Awesome Audiobooks 4.5/5 Stars: Bride by Kyle Alexander Romines

October 31, 2019October 23, 2019 Julie Gilbert Audiobooks, Horror Becca Ballenger, Frankenstein, horror, Kyle Alexander Romines, Mary Shelley

Narrated by Becca Ballenger

*Will try to keep main part spoiler free…may add spoiler section after ads

*Yes, I know this breaks my 3-day cycle of posts…figured Halloween deserved its own post.

Summary:

Victor Frankenstein’s attempt to correct his mistakes take a dangerous turn. The monster wants a mate and demands Victor fulfill a promise to create a bride for him. Justine begins as the nanny for Victor’s two younger brothers, but life—and death—have other plans for her.

Additional Comments:

Story 4/5: A strong horror tale/ companion piece to Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein. I confess to not knowing the story well enough to be offended by things that would contradict the original tale. Like Wicked or Pride, Prejudice, and Zombies, this story takes a classic and reworks pieces into a new and engaging minisaga.
Characters 4.5/5: Justine/Persephone takes on several roles throughout the book. The story unfolds from her perspective, and even when things get crazy, one can sympathize with her. Victor’s not very likable, but I don’t think he was ever meant to be.
Performance 5/5: Becca Ballenger finds nice balance for Justine’s innocence, Persephone’s journey, Victor’s many blunders, and the monster’s rage.
The ending is satisfying even if it fits somewhat “neatly.”
One must have pretty solid suspension of disbelief to buy into Frankenstein’s shaky science. Same holds true here. Put a body out in a lightning storm and—boom—reanimation. Sometimes, Persephone eats and claims to be tired or hungry and other times it’s mentioned that she’s impervious to such human weaknesses.
I especially enjoyed the parts where Persephone learned about Victor’s family and got to know them. Side characters were unique and compelling in their own right.

Conclusion:

If you’re in the mood for something both excellent and creepy, check this out. Perfect for the Halloween creepy season.

Associate links to follow…

Available Audiobooks: I have free codes for almost everything.

New Release: The Shadow Council Series 1: Money Makes it Deadlier – An FBI agent gets caught up in a robbery gone wrong.

Shadow Council Book 2: Revenge Makes it Sweeter – A midnight summons calls FBI Special Agent Megan Luchek into a fight for a young girl’s life.

Shadow Council Book 3: Christmas Makes it Chaos – The FBI agent gets a strange ally in the quest to prevent chaos from rocking a lot of people’s holiday season.

Shadow Council Book 4: Treachery Makes it Tense – The agent and the assassin have to team up if they want to survive.

Shadow Council is also available as a ~13 hr bundle.

The Collins Case – 2 FBI agents track down a kidnapped family. Kid friendly.

If fantasy’s more your thing, go Redeemer Chronicles. The first, Awakening, is available as an audiobook.

Ashlynn’s Dreams Shorts – a kid deals with her parents’ divorce, bullies, and the wonder of discovery.

Try The Dark Side of Science – Genetically altered kids fight for the right to live.

Beyond Broken Pencils – Contemporary literary tale of a school shooting. Ian unleashes his inner demons on his classmates and teachers…

Scratched Off – FBI agent vs a serial killer. When Sam Kerman sets out to hunt a serial killer, he has no idea how personal the case will become.

*Spoiler Section

– Not the book for you if you’re looking for a happy ending.

– The end is satisfying, though I’d have preferred the far less realistic happily-ever-after one that was about 2 chs before the end.

– I guess its true horror in that Persephone became that which she feared most, a monster who turned her creator into a creation, so she’d have a moldable companion.

Choices Stories Review 4.5/5: Nightbound

October 30, 2019October 19, 2019 Julie Gilbert Audiobooks, Horror Choices Stories, horror, Nightbound

pulled off google images…I think somebody created it for their review

Genre: Fantasy/horror

*spoilers possible

Summary:

You’re off to visit New Orleans for your birthday. And something’s trying to kill you. This time around, your partying gets interrupted by something called a Bloodwraith trying to murder you. The art is hideous, by design. Luckily, you have a handsome bodyguard named Nik on your side.

Additional Comments:

It never ceases to amaze me how much I enjoy the horror stories Choices churns out. I typically don’t even like the genre.
This story is set in the same world as Bloodbound. You even get to meet Priya.
Lady Smoke’s awesome.
Side characters are pretty likeable. Nik’s standoffish but capable as a bodyguard. Vera’s power is one of the most unique ones I’ve seen in Choices stories. Kristin’s not really core side character, but she’s important to the MC. Katherine might be my new favorite side character. She’s also pretty standoffish, but you get a chance to break through the dark past.
The faces you can choose for Nik vary quite a bit, but I’m partial to the handsome blond.
I went with a nice, innocent name like Ann this round.
They went out of the way to make the MC useful, which I totally appreciate because she starts out as kind of a typical damsel-in-distress.
They worked hard on the lore and backgrounds. Even the bad guys have interesting side stories.

Conclusion:

If you can handle some grossness, this is an interesting Choices story. It’s got all the ingredients of solid fantasy stories: high stakes, good fights, nice side stories, deep lore.

Associate links to follow…

Available Audiobooks: I have free codes for almost everything.

New Release: The Shadow Council Series 1: Money Makes it Deadlier – An FBI agent gets caught up in a robbery gone wrong.

Shadow Council Book 2: Revenge Makes it Sweeter – A midnight summons calls FBI Special Agent Megan Luchek into a fight for a young girl’s life.

Shadow Council Book 3: Christmas Makes it Chaos – The FBI agent gets a strange ally in the quest to prevent chaos from rocking a lot of people’s holiday season.

Shadow Council Book 4: Treachery Makes it Tense – The agent and the assassin have to team up if they want to survive.

Shadow Council is also available as a ~13 hr bundle.

The Collins Case – 2 FBI agents track down a kidnapped family. Kid friendly.

If fantasy’s more your thing, go Redeemer Chronicles. The first, Awakening, is available as an audiobook.

Ashlynn’s Dreams Shorts – a kid deals with her parents’ divorce, bullies, and the wonder of discovery.

Try The Dark Side of Science – Genetically altered kids fight for the right to live.

Beyond Broken Pencils – Contemporary literary tale of a school shooting. Ian unleashes his inner demons on his classmates and teachers…

Scratched Off – FBI agent vs a serial killer. When Sam Kerman sets out to hunt a serial killer, he has no idea how personal the case will become.

Movie Reviews 4.5/5 Stars: Black and Blue

October 28, 2019October 27, 2019 Julie Gilbert drama, Movie Reviews crooked cops, Frank Grillo, Naomi Harris, Tyrese Gibson

Starring Naomi Harris, Tyrese Gibson, and Frank Grillo

*will try to keep it spoiler free
Summary:

After more than a decade away, an army vet returns to her home city of New Orleans to become a cop. The rookie cop hardly recognizes the place. Corruption runs rampant. She accidentally captures a crooked cop murder some drug dealers on a body cam. 90% of the movie consists of her either just trying to stay alive or planning how to get the footage uploaded into the system. Complicating matters is the fact that the crooked cop lies to the drug dealer’s boss, getting him to put a hit on her.

Additional Comments:

– Story 4/5: Simplistic but compelling. They had to do some story working to make sure our heroine stayed in danger for the duration, but it worked well enough.
– Characters 4.5/5: Much of the movie hinges on the dynamics of a young black cop just trying to do her job while a more senior cop insists on convincing her she’s blue now (not back). Don’t remember much about the other characters. Alicia West (Naomi Harris) comes across as a young woman just trying to do the right thing.
– Soundtrack 4/5: The beginning rap song fits very well, setting the tone for the rest of the movie. Beyond that, the music consists of “chase scene” type, drum heavy scores. It’s all right but not exactly one you’d want to rush out to buy.
– Content Warnings: Some strong language. Violence, including a character getting beaten.- You could probably take this as light or deep as you want in terms of messages to be found here. I like keeping it simple: good vs evil.- It passes my “entertain me while I’m here” test. I missed a few crucial minutes by having to use the restroom, but I’m not sure it’s worth seeing twice on a big screen.

Conclusion:

If you’re looking for a decent thriller and willing to overlook some things that needed to happen to keep the plot moving, you should consider this.

Associate links to follow…

Available Audiobooks: I have free codes for almost everything.

New Release: The Shadow Council Series 1: Money Makes it Deadlier – An FBI agent gets caught up in a robbery gone wrong.

Shadow Council Book 2: Revenge Makes it Sweeter – A midnight summons calls FBI Special Agent Megan Luchek into a fight for a young girl’s life.

Shadow Council Book 3: Christmas Makes it Chaos – The FBI agent gets a strange ally in the quest to prevent chaos from rocking a lot of people’s holiday season.

Shadow Council Book 4: Treachery Makes it Tense – The agent and the assassin have to team up if they want to survive.

Shadow Council is also available as a ~13 hr bundle.

The Collins Case – 2 FBI agents track down a kidnapped family. Kid friendly.

If fantasy’s more your thing, go Redeemer Chronicles. The first, Awakening, is available as an audiobook.

Ashlynn’s Dreams Shorts – a kid deals with her parents’ divorce, bullies, and the wonder of discovery.

Try The Dark Side of Science – Genetically altered kids fight for the right to live.

Beyond Broken Pencils – Contemporary literary tale of a school shooting. Ian unleashes his inner demons on his classmates and teachers…

Scratched Off – FBI agent vs a serial killer. When Sam Kerman sets out to hunt a serial killer, he has no idea how personal the case will become.

Awesome Audiobooks 4.5/5 Stars: Blood of Kings by Kyle Alexander Romines

October 27, 2019October 20, 2019 Julie Gilbert Audiobooks, Fantasy Kyle Alexander Romines, Matt Addis, Warden of Fal series, Wardens

Series: Warden of Fal, Book 2

Narrator: Matt Addis

*Will attempt to keep this spoiler free

Summary:

Solid second entry in the Warden of Fal series. Esben Berengar is summoned to Munster in time to get caught up in a murder mystery. (Yup, had to look that up to spell it right. Not sure his first name is in the book more than once.)

Additional Comments:

It would certainly help if you met the character in book one, but I suppose it can be read as a standalone title.
Berengar fully embraces his flaws, but there’s also genuine character development in this book, which is neat to see.
Characters 4.5/5: Morwen’s a nice addition to the cast. Sometimes, the cast of epic fantasies get too big too quickly, but despite there being a LOT of characters, the warden’s definitely the central character. The “little wolf” defends Berengar fiercely.
Fight scenes showed up sporadically, but it felt way less random this round. The author’s not afraid of describing some gore, but either I’m desensitized at this point (a possibility) or he got a tad more tactful with the battle scenes. The author refrained from throwing around actual magic phrases for most of the book.
Plot 4.5/5: The murder mystery focuses the plot in a definite direction. I feel that’s an improvement over the first story where Berengar kind of wandered about getting into scraps.
Narration provided by Matt Addis works out well again.

Conclusion:

I suggest starting with book 1. Part of the strength of this story lies in having a compelling hero figure who’s not afraid to do dirty work. If epic fantasy’s your thing and you can stomach a pretty high dose of violence, check out this series.

Associate links to follow…

Available Audiobooks: I have free codes for almost everything.

New Release: The Shadow Council Series 1: Money Makes it Deadlier – An FBI agent gets caught up in a robbery gone wrong.

Shadow Council Book 2: Revenge Makes it Sweeter – A midnight summons calls FBI Special Agent Megan Luchek into a fight for a young girl’s life.

Shadow Council Book 3: Christmas Makes it Chaos – The FBI agent gets a strange ally in the quest to prevent chaos from rocking a lot of people’s holiday season.

Shadow Council Book 4: Treachery Makes it Tense – The agent and the assassin have to team up if they want to survive.

Shadow Council is also available as a ~13 hr bundle.

The Collins Case – 2 FBI agents track down a kidnapped family. Kid friendly.

If fantasy’s more your thing, go Redeemer Chronicles. The first, Awakening, is available as an audiobook.

Ashlynn’s Dreams Shorts – a kid deals with her parents’ divorce, bullies, and the wonder of discovery.

Try The Dark Side of Science – Genetically altered kids fight for the right to live.

Beyond Broken Pencils – Contemporary literary tale of a school shooting. Ian unleashes his inner demons on his classmates and teachers…

Scratched Off – FBI agent vs a serial killer. When Sam Kerman sets out to hunt a serial killer, he has no idea how personal the case will become.

Movie Reviews 4/5 Stars: Gemini Man

October 24, 2019October 19, 2019 Julie Gilbert Action Adventure, Movie Reviews, scifi Gemini Man movie, Will Smith

Starring: Will Smith, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Clive Owen, and Benedict Wong

*mild spoilers possible

Summary:

An excuse for Will Smith to fight a younger, CGI version of himself. Henry Brogan, an elite assassin, just wants to retire, but his government handlers aren’t thrilled with that idea. They send the best of the best to kill him. Surprise, it’s his clone.

Additional Comments:

If they truly wanted him dead, a little cyanide in a drink among friends woulda done the trick but that would have taken away the excuse to make the movie.
Also, these days, they coulda sent a drone to bury him with a missile. Oh, probably not subtle, but neither is sending a team of assassins.
Danny (Mary Elizabeth Winstead) and Baron (Benedict Wong) are both fun characters, but the movie could probably have happened without them. Baron had most of the funny lines.
Computer graphics had some shining moments and some missed opportunities.
My criteria for most movies is entertain me. I gave the movie 4 stars because it accomplished that objective.
Action 4/5: The motorcycle chase was exciting. The last battle was cool.
Script 3.5/5: I may be unduly biased by reading the negative critics views, but the script itself isn’t exactly something to rave over.
I have serious issues with the way they handled the depictions of the science. For the record, you cannot get full DNA workups done in 2 hours, no matter who you’re paying and no matter how much. (Unless that part of science has taken some quantum leaps in the last 7 years, I’ve done those tests and it takes 1-2 days minimum. Even working around the clock, the actual test runtime is probably 12 ish hrs.)

Conclusion:

The movie may be suffering under the weight of its own expectations. It was okay, but it could have been more in so many ways.

Associate links to follow…

Available Audiobooks: I have free codes for almost everything.

New Release: The Shadow Council Series 1: Money Makes it Deadlier – An FBI agent gets caught up in a robbery gone wrong.

Shadow Council Book 2: Revenge Makes it Sweeter – A midnight summons calls FBI Special Agent Megan Luchek into a fight for a young girl’s life.

Shadow Council Book 3: Christmas Makes it Chaos – The FBI agent gets a strange ally in the quest to prevent chaos from rocking a lot of people’s holiday season.

Shadow Council Book 4: Treachery Makes it Tense – The agent and the assassin have to team up if they want to survive.

Shadow Council is also available as a ~13 hr bundle.

The Collins Case – 2 FBI agents track down a kidnapped family. Kid friendly.

If fantasy’s more your thing, go Redeemer Chronicles. The first, Awakening, is available as an audiobook.

Ashlynn’s Dreams Shorts – a kid deals with her parents’ divorce, bullies, and the wonder of discovery.

Try The Dark Side of Science – Genetically altered kids fight for the right to live.

Beyond Broken Pencils – Contemporary literary tale of a school shooting. Ian unleashes his inner demons on his classmates and teachers…

Scratched Off – FBI agent vs a serial killer. When Sam Kerman sets out to hunt a serial killer, he has no idea how personal the case will become.

Movie Reviews 4/5 Stars: Zombieland 2: Double Tap

October 21, 2019October 19, 2019 Julie Gilbert comedy, Movie Reviews Abigail Breslin, Emma Stone, Jesse Eisenberg, Woody Harelson, Zoey Deutch, zombieland, zombies

movie promo pic, got off google images at random

Starring: Woody Harelson, Jesse Eisenberg, Abigail Breslin, Emma Stone, and Zoey Deutch

Summary:

The sequel to an absolutely ridiculous movie (Zombieland). Our heroes have started categorizing the zombies into Homers (stupid ones), Hawkings (smart ones), and ninjas (athletic ones). Their happy little family is disrupted by the ladies running away. The world’s still a mess, but there’s hope out there somewhere. They’re not really sure where they want to go, but everybody’s seeking something.

Additional Comments:

This might be the one movie (besides the first) where breaking the 4^th wall doesn’t really bother me.
The displays of the rules at various pts was amusing.
Side characters 3.5/5: I didn’t like Avan Jogia’s character, Berkley. On the other hand, Luke Wilson’s character and Thomas Middleditch’s character, Flagstaff, were hilarious. The makers specifically did everything they could to make the two carbon copies of Tallahassee and Columbus. Madison’s voice was extremely annoying by design.
For being a zombie movie, it had a decent (if stereotypical) message of finding one’s true home.
This must have been a fun movie to be an extra for. The makeup probably took forever. Lots of CGI effects. The action scenes are amusing.
Content warnings: language and innuendo of course.

Conclusion:

If you enjoyed the first, you’ll likely be satisfied with the second. If you never saw the first but just like watching zombies get killed in awesome ways, you may still enjoy it. Seeing it on a big screen may help you appreciate the special effects more.

Associate links to follow…

Available Audiobooks: I have free codes for almost everything.

New Release: The Shadow Council Series 1: Money Makes it Deadlier – An FBI agent gets caught up in a robbery gone wrong.

Shadow Council Book 2: Revenge Makes it Sweeter – A midnight summons calls FBI Special Agent Megan Luchek into a fight for a young girl’s life.

Shadow Council Book 3: Christmas Makes it Chaos – The FBI agent gets a strange ally in the quest to prevent chaos from rocking a lot of people’s holiday season.

Shadow Council Book 4: Treachery Makes it Tense – The agent and the assassin have to team up if they want to survive.

Shadow Council is also available as a ~13 hr bundle.

The Collins Case – 2 FBI agents track down a kidnapped family. Kid friendly.

If fantasy’s more your thing, go Redeemer Chronicles. The first, Awakening, is available as an audiobook.

Ashlynn’s Dreams Shorts – a kid deals with her parents’ divorce, bullies, and the wonder of discovery.

Try The Dark Side of Science – Genetically altered kids fight for the right to live.

Beyond Broken Pencils – Contemporary literary tale of a school shooting. Ian unleashes his inner demons on his classmates and teachers…

Scratched Off – FBI agent vs a serial killer. When Sam Kerman sets out to hunt a serial killer, he has no idea how personal the case will become.

Audiobook Reviews: 4/5 Stars Spirit Talker (Native Warrior Series Book 2) by Elizabeth Anne Porter

October 18, 2019October 9, 2019 Julie Gilbert Audiobooks, ghosts, historical, time travel Christy Sassmen, ghosts, historical, time travel

Narrated by Christy Sassmen

Summary:

Clementine Monroe’s imaginary friend, Wihanbla, is more than a figment of her imagination.

Additional Comments:

Very interesting premise, but it didn’t feel like much was happening. A lot of the beginning consisted of her sitting in a special spot talking to her friend who somehow crosses time and space to be able to see and converse with her.
The development of their relationship was interesting, as they finally overcome the major hurdle to anything more than friendship.
I always have major issues with time-travel books. Even with the giant “magic” bandage, it felt implausible. To me, this files the book under cute but illogical.
Narration was very well-handled. This did not come across as an easy to read story.

Conclusion:

If time-travel stories don’t bother you, this is a cool story. The back cover copy (blurb) pretty much describes everything that will happen, but the journey to get there still holds some appeal.

Audiobook Avalanche:

These are my books. I have free codes for almost everything.

New Release: Shadow Council Books 1-4. FBI Special Agent Megan Luchek finds several different kinds of trouble from Hawaii to Pennsylvania and back again.

New Release: Fatal Interest. Miranda Kale doesn’t believe in ghosts … until one sends her on a crazy case at a private school.

The Collins Case – 2 FBI agents track down a kidnapped family. Kid friendly.

If fantasy’s more your thing, go Redeemer Chronicles. The first, Awakening, is available as an audiobook.

Ashlynn’s Dreams Shorts – a kid deals with her parents’ divorce, bullies, and the wonder of discovery.

Awakening – Vic finds out she’s the Chosen One. She just doesn’t get why people are trying to kill her.

Try The Dark Side of Science – Genetically altered kids fight for the right to live.

Beyond Broken Pencils – Contemporary literary tale of a school shooting. Ian unleashes his inner demons on his classmates and teachers…

Scratched Off – FBI agent vs a serial killer. When Sam Kerman sets out to hunt a serial killer, he has no idea how personal the case will become.

Nonfiction:
5 Steps to Surviving Chemistry – A primer for chemistry students. Breaks down concepts into simple terms.

5 Steps to Better Blurbs – A book for writers looking to improve their book descriptions

Audiobook Reviews 4/5 Stars Hope: Prairie Roses Collection One, Book 3 by Barb Goss

October 15, 2019October 7, 2019 Julie Gilbert Audiobooks, historical, romance Barbara Goss, historical romance, Jessica Caruso, Prairie roses

Narrated by Jessica Caruso

Summary:

Hope’s marriage to an outlaw gives her some serious trust issues. She’s not a fan of the idea of another marriage of convenience, but if she’s going to get through the Oregon Train, she needs to stay with the wagon train…and that requires a husband.

Additional Comments:

I’m surprised Hopes not super jaded, having grown up in an orphanage.
Daniel’s relationship with his first wife isn’t given enough time to make the uber devotion to her seem real. But I think the books are too short for that kind of character development to truly take root. These are quick, clean reads.
I liked Daniel’s father and the servant. Didn’t get to learn much about the servant and her husband, but they seemed like good, solid people.
The dangers of the Oregon Trail are glossed over a bit.
The relationship of Daniel and Hope is predictable but still satisfying. Hopes trust issues had a realistic origin.
Her first husband could have used some more redeeming qualities. It would be a different kind of book if it took the more realistic stance on consummating the marriage, I guess.

Conclusion:

Quick, clean wholesome historical romance.