes at night.

With this night’s interruption, the king decides “NO MORE”, and he sends his 5 “best” warriors to hunt down the beast and kill it. And so the real story begins.


This, in my opinion, is the perfect beginnings for an epic bedtime story. This is also the point where most authors would have lost it. Things would go astray, start to get boring, and I would cry myself to sleep over all the potential lost. NOT THE CASE WITH “KIN OF CAIN”. Things just don’t let up (I know this statement is cliché, but it’s really true in the case of this story). There was never a point I found myself daydreaming about other books, because I was too dang enthralled with this one. Yes, it’s that good.

Now, with a book like this we all know there is more to it than just the storyline. The writing style is a biggun’ for me. Mr. Harffy shines in this aspect. The writing fits perfectly with the timeline and story, but it’s never over-the-top so that you can’t understand what’s going on. It’s subtle, beautiful, and descriptive, never getting in the way of the story itself.

On the same point as the writing, one negative aspect here and the only thing that drops this book from 5 to 4 stars, is that there were a few of the action scenes that were slowed by wordiness. These few sections gave me a little pause to try to figure out what was really going on. I think these sections could have been strengthened by being more cut and dry. Other than those few sections the writing style was spot on.

For those of you interested in characterizations (many times what makes a good story great), this story does a fantastic job of bringing the characters to life. We do get to know some characters better than others, but for such a short piece I was very well pleased in this aspect of the storytelling. I wanted to know more about some of the characters backgrounds, and I wish there were a book to give me that. This isn’t a negative comment in the slightest; I think it’s good to want more of the juicy bits.

As far as plot and story arcs go, there were times I thought I could see the writing on the wall, thinking things were going to get predictable, and then it took a turn in an all together great direction surprising me to my glee. This is what you want in a book like this. To be almost lulled into a sense of knowing what’s going to happen next, only to be thrust into shock and awe (Ok, maybe I’m being a bit overdramatic, but I was for sure surprised a time or two).

Stepping right over into genre, I love that I found this book in the historical fiction section. If you know a bit of history about the time this book is meant to be based in, you can tell that the author did his research. As I said earlier, this story is very readable to the people of today, but it also has subtleties revealing a world long behind us. This book is a reminder that it really was a different world back then. People looked at things differently than we do now, turning everything into a magical if frightening place.

Who do I suggest this story to? If you’re a fantasy, horror, or historical fiction lover then you’ll LOVE this novella, and you’ll get a kick out of the end as I did. Even if you don’t know the history behind the story, you’ll find that the author has got you covered with a brief history he has written. So hey, you might even just learn something while you’re at it.

Gah, who knew you could get such an epic story in such a small book? I’ll for sure be reading other books by this author.

Final rating? 4 out of 5 stars.

**I was given a copy of this book through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review**