Guest Blogger: The Bold Mom Shares Horror Recs for Halloween, er Valentine’s Day!

Welcome everyone to my first guest blogger @theBoldMom who is a prolific reader of all things dark and wonderful. Today she will share some lovely book recommendations for Valentine’s Day.

Very often I see myself swimming between books and stories that could step in horror and dark fantasy. The limit? It certainly depends on the reader and the level of darkness they are able to absorb. I think I’m not alone on this island, so I’d like to talk about some books which fantasy and
horror lovers will enjoy, each one from a different perspective.

DESERT SHADOWS by Joshua Dowidat is one of the books I have deeply enjoyed. Dowidat sets
a stage of darkness and childhood memories to afterwards, holding your hand through a forest of ghosts and demons where you can’t flee from. I’m never tired of recommending this book.

SHADOWMANCER by Jeremy Mac
Jeremy Mac is a very special writer. He tells you a tale of darkness and taboo’s that will engulf
you once you grab the book.
Disguised as erotica, Mac brings you nightmares born in your own… shadow.

BEWARE THE DEMONS BETRAYED by Alan L Perkins
This book is a massive study in sorcery and demonology. An amazing narration makes you wander off into old centuries and curses. Beware though, Perkins knows how to throw at you disturbing material and the way he tortures doomed souls will steal your sleep.

https://www.amazon.com/Beware-Demons-Betrayed-Forgive-Sorcerers-
ebook/dp/B01MQI1N2P/

THE SILVER FEATHER by Joanne Van Leerdam
A little tale full of nostalgia, loyalty and… death. A bedtime story dark as night. How a lost spirit can leave you… or drag you to her grave. A kind of love that can demolish dimensions and deceive the Reaper itself.
Amazingly narrated, Van Leerdam leaves a print in your mind.

It’s surprising how often these two genres melt in one title. The darkness sews them and you
can lo longer be sure of what they are making you feel. All of these are wonderful reads, and I
honestly hope you enjoy them.

Thanks for all the great recommendations, @theBoldMom! 🙂 I’ll definitely be sure to check these out. If you want to, you should also check out the Bold Mom’s horror and fantasy page here:

https://www.theboldmom.com

She posts lots of awesomeness daily, from book recs to author services to fantasy articles. I’m sure you will find something to like there.

Well, that’s all for now everyone. I hope this turned out all right, and if any of the links don’t work please let me know!

Until next time,

Pass Me That Book.

International Book Fairs of 2019

There’s many book fairs going on this year that I’m quite interested in, and here is a helpful list as well as a link towards those who might be interested in such themselves. Here’s the link to the page for your viewing pleasure:

https://www.kotobee.com/blog/international-book-fairs-2019/

There’s quite a few places holding fairs this year, and I do hope this list is quite helpful. It’s not my usual thing that I post, I admit, but I find keeping track of things like this very useful.

I hope to attend my usual Spring Book Festival near home, as well as the later one in fall, though I’m unsure about traveling to any of the others. What do all of you think? Interested in more posts like this? Let me know in the comments!

Until next time,

-Pass Me That Book.

Special Post Update: 1000 likes

Yesterday I received great news! I have reached 1000 likes on my blog. I’m also at 150 followers!!! This is awesome!

Granted I know that this is probably a small number for many blogger friends with hugeee followers, but I’m really proud of my accomplishments! I never expected to get this high.

Thanks to all of you for your support, and I hope you guys are having excellent and exciting numbers on your blog too!

Until next time,

Pass Me That Book.

Weekly Updates: Feb. Weeks 1-3

February is already almost halfway over. This month I skipped the entire first week and read nothing but fanfiction. Mostly that of Doctor Who as I love Jodi Whittaker. I am writing four different doctor who fanfics, all of them over 5k to 10k words. I’ll leave links later, maybe, if people want it.

Books Read:

All the Wandering Light by Heather Fawcett 4/5 🌟

The Black Gods Drums by P. Djeli Clark 5/5 🌟

Arabella and the Battle of Venus by David Levine 4/5 🌟

The Loneliest Girl in the Universe by Lauren James 4/5 🌟

The Beasts Heart by Leife Shellcross 5/5 🌟

The Cold is in Her Bones by Peternelle van Arsdale 5/5 🌟

Favorite of the month so far?

The Cold is in Her Bones by Peternelle van Arsdale 5/5 🌟 blew me away! I hope to buy and add this to my shelf someday! It’s a lovely retelling of Medusa, and the writing is just absolutely perfect!

~•~

Currently Reading:

Just started reading this one today! I’m at page 69/415 so it will take me a bit, but once I start to recollect this world I’m sure that I will fly through this book. And after this one? Not sure yet, though there are several that I have been dying to get to, from Brandon Sanderson to Mark Lawrence to Lynn Flewelling.

What do you think should be my next read? Let me know in the comments!

Until next time,

Pass Me That Book.

New Release Review: Arabella and the Battle of Venus

Title: Arabella and the Battle of Venus
Author: David Levine
Series: Book Two
Genre: Science Fiction, Adult Fiction
Publisher: Tor Books
Page Count: 415
Type of Book: Hardback, New Release
Received: Library
Review Word Count: 600
Rated: 4/5 stars
Notes: Ah, Arabella continues to delight! This was a perfect read to read after the heartbreaking trauma of “All the Wandering Light by Heather Fawcett”!

Arabella returns in this dazzling sequel where instead of Mars being the main planet she’s on, it’s Venus. New characters are introduced, as well as old. Her fiance remains true, except he’s been captured and labeled a prisoner of war along with his remaining crew. It’s up to Arabella to harness a new crew to go and save the day.

These books are so delightfully fun! While some of the men are incredibly sexist, and her brother is a bit racist towards her fiance, it’s still full of wit, humor, and sarcasm to delight all readers. There’s plenty of intrigue, as well, and dangerous attacks in space on the ships. A new delightful captain, Daniel Fox Captain of the Touchstone, is equally fun to read!

Brave, a gambler, handsome, and full of wit, I really wanted Arabella to marry Daniel instead of Captain Singh. I digress, however, as this isn’t just about one character that I fell for. This is about Arabella going gallantly into the unknown to face Bonaparte who has escaped and is attempting to restore his empire once more, even as she’s attempting to free her fiance. There’s banter, adventure, and danger throughout this novel, and I treasured every page.

The wait for the next book is going to be just awful. *sighs miserably* Even so, this book was an utter delight, and I give it 4.5/5 stars for an enchanting and entertaining read.

Until next time,
-Pass Me That Book

Netgalley Review: Contact by M.D. Neu

Title: Contact
Author: M.D. Neu
Series: Book 1
Genre: Science Fiction
Page Count: 300
Publisher: Ninestar Press
Type of Book: Arc, Kindle Ebook
Review Word Count: 500
Rated: 4/5 stars
Received: Netgalley
Notes: Death of an lgbt character, but makes sense for the plot. Harsh swearing from two different characters, and a bomb attack about halfway through the book in a populated city.

This is a hard book to review. While I flew through the pages, there’s several things that I didn’t much like about the book-the harsh language, and the death of an lgbt character made it a bit darker for me to read. The harsh language was almost off-putting for me, though I skimmed through a lot of that.

There wasn’t much in the romance department, though the obvious love between the main gay couple was evident and real, and I liked it. There were some issues that I had Jerry and his attitude towards Todd, but it made the character seem more realistic as well.

There’s small handfuls throughout this book of characters bashing LGBT characters, but it improves over time. Todd’s brother started out as hateful and mean, but eventually grew out of that, into something that was a bit more bearable.

The science, aliens, and first contact approach with this book was great. I really liked the detail that the author put into the storyline; it was almost as if I was living it, though unfortunately that’s not the case. I think the coolest thing was Faa and the purple mountains comment.

I definitely look forward to reading book two. The ending was a little bit of a cliff-hanger, though without a lot of ‘must have book two now’ it was more of a, what will happen next kind of thing.

4/5 well deserved stars.

Until next time,
-Pass Me That Book.

Netgalley Arc: Lying Beneath the Oaks

Title: Lying Beneath the Oaks
Author: Kristin Wright
Series: Standalone/Debut
Genre: Mystery/Romance
Publisher: Bella Rosa Books
Page Count: 300
Review Word Count: 600
Type of Book: Arc, Kindle Ebook
Received: Netgalley
Rated: 4.5/5 stars
Notes: Read for the Buzz-Word-a-Thon! Really liked this one!

This book was beautifully crafted, well written, with strong characters, and definitely well researched material. Molly’s character was fascinating, and I loved her story though it definitely had some trigger warnings for child abuse. So, here are the warnings first before I dive into the full review:

Warnings: child abuse, suggested child sexual abuse, suggested child trafficking, attempted murder of both child and adults, suggested rape of adults and child, some swearing, steamy romance bedroom scenes, sexism, light racism (only one character), talks about fires, talks about hurricanes, a few chapters regarding religion/going to church, other

This book, though certainly dark and twisted at times, made me almost long for a trip back to Louisiana or any of the places down south for its rich atmosphere. Of course, having been to the south, those emotions were few and far between. There were also plenty of triggers in the book that made me want to flinch away and hide, but the book tells such a good story that I was mostly able to ignore it.

Molly is a complex, blunt, and strong female character. She’s served time for possibly accidentally killing her mother, and has paid for it for years. There’s lots of interesting (and depressing) history there, but the focus of the story is her waking up married to a complete (handsome) stranger named Cooper, who happens to belong to a wealthy southern family.

It’s a fascinating story, completely with twisted plots that I didn’t see coming, though a lot of it I did notice right off. I loved Aurelia, the town eccentric, who is one of my favorite characters. I loved Mia and the golden retriever and just all of this book shown with creative clever schemes and strong characters so that I couldn’t turn away from it. I read through it in most of a day, and wish that there was more available, and that I could have seen the bad guy getting his due, aside from the tiny snippet of it at the end of the book-that’s my only real complaint, really, is that we didn’t see him getting published enough.

I really liked reading this book, and highly recommend it-especially if you love gothic, southern crime/romance fiction. It’s rich in detail, and you won’t regret reading it, unless you absolutely loathe reading about the south. 4.5/5 stars!
Until next time,
-Pass Me That Book

Netgalley Review: Families and Other Enemies

Title: Families and Other Enemies
Author: Christiana Dodd
Series: Short Story
Genre: Mystery
Publisher: Harlequin
Page Count:
Type of Book: Arc, Kindle Ebook
Received: Netgalley
Rated: 3 stars
Review Word Count: 300
Notes: It’s got the word ‘lies’ in ‘Families’ so that counts for Buzz-Word-a-Thon, right?

Well, this was a bit different from my usual read, though it was short so I could easily knock it off the list. This has a potential minefield of triggers, though, so let’s just get into that before doing the review!:

Warnings: child abuse, homelessness, attempted murder, murder, spousal abuse, one scene bashing lesbians (old aunt stuck in her times), hospital scenes, church scenes, veterans, homeless veterans, homeless teenagers, drugs, addicts, abuse, amnesia, dementia, other

I don’t remember an entire year of my life.…
I still don’t remember, but I know what happened now.
I had a baby, and that changes everything.

Kellen Adams has fought battles, saved lives, earned the respect of her colleagues and the love of her friends. But now, can she triumph against the greatest challenge of her life — her family?

-Description from Goodreads

This was a fast short story to read, but also a hard hitting one. It touched on a lot of issues, and some of it made me angry and uncomfortable (such as the old aunt), so it’s not going to be one of my favorite short stories, I don’t think, but it was still a good important read.

There was a bit of mystery, life and death situations, people doing good, people doing bad. I can’t give away too much without revealing the entire plot, but the main point of the story was a woman survived her husband’s attempt to murder her only to get amnesia in the process and switch identities with her cousin who looks almost exactly like her. It was an interesting take, and I liked the main character, though I questioned her intelligent at times.

Overall, I liked it. It’s definitely worth a re-read in the future, if I feel up for it, and I give it 3.5 out of 5 stars!

Until next time,
-Pass Me That Book.

Blog Updates for Jan. Weeks 1-3

This post will be a bit something different, as I’m attempting to be a bit more organized about what all I’m doing. So, there will be a handful of charts, a list of ARCs unread of last year + this month, and some revelations about the upcoming changes for Pass Me That Book.

January Book Mail Received:

A Gleam of Light (Book One) by TJ and ML Wolf
The Dragon’s Glare (Book Two) by TJ and ML Wolf
Beyond the World (Book Three) by TJ and ML Wolf
The War of the Flowers by Tad Williams
The Kingdom of Copper by S.A. Chakraborty*
The Heart of What Was Lost by Tad Williams

*YASSSS, BOOK TWO IS HERE!!!!!
~*~

Books Read In January:

1.Arabella of Mars by David Levine 4/5 stars
2.The Witch, the Worm, and the — by Christopher Paolini 5/5 stars
3.The Bachelor Girls Guide to Murder by — 4/5 stars
4.A Symphony of Echoes by Jodi Taylor 4/5 stars
5.The Ruin of Kings by — 5/5 stars (Netgalley Arc)
6.Last Things by Jacqueline Carey 5/5 stars (Edelweiss Arc)
7.Gift of Griffins by V.S. Escalada 4/5 stars (Tor Arc)
8.Terrier by Tamora Pierce 5/5 stars (re-read)
9.The Defiant Heir by Melissa Caruso 5/5 stars
Upcoming Book Reviews:

1. Conspiracy of Lies
2. Watch Over
3. Lying Beneath the Oaks
4. Trouble on the Books
5. Families and Other Seasons
6. Sparrow Squadron
7. A New World: Contact (LGBT Pick of the Month)
8. The Rise of the Watcher
9. Between Before and After
10. Little Darlings (Anticipated Read)
11. Murder at Belgravia
12. Shadows of Leia
13. Finding Katrina M. (Anticipated Read)
14. Prince of Air and Darkness
15. Upon a Burning Throne (Anticipated Read)
16. The Obsoletes (Anticipated Read)
17. The Things We Cannot Say
18. The Next to Last Mistake (Anticipated Read)
19. Romanov (HUGE Anticipated Read)
20. From Suffragete to Homesteader
21. The Spitfire Girls
22. A Danger to Herself and Others (HUGE Anticipated Read)
23. The Little Book Cafe
24. The 19th Bladesman
25. Blackberry and Wild Rose (Anticipated Read)
26. The Daughter of Temperance Hobbs (Anticipated Read)
27. The Ventriloquists
28. Heir of Ra
29. Fog Season (Sequel to Favorite Read of 2018)
30. Courage to Be Counted
31. The Winter Sister (Anticipated Read)
32. The Grass People
33. A Dress For the Wicked
34. The She Wolf of Kanta
35. How to Fracture a Fairy Tale
36. The Winter Road (2018 Anticipated Read)
37. Thin Air
38. Freezing Point
39. A Baker Street Wedding (Retelling/Anticipated Read)
40. The Confectioners Guild
41. Skylark’s Song
42. Cogheart
43. Ragnarok Unwound
44. A Spark of White Fire
45. The Glory of the Empress
46. Salt
47. The Letter for the King
48. Rellania
49. A Kingdom of Copper
50. A Gleam of Light

Fifty book reviews behind, egads, how did it get this bad?! I blame December, I slacked off quite a bit, and I suffered three family deaths back to back, so it’s reasonably understandable why I suddenly really didn’t feel like reading much of anything. I hope to get all these posted within the months of Jan./Feb./Mar., and get rid of all the arcs on my Netgalley lists ASAP, because they’ve been lingering for ages. The shame! The horror!

Upcoming Guest Posts:

The Quiet You Carry Author Guest Post Discusses Her Book
The Bold Mom Drops in and Discusses Halloween Reads for Valentine’s Day
??

*trying to get more guest authors/bloggers to drop in, if interested comment below!

Aside from that, it’s been productive. I’m working on writing my own books and I have plenty of other projects going on at the same time as well, such as many short stories, learning graphic design, and enduring the upcoming cold weather that’s about to hit the house again. I hope to do more updates like this daily, and keep track of all the ARCs and books that I’m reading. If you like it, let me know in the comments please!

Until next time,

-Pass Me That Book

McKillip Through the Ages: A Guide

This is something new that I’m doing, and it was first published over at Fantasy Souls (https://fantasysouls.home.blog/), where the title of the article is the same as this post. It’s my first published article, and I’m really pleased with how it turned out. Go take a look if you’d like. Or you can read it here!

~*~

McKillip Through the Ages: A Guide

Patricia A. McKillip. Almost every serious fantasy author knows her name, because she’s that good at what she does. Some books of hers I like more than others, but the fact remains that she is a prolific, amazing writer that everyone should read when diving into fantasy for the first time. She opens peoples eyes to the wonder of fantasy and imagination, to romance and adventure, to war and death. She has been a fan of mine since I was thirteen years old, and my mother handed me a book labeled “The Forgotten Beasts of Eld” and I had devoured it in a single day.

She’s a good way to start reading more fantasy. She’s diverse, has strong female characters, realistic imagery, and believable plot lines. She’s as famous as they come, right up there with Anne McCaffrey, Mercedes Lackey, Elizabeth Bear, and many many others. She’s one of my all time favorite authors, but few people are reading her works any more-at least, few that I’ve noticed.

She writes strong high fantasy, as well as magical realism. Her latest book Kingfisher, is one that I haven’t yet read, though have been saving for a rainy day. Kingfisher looks to be just as impressive and engrossing as her other books in the fantasy genre, though I have admittedly heard mixed reviews-both good and bad-about the upcoming novel.

However, despite the mixed reviews, Patricia McKillip remains firmly one of my top ten favorite female fantasy writers, for various reasons. I’ve read almost all of her books, and I recommend that you do as well, especially if your new to fantasy. Yet it doesn’t matter if you start with her first published novel, The Forgotten Beasts of Eld or her latest novel, Kingfisher, released in 2016 by ACE books. All of her books are worth giving a try in my humble opinion, new and old.

And for those of you who wonder who does the cover art for her books. From what Google and the Author’s Website has told me, it is the fabulous artist: Kinuko Craft. She has a page on the author’s website for your perusal though you cannot get in touch with the artist through that page from what I’ve read on the website: http://www.patriciamckillip.com/Craft/

Patricia McKillip has had author interviews from various peoples over the years as well, from Locus way back in 1992 and 1996, as well as for the 25th World Fantasy Convention written by her husband and that one is called “Voyages”. All interviews can be found on her website here: http://patriciamckillip.com/misc-interviews/

One of my favorite quotes from her during one of her many interviews is:

“I started writing because I was too young to know better.”

I did the same, because isn’t that how all great writers start? I don’t believe myself to be a great writer, let alone as good as the great Patricia McKillip, but one day I can only hope to be as well written and prolific as one of the many female authors that I’ve always greatly admired.

However, until I become as famous a writer as Patricia McKillip, I will continue reading books instead. For isn’t that what writers are always saying? Read read read, write write write?

In closing, keep writing Patricia McKillip. Because I will definitely keep reading!