Stories and Book Talk

Category: Book Reviews

  • Yargo

    Yargo

    Yargo

    by Jacqueline Susann

    A beautiful earth woman is kidnapped by Yargo, the incredibly attractive ruler of a distant world, and begins a romantic adventure to exotic planets.

    A tale ensues:

    I read this book when I was in grade school so many years ago. It was on the home library shelf and the story is not very difficult to read, so I loved it then and still reread it when I remember it. This year the reread was triggered by a total eclipse event. The visual of the moon covering the sun lets you know there are planet-sized mysteries beyond our skies. Anyway, I caught a glimpse of the event and happened to clean out the bookshelves, and voila! Yargo came to mind.

    Yargo is quite fascinating as Jacqueline Susann wrote it in the 1950s as a romance novel with a sci-fi twist. The main character Janet Cooper goes camping in the sand dunes of Avalon, searching for the meaning of life as she knows it. She’s out in the evening, staring at the stars, and reminiscing about teenage dreams. When lo and behold one of those stars suddenly hangs lower than normal. Janet Cooper is promptly kidnapped off the planet by aliens.

    The first time I read it I went out to check whether the stars could do this (I was thirteen, excuse my excited imagination). You can also imagine my disappointment when none of this happened. The stars did not hang low for me, at all. Damn you, Janet Cooper. The idea felt possible at the time.

    Still, I loved the adventure of this story.

    It turns out the aliens made a mistake by capturing a human from planet Earth. We’re imperfect, but the aliens are lightyears ahead of our planet and consider themselves evolved to perfection. Now, the aliens who botched the job had to figure out where to take Janet Cooper. The planet that finally agrees to take her in is called Yargo. Yargo is considered a utopian world full of perfect beings. Incidentally, Janet who had been wondering where to find the ideal man, (as earlier mentioned ‘reminiscing her teenage dreams in the dunes‘), meets him on this planet.

    Reading it now, I don’t think it is truly a romance story but a metamorphosis story for Janet. I loved how imaginative Yargo is and it is a great sci-fi read, especially for someone not looking to dig too deep into a sci-fi world. Instead, it takes on a philosophical outlook on utopias and the beauty of imperfections.

  • Defiant

    Defiant

    Defiant (Song of Chaos Book Three)

    by Michael R. Miller

    The great powers are stirring, and Holt and Ash are ready to return to the fight.

    A summons from the Life Elder sets them on a perilous mission, leading to steaming jungles and blistering islands where ancient secrets will challenge everything they know of magic and dragons.

    Talia, the Red Queen, is beset on all sides by pirate raiders and marauding mercenaries. Empress Skadi has abandoned her, battling uprisings in her own lands. As the noose tightens on Feorlen, Talia faces a difficult choice: let her people suffer or turn her powers against mortal foes?

    Osric Agravain has found hope with his newly bonded black dragon, but some wounds run deeper than flesh and bone. Along the Fallow Frontier, he seeks the inner peace that has long eluded him.

    And within the sanctum at Falcaer, Paragon Adaskar is struggling to unite the fracturing riders. If he fails, ruinous chaos will break across the world.

    For when Elders and Paragons quarrel, kingdoms will fall.

    Thoughts:

    I’ve been on a binge with this series. Three books down, and the adventure is still amazing. I like the pacing, although the multiple POVs in this book three have been challenging. Defiant contributes to the exciting existence of dragons, leadership, and a quest to protect.

    I’ve enjoyed the journey. There was a deliberate setup for books four and five, which is fine even though it may take me time to return to it. All in all, this is a great series to read with younger readers.

    He was his own worst critic, but he could admit one good thing about himself, the soldier, the general, the monster; when he decided on a thing, it got done. Do the job and do it well.
    ― Michael R. Miller, Defiant

  • Unbound

    Unbound

    Unbound (Song of Chaos Book Two)

    by Michael R. Miller

    Sometimes the world needs a little chaos.

    Unbound Book Cover

    Holt and Ash saved the kingdom of Feorlen against all odds. Now they are outcasts, alone on an impossible quest to unite the Elder Dragons. But they are children playing in a game of Dragon Lords. Trapped between the riders, servants of the Sovereign, and the scourge, even their luck cannot last forever. Their only hope is to advance their bond by any means necessary.

    In Feorlen, Talia faces a world unaccepting of a rider queen. Her councilors will not heed her warnings of Sovereign. Foreign powers threaten war and bloodshed. Pleas sent to rider headquarters fall on deaf ears.

    All the while, Sovereign regathers his strength in an ancient fortress. Enthralled cultists swell his ranks. Disillusioned riders flock to his cause.

    And his unwilling servant Osric Agravain scours the land for dragon eggs. There are new types of magic to be discovered, and Sovereign intends to control them all.

    Only the mysterious half-dragon Rake has a plan to stop Sovereign. To pull it off, he’s going to need a team.

    Thoughts:

    The fantasy journey continues in Song of Chaos Book Two. Holt and Ash continue on a dangerous quest. They still face prejudice over what is considered a weakness. Holt focuses on growing strength in this book. Talia faces a different type of prejudice. She must prove herself in a world that refuses to accept a rider queen.

    The big bad grows stronger too. The most exciting part about this story is that the good stays good, and the bad is very bad. It is a classic good vs. evil story which I appreciate.

  • The Awakening

    The Awakening

    The Awakening by Nora Roberts

    The Awakening (The Dragon Heart Legacy 1)

    by Nora Roberts

    In the realm of Talamh, a teenage warrior named Keegan emerges from a lake holding a sword—representing both power and the terrifying responsibility to protect the Fey. In another realm known as Philadelphia, a young woman has just discovered she possesses a treasure of her own…

    When Breen Kelly was a girl, her father would tell her stories of magical places. Now she’s an anxious twentysomething mired in student debt and working a job she hates. But one day she stumbles upon a shocking discovery: her mother has been hiding an investment account in her name. It has been funded by her long-lost father—and it’s worth nearly four million dollars.

    This newfound fortune would be life-changing for anyone. But little does Breen know that when she uses some of the money to journey to Ireland, it will unlock mysteries she couldn’t have imagined. Here, she will begin to understand why she kept seeing that silver-haired, elusive man, why she imagined his voice in her head saying Come home, Breen Siobhan. It’s time you came home. Why she dreamed of dragons. And where her true destiny lies—through a portal in Galway that takes her to a land of faeries and mermaids, to a man named Keegan, and to the courage in her own heart that will guide her through a powerful, dangerous destiny…

    Thoughts:

    The Awakening is book one of the Dragon Heart Legacy series. Breen Kelly is an unsure young woman doing her best to pay for her student debt while working a job she does not enjoy. She has personal struggles and manages cases of anxiety. Breen is doing the best she can with her life. Then, she discovers her mother has hidden a secret from her. One that would have changed her life, a secret that does change her life. Breen then embarks on a journey to discover her true passion.
    I love how we meet Breen in a moment where she is doing her best with what she has known. When she discovers her mother’s secret, she has to have the courage to take the next step. The key to her choice to make changes in her life is courage. Courage that sends her on an unforgettable journey. I loved the world-building. The series is at the start, and hopefully, it will get even more amazing.

  • Inheritance

    Inheritance

    Inheritance

    by Nora Roberts

    1806: Astrid Poole sits in her bridal clothes, overwhelmed with happiness. But before her marriage can be consummated, she is murdered, and the circle of gold torn from her finger. Her last words are a promise to Collin never to leave him…

    Graphic designer Sonya MacTavish is stunned to learn that her late father had a twin he never knew about―and that her newly discovered uncle, Collin Poole, has left her almost everything he owned, including a majestic Victorian house on the Maine coast, which the will stipulates she must live in it for at least three years. Her engagement recently broken, she sets off to find out why the boys were separated at birth―and why it was all kept secret until a genealogy website brought it to light.

    Trey, the young lawyer who greets her at the sprawling clifftop manor, notes Sonya’s unease―and acknowledges that yes, the place is haunted…but just a little. Sure enough, Sonya finds objects moved and music playing out of nowhere. She sees a painting by her father inexplicably hanging in her deceased uncle’s office, and a portrait of a woman named Astrid, whom the lawyer refers to as “the first lost bride.” It’s becoming clear that Sonya has inherited far more than a house. She has inherited a centuries-old curse, and a puzzle to be solved if there is any hope of breaking it…

    Thoughts

    I love a good mystery romance, and this one has a great start. Sonya faces heartbreak at the start, and she does her best to bounce back from it. Then, an intriguing past knocks on her door in the form of a lawyer.

    Sonya discovers she has an uncle she has never met, Collin Poole, and he has left her the most interesting legacy: a majestic Victorian house in Maine. The house has a lengthy history, and Sonya begins discovering every bit of it. I always enjoyed how well Roberts spins a tale. This is the first book in a series and is heavy with setup and catchup. I love how Sonya manages her expectations and fights to move on from a situation that should have broken her at the start.

  • Belladonna

    Belladonna

    Belladonna Book Cover

    Belladonna

    by Adalyn Grace

    Orphaned as a baby, nineteen-year-old Signa has been raised by a string of guardians, each one more interested in her wealth than her well-being—and each has met an untimely end. Her remaining relatives are the elusive Hawthornes, an eccentric family living at Thorn Grove, an estate both glittering and gloomy. Its patriarch mourns his late wife through wild parties, while his son grapples for control of the family’s waning reputation, and his daughter suffers from a mysterious illness. But when their mother’s restless spirit appears claiming she was poisoned, Signa realizes that the family she depends on could be in grave danger and enlists the help of a surly stable boy to hunt down the killer.
     
    However, Signa’s best chance of uncovering the murderer is an alliance with Death himself, a fascinating, dangerous shadow who has never been far from her side. Though he’s made her life a living hell, Death shows Signa that their growing connection may be more powerful—and more irresistible—than she ever dared imagine.

    Thoughts:

    A story about a girl who is immune to Belladonna, hence the title. This book has a delicious gothic mood to it, down to a gothic manor filled with eccentric family members, and Signa, the main character, who is discovering the mystery of her existence. I enjoyed the impact of the opening scene. It was a great opening for the most unlikely character in this story, Death. Signa and Death have a strong connection that only grows from the opening scene, all the way to their unlikely relationship.
    This is certainly a unique story. Mostly, I loved how gothic it felt, from the eighteen-hundred setting, the parties, and the use of Belladonna itself.

  • A Sign of Affection

    A Sign of Affection

    A Sign of Affection

    by Suu Morishita, Translated by Christine Dashiell

    Yuki is a typical college student, whose world revolves around her friends, social media, and the latest sales. But when a chance encounter on a train leads to her meeting friend-of-a-friend and fellow student Itsuomi-san, her world starts to widen. But even though Itsuomi-kun can speak three languages, sign language isn’t one of them. Can the two learn to communicate the budding feelings between them?

    Thoughts

    This manga is quite special. The protagonist, Yuki, is deaf. She has her own world in a world full of sounds she doesn’t hear. So, when she meets someone she wants to know more, there is this gap they both have to bridge in order to better understand each other. The art is so clear cut and I love the progress through each panel. Yuki wants to get to know Itsuomi better, and their journey towards connecting is the cutest thing ever.
    Suu Morishita takes her time to explain the use of sign language, and the differences in sign language styles in Japan. This manga becomes quite special when you understand that Yuki’s language is sign language and it is how she communicates best. A Sign of Affection is engaging, cute, and full of warm feels.

  • The Dragon King’s Imperial Wrath

    The Dragon King’s Imperial Wrath

    The Dragon King’s Imperial Wrath

    Written by Aki Shikimi | Art by Akiko Kawano

    Thirteen clans rule the land, and the Rat Clan is the weakest. Ruiying, the princess of the Rat Clan, is summoned to the land of the dominating Dragon Clan along with princesses from the other clans. The Dragon King seeks a bride, and they are all candidates! Yet instead of vying for the Dragon King’s favor, Ruiying takes refuge in the palace’s enormous library–a place she can read to her heart’s content. It’s there that the Dragon King discovers her by chance, sparking an immediate connection that will change Ruiying’s life forever!

    Thoughts:

    The artwork is so beautifully done, I love it. I enjoyed the world-building in this volume. And Princess Ruiying is a great protagonist. This reads like a cute, fast romance story, that is not asking too much from the reader. The series is a fast read, I loved how easy going I felt reading it.

  • Frizzy by Claribel A. Ortega

    Frizzy by Claribel A. Ortega

    Frizzy

    by Claribel A. Ortega

    A middle grade graphic novel about Marlene, a young girl who stops straightening her hair and embraces her natural curls.

    Marlene loves three things: books, her cool Tía Ruby and hanging out with her best friend Camila. But according to her mother, Paola, the only thing she needs to focus on is school and “growing up.” That means straightening her hair every weekend so she could have “presentable”, “good hair”.

    But Marlene hates being in the salon and doesn’t understand why her curls are not considered pretty by those around her. With a few hiccups, a dash of embarrassment, and the much-needed help of Camila and Tia Ruby—she slowly starts a journey to learn to appreciate and proudly wear her curly hair.

    Thoughts:

    Frizzy’s mother has a ritual. Every Sunday, she takes Frizzy to the hair salon where they spend almost all day, as the hair dresser straightens Marlene’s natural curly hair. Marlene does not like this ritual, and often wonders why her natural curls are not considered pretty by her mother.

    “Do you think she’s right? That I can’t be my best if my hair isn’t straight?” Marlene asks.

    Frizzy, Claribel A. Ortega

    Marlene embarks on finding the answer to her question. Wanting to find a different perspective than the one her family has given her, especially her Mom. She does this with the help of her friends Camila and Tia Ruby. Frizzy is a beautiful book about accepting ourselves the way we are.

    “We learn things from our parents, who learn things from their parents, who learned that from their parents. It doesn’t make those things okay to believe…”

    Frizzy, Claribel A. Ortega
  • Circe by Madeline Miller

    Circe by Madeline Miller

    Circe

    by Madeline Miller

    In the house of Helios, god of the sun and mightiest of the Titans, a daughter is born. But Circe is a strange child–neither powerful like her father nor viciously alluring like her mother. Turning to the world of mortals for companionship, she discovers that she does possess power: the power of witchcraft, which can transform rivals into monsters and menace the gods themselves.

    Threatened, Zeus banishes her to a deserted island, where she hones her occult craft, tames wild beasts, and crosses paths with many of the most famous figures in all of mythology, including the Minotaur, Daedalus and his doomed son Icarus, the murderous Medea, and, of course, wily Odysseus.

    But there is danger, too, for a woman who stands alone, and Circe unwittingly draws the wrath of both men and gods, ultimately finding herself pitted against one of the most terrifying and vengeful of the Olympians. To protect what she loves most, Circe must summon all her strength and choose, once and for all, whether she belongs with the gods she is born from or with the mortals she has come to love.

    Book Thoughts:

    Circe. I read this with expectation. Greek Mythology is so very fascinating, but Circe is not the book to discover more about Zeus. It is about Circe, a girl born to Helios, who grows up learning she is not his favorite child. Every moment as she grows up is excruciating lonely, and I hoped she would find moments of happiness with every turn of the page.

    That is one thing gods and mortals share. When we are young, we think ourselves the first to have each feeling in the world.”

    This retelling of Circe focuses on a goddess’s internal world as she faces judgment from her parents, siblings, the titans and Olympians. She finds herself isolated and in the isolation, she finds her center and the will to fight the cage.

    You have always been the worst of my children,” he said. “Be sure not to dishonor me.” “I have a better idea. I will do as I please, and when you count your children, leave me out.”