M.A. Kropp: Writer, Blogger, GeekGirl. My Life. My Words. My Way.
My rating: 3 of 5 starsEdwina and Mary are sisters. living in an alternate Victorian London where they sell odds and ends they collect on nightly walks along the riverbank. They are also witches, and their whole lives have revolved around trying to keep that part secret. They and their father would move from town … Continue reading Friday Review: The Raven Spell (Conspiracy of Magic #1) by Luanne G. Smith
My rating: 3 of 5 starsReandn is a King's Wolf, a patrol leader in the elite force of ranger-like soldiers. He is put in charge of the investigation when children start disappearing with no trace. He also has dizzy spells, with headaches and vertigo that he tries to hide from everyone around him. His own … Continue reading Friday Review: Touched by Magic by Doranna Durgin
My rating: 4 of 5 starsIn this fourth installment of Bledsoe's Tufa series, Matt Johnson, a young New York actor, auditions for a musical called "Chapel of Ease." He gets the role, and becomes friends with Ray Parrish, the play's author. As rehearsals progress and momentum builds for the opening night, strange things begin to … Continue reading Friday Review: Chapel of Ease (Tufa # 4)by Alex Bledsoe
My rating: 4 of 5 stars Rhenn is the son of a wealthy wool merchant in the capital city of Solidar. He is a portraitist, a profession that his merchant father doesn't quite approve of, but is held in high regard by the populace who love to have their portraits painted. Rhenn is apprenticed to … Continue reading Friday Review: Imager (Imager Portfolio #1) by L.E. Modesitt Jr.
My rating: 3 of 5 stars These short pieces were written as add-on stories in the larger Shannara world. As such, none really add a whole lot to the bigger picture, but do give us a bit of a spotlight on events not essential to the novels. They are: Allanon's Quest: This one is set … Continue reading Friday Review: The Paladins of Shannara (Three Short Stories) by Terry Brooks
My rating: 3 of 5 starsGlen Cook is known as the father of the grimdark subgenre of fantasy. This book and series are the reason. This is not a pretty, sweeping, epic fantasy. This is deep in the trenches warfare, and the characters are right in the thick of the action.The Black Company has been … Continue reading Friday Review: The Black Company by Glen Cook
Oh, yes, the annual frenzy of National Novel Writing Month has begun. Yes, I am participating this year, but not for writing a novel. I am using this month to keep me focused on developing an idea I had for a YA fantasy. There will be writing done. There has already been some. But I … Continue reading Monday Musings: NaNoWriMo is Upon Us
Summer Sale!! During the month of July, all my books and stories will be on sale at Smashwords. Three, including the first two stories in my urban fantasy series, The Yo-Yo Files, are free. My short fantasy collection is half off, as is my latest sci-fi novel, Two's Company. My first novel, Circle Unbroken, is at even more of a discount. Ebooks are … Continue reading Friday Review: Soul Storm (Eden Hunter #1) by D.N. Erikson
Grave Peril by Jim Butcher My rating: 2 of 5 stars This time, Harry Blackstone Copperfield Dresden, the only working wizard in the Chicago phone book, is facing a series of ghosts making more than a little bit of trouble in his town. Add to that a powerful demon that seems bent on taking out … Continue reading Friday Review: Grave Peril (Dresden Files #3) by Jim Butcher
The Towers of the Sunset by L.E. Modesitt Jr. My rating: 3 of 5 stars Creslin's mother, the matriarch of the powerful military country known as the Roof of the World, has arranged his coming marriage to Mageara, sister to the ruler of a neighboring country. Mageara's sister has forced Mageara to accept a blood … Continue reading Friday Review: The Towers of the Sunset by L. E. Modesitt, Jr.
And So On... 