Review: Bones and Bourbon by Dorian Graves

Half-huldra Retz Gallows is having an awful day. First, he wakes up in the middle of driving to who-knows-where with an angry unicorn head in his passenger seat. This is almost normal, thanks to a lifetime of sharing a body with Nalem, a bone-controlling spirit with a penchant for wicked schemes and body-stealing joyrides. It’s probably a bad idea to ask what else could go wrong.

Jarrod Gallows left home with plans to rescue his little brother from possession. Instead, he got saddled with a dead-end job as a paranormal investigator, a Faerie curse, and a daredevil boyfriend who might be from another world. At least he’s got a new job—except why is his brother Retz here and why does this sudden reunion feel more like a bane than a blessing?

This day’s going to get worse for the Gallows brothers before it gets better. To survive, they’ll have to escape the forces controlling them, as well as the wrath of carnivorous unicorns, otherworldly realms, and even their own parents. Only time will tell if they’ll make it out alive…or sober.

I picked this up because of the headless unicorn with carnivorous tendencies in the first chapter of this book and it only got weirder and more gory from there.


image credit: Last of the carnivorous unicorns by Steven Gibb

If you enjoy a bit of gore (okay a lot of gore) in your urban fantasy then this is definitely the story for you.

Thorough world building, with some guest appearances by Bloody Mary and a interdimensional travelling train made of entrails, there is a lot going on in this story about two brothers who reconnect to do weird and wonderfully heroic things while trying to build a sibling bond they never had.

Retz has always been possessed by Nalem, and to put it simply, this has always been an issue between Retz and his brother Jarred. The problem? Nalem enjoys torture and has the ability to do things to bones, like fusing Jarred’s jaw shut when he was young. Definitely doesn’t create goodwill between the two, and the lack of empathy from Retz, probably as a result of being possessed as not facilitated a brotherly connection thus far.

Nalem has a plan to get back to his former glory, or take over the realms, whichever way he wants to spin it, and unfortunately Retz is being used as the body behind this coup. There is also Jarrod and Retz dad, who is now a fae, and some sort of tree-thing, and he has his own plans to finally kill Nalem.

So yes, this story moves in many different ways, and it is the go with the flow sort of reader who will enjoy this immensely. There are plenty of creatures to discover, and lots of sarcasm and death threats, but ultimately two brothers who really do want to build the bond they were never able to. I am looking forward to the next in the series.

If you enjoy weird and wonderful stories with some crazy and blood, then this is recommended to you.

A review copy was provided for an honest review

Guest Review: Broken Pieces (Broken) by Deja Black

A detective and the future leader of a deadly coven. What can go wrong?
Remi Devereaux is a Louisiana born detective working murder cases in Louisville, Kentucky. While shopping for game-day with the guys, he spots the most amazing person he has ever seen. Peter is a man Remi wants with his whole being, a man he just can’t let go.

Peter Romanoff is a photographer who possesses the spirit of two creatures. Two beings that are slowly tearing him apart. He needs a Supruga, a mate, to help give him balance. When he meets Remi, there is a magnetic pull he can’t deny.

The next in line to lead a powerful coven, Peter is hunted, and the people he knows and loves are being killed. It will take Remi’s love and Peter’s skills to combat the enemy after them. Can Remi be the balance Peter needs before the coven destroys them both?

Reviewer: NeRdyWYRM

Unreality

I loved this farcical bit of unreality. Luuuurrved it. It was over the top. It was an over the top paranormal romance mate situation. Did I say it was over the top? Well, it was. There were some beastly aspects of this that were just kind of ... skeery. Yep.

The author walked a fine line between gross and titillating, I'll be honest, but it somehow worked. And probably because the deceptively delicate MC, Peter, was really a beastly fucking badass while alpha cop and intuitive spiritualist Remi was just as badass from the bottom. What's not to love.

Blood, guts, gore, vamp-wolf hybrid (semi-deposed) reluctant kings, semi-psychic voodoo descendents, murder, mayhem, attempted coups ... yeah, what's not to love?

Still, it was over the top and completely unrealistic, even for a paranormal. That's not necessarily a bad thing here. I think the plot needed that "feel". It had kind of an opera-ish vibe to it if you know what I mean. The pacing was a little fast, even for something like this with a mate angle and let's face it, the whole first 'real' time they did anything together was ... scary as fuck but inexplicably hot. I'm a little worried what that says about me to be honest, but screw it.

Read it and see what I mean. Like I said, there are aspects of this book that walk a knife's edge with at least one pretty hard pass taboo, but somehow it works. It certainly gives a whole new meaning to the words: fearless acceptance. I'd like to see more of this world and find out what Peter and Remi face in the future and what they're capable of with their bond.



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An ARC copy of this title was provided for an honest review.

Review: My Boyfriend's Back by Elliot Cooper

After losing both of his parents, Academy of Magecraft student Steven Durant doesn't want to see anyone else lose a loved one before their time. Traditional resurrection methods, however, only create mindless, flesh-hungry zombies; they're no cure for death. He's certain his unique brand of necromancy—using alchemy and blood magic—is the only answer.

When his boyfriend, Dax Everhart, has a fatal accident, Steven sees no choice but to use his experimental Lazarus Elixir. Dax comes back wrong, but the more humans he consumes, the more human he becomes.

With the help of his best friends, his ghostly aunt, and her living doll homunculus, Steven fights to regain normalcy and repair his shattered relationship with Dax. But with Dax openly embracing his monstrous nature, Steven shoulders the guilt of assisting in a murder spree that could lead the mundane and magical police right to their door.

Huh. Well... okay. That was certainly not what I was expecting.  

Confession: I didn't really read the blurb before I snatched this one up. I saw the cover, liked it, and said, "YES, PLEASE." 

Luckily for me, I ended up really loving this... weird, gory, zombie, love story. 

Steven and Dax are both students at Academy of Magecraft. Steven specializes in alchemy and is determined to find a way to bring people back from the dead. But without creating zombies, of course. When Dax takes a fatal fall, Steven hastily uses his experiments to bring him back. 

It worked. Kind of. 

He wasn't a mindless zombie... but still a zombie with a hunger for human flesh. This sends Steven into a tailspin trying to find a way to "fix" Dax. The idea of sentient zombies... not something I've read about before and the idea was more than intriguing. And disgusting. Dax wasn't completely himself after being brought back, but he was aware enough to know what he was doing to survive and to be okay with it. He was heartless and did what he had to do to "live". It was almost humorous. I say almost because I felt weird laughing at his cannibalism. But I did.

At the same time, he was kind of cute. Like I said, he wasn't totally himself and had some things missing. He wasn't sure about his feelings for Steven and he was adorably shy around his long-time boyfriend. Between finding snacks and eating his "leftovers", I pretty much loved Dax. 

I loved Steven, too. He was a frantic mess for most of the story, understandably so, but he didn't give up on helping Dax. Even if he also found himself in a less than desirable position along the way.

I'm not sure I would call this a story with an HEA. But it was more than a HFN... ? I guess, it was the best that could have possibly come out of Steven and Dax's situation. I really liked the ending. If everything ended too perfectly, I don't think it would have done Dax and Steven's story justice. They did the best they could with the situation they created, and their ending felt they way, too. 

If you like zombies and some humor mixed in with your gore, then pick this one up for some Halloween fun. It was a little creepy (did I mention a talking doll? O__O), slightly disturbing, funny, with a sweet couple doing everything they could to stay together.

A copy was provided in exchange for an honest review.

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Excerpt

Elliot Cooper © 2016

All Rights Reserved.

Catrina skipped through the garden, her bangs fluttering below the neat braid pinned across the top of her head. Her hair was darker than the rest of her unearthly blue-green form, the yard partially visible through her translucent skin and clothes. She flopped down on the ground in a way that made her appear to have mass and then poked at the fetid opossum corpse until she managed to flip it to its belly.

“Told you so,” she said matter-of-factly. “You didn’t use enough.”

Steven ignored her and kept digging. She didn’t have any idea what she was talking about. Catrina had admitted to him multiple times that she’d never dabbled in necromancy in life; she’d been too young to get much further than simple charms and potions. Back in her day, they hadn’t even had the local campus of the Academy of Magecraft, which meant she’d been homeschooled by his great-great-grandmother.

“Did you run it over yourself?”

Steven huffed in annoyance and jammed his shovel into the earth. He pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose with one gloved hand and glared at the little ghost.

“No. I found it. I’m a necromancer, not a murderer.” He looked down into the hole he’d made, judged it to be deep enough for the poor animal, and then gently lowered the opossum body into the ground.

The potion hadn’t been potent enough, which wasn’t entirely his fault. Several of the ingredients were out of season and expensive. His little herb garden was already done for the year with the cooler fall weather turning the trees in his yard gold and umber. Steven didn’t like to waste any of his potion supplies and didn’t think it was a fault to be conservative with his elixirs.

Only maybe he’d been overly cautious. Maybe he needed to take a cue from his boyfriend, Dax, and get overzealous with his potion making and application rituals.

Steven’s mouth screwed into a sour frown at the thought as he shoveled the pile of dirt back into the hole.

“Is it really smelly?” Catrina peered up at Steven from her seat on the grass. She plucked at the hem of her dress and pulled it down over her knees.

“It’s not too bad.” Steven shrugged one shoulder as he tamped down the loose dirt with the flat side of the shovel. “I can’t even smell it now.”

“So that’s your ‘I just thought of something that offends my Stevie senses’ face.” Catrina pursed her lips at him and then skipped off toward the house.

“Don’t call me that!” Steven called after her. Catrina was the only one who called him that, and she’d done so since he was little enough to want to play games with her. But he’d outgrown the nickname a long time ago. It was a child’s name, not the name of a future world-renowned mage.

He heard Dax’s car pull into the driveway as he put the shovel and gloves back in the shed with the rest of his gardening equipment. At least Dax wouldn’t get all holier than thou about his failed attempt to raise roadkill from the dead. Again.

“Hey, babe!” Dax called to Steven as he walked around to the front of the house. “You wanna help me with these groceries? I got you a little something special.” He waggled his dark brows and grinned but then noticed his jovial expression wasn’t catching. “Everything all right?”

“Opossum number three was not, in fact, the charm,” Steven said with a shake of his head. He let out a sigh and sidestepped Dax to reach into the car for the bags.

Review: The Soul (The Soul #1) by S.R. Carrillo

Evil has flourished since the beginning of time, but at long last it has come to pass—that the world should end at the hands of the divine. A Lesser Earth thrives in the ashes of the old world.

As does an unnamed lost boy, the abandoned effigy of evil, who wanders the globe without a clue and without a purpose.

The Last Angel Ero’s only task is to find this boy and raise him into the arms of Grace. He doesn’t expect to question that purpose—and he certainly doesn’t expect to find an affinity with the evil inside the boy he names Sol.

It’s only when Ero begins to explore new truths that he realizes just what having faith in Sol may cost him: his life, his love and his soul.

The Soul was different (so different), gruesome, graphic, disturbing, but so intriguing.

The story starts off from Sol's POV. He's been taken in by some crazy guy, Alexander, and Sol can't remember anything about himself from before he was taken in. He appears to be about 14 but we know pretty early on that he's older than that. Funnily enough, he's not actually a boy at all. Or human. Thank god because he ate people! In gruesome detail! It was graphic. I've read all sorts of vampire/shifter/demon what-have-you when they feed off humans. But this? This was something different. I was not prepared to be reading such things. So, now I'm preparing you. You're welcome.

At this point, I wasn't sure I wanted to go on. but I was so damn intrigued by Sol. He has not a clue who he is or what he's supposed to be doing and the author makes this very clear through Sol's actions and inner-monologues. I could feel his... I don't know... deadness inside. I could clearly picture him standing there, listening to Alexander, not caring in the least and then going out to eat a person like it was nothing.

After I got the shock of the century (when you read it, you'll know what I'm talking about), we meet Ero. Ero goes to Earth for one reason: to find Sol. To find him and help rid him of the evil inside. He spent a lot of time with the man who found him when he fell(?) to Earth, Lios. Ero took words right out of my mouth when he said:

"He had wondered whether the time he spent with Lios would mean anything in the long run, wondered if he was wasting time by deciding to stay with the man, for however brief a period, but there couldn't be anything more worthwhile."

Huh. I was thinking the same thing. Why did he (and the readers) spend so much time with Lios? While it seemed random, I think Lios played a huge part in reminding Ero why he was on Earth. Even when he didn't see kindness and humanity in his travels, he would remember Lios. He would remember that there were people worth saving from this evil, even if he didn't see them every day. I think it did take up too much page time because I would have preferred more Ero and Sol time.

Because when they do meet? That's when it gets intense.

They had this connection. One neither one was expecting and neither knew what to do with. Hell, I have no idea what to think of it either. I do know that I want more of them. Their characters were so clearly defined, I felt like I knew them (not that I would want to... *whispers* especially not Sol). Actually, I might be kind of in love with Ero. He was sent with this huge task and he went for it head on. But what happens between them... whew. They're intense.

But, Ero. Yes, I love him.

"No amount of malevolent influence could pry him from who he was because it slept soundly within him all along."

The writing style was very different and a little too purple-y for my tastes. I don't mind such descriptions but sometimes I just want an author to speak plain to me. Just tell me what's happening. Please. While the characters were very vivid, I couldn't quite get a grasp on the setting and sometimes on the plot. While it sounded beautiful, lyrical and poetic, some scenes took way too much work to decipher between all the extra words.

There were parts of this book rocked my unicorn socks. For reals. I need to know what happens with Sol and Ero next. There so much left to know about them.

 

This book was provided in exchange for an honest review.

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