'Book Three: The Cavern of Promise' Completes Clark Burbidge's Giants in the Land Trilogy

Thank you to PR by the Book for providing a copy of the Giants of the Land Trilogy for us to base this review upon. All opinions expressed are our own.

Giants in the Land is a book series by award-winning author, Clark Burbidge, about a young man named Thomas, who goes on exciting adventures as he grows older. In Book One: The Way of Things, he has to find the giants who have gone missing. In Book Two: The Prodigals, he has to find and neutralize a common threat to the giants and humans. In the recently released Book Three: The Cavern of Promise, there is a tyrannical giant king that captures Thomas and wants to kill the true king, Sonspeaker.

I liked the trilogy, mostly because I love adventure/action books. Also, I like how the book is based in medieval times. I like learning about what life was like back then. One of my favorite parts is when Thomas battles a giant warrior in the evil king’s arena and wins against all odds.

There were some parts of this trilogy that could have been better, such as the cliffhanger at the end of the first book. I think that it was a little discouraging, and I wasn't looking forward to reading the second book as much as I was originally. Also, I think the giant king of Westwood was a little overly dramatic with the explanation of the Madog.

This trilogy is definitely worth reading.  I would recommend it for kids 10 years old and above. There is some bloodshed, so be cautioned.

Award-winning author, Clark Burbidge

To learn more about the Giants in the Land Trilogy, where to purchase the books, and Clark Burbidge, visit www.giantsinthelandbook.com.

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Review: "Always The Vampire" by Nancy Haddock

I am a sucker for vampire novels, so when I was given the opportunity to review Always the Vampire by Nancy Haddock, I jumped on the chance. In this novel, it follows vampire heroine, Cesca, as she tries to be the best maid of honor she can for her friend, Maggie. Cesca herself is a vampire princess who kicks butt but doesn’t feel she’s been living up to her vampiric duties as of late. Due to a unique supernatural disease making its rounds, many of her friends, including her lover, are falling ill and she has to deal with that as well.

First I’ll start by saying that Always the Vampire is the third book in this series and I haven’t read the other two. I wasn’t really lost, per se, but did find myself wishing I had read the other two many times.  I probably will read the first two books and return to this one after. That said, I really enjoyed diving into Cesca’s world and learning about her supernatural lifestyle. Cesca is a strong woman and a very interesting one at that, and I loved reading what this well-written novel had to say. The story itself had everything you could want if you’re a sci-fi or vampire novel lover, including romance. Cesca is a feisty vampire who makes for a great main character.

You can purchase Always the Vampire for the Kindle on Amazon.com and in paperback at most major book retailers.


Thank you to Penguin Group for providing a complimentary copy of this book for us to base this review upon.

Review: "Jimmy Stone's Ghost Town" by Scott Neumyer

I just recently read Jimmy Stone's Ghost Town by Scott Neumyer. Although I enjoyed the book, I think I should say right away that the book was not geared to me as a reader. I feel that Jimmy Stone's Ghost Town is an excellent choice for younger readers.

The book is written from the perspective of a young boy (Jimmy) who endures some tragedy and is left mostly alone to deal with his troubles. The book does a great job of putting you right in the middle of the action and bringing back memories of childhood. It was easy for me to imagine Jimmy dealing with his issues.

Then the book takes a mystical and spooky twist as the books title implies. I do not want to say more as the book would spoil easily with too much information, but I am sure you can guess where it goes!

Although not for a reader of my age, the book is very easy to read (I read it in just two sittings) and did a good job placing me in the situation. I imagine “tweens” and possibly younger readers would love Jimmy Stone's Ghost Town. The fact that there will be sequels makes it all that more appealing.

If you have a young reader in your house that likes a good clean thrill, I recommend Jimmy Stone's Ghost Town. Adults be prepared for an easy and short read if you choose to read it yourself.

Currently you can find this eBook for the Kindle, the NOOK, and other formats.  To learn more about this book, visit WhoIsJimmyStone.com, ScottWrites.com, and Scott Neumyer on Facebook.


Thank you to Scott Neumyer for providing a complimentary review copy of this eBook for us to base this review upon.

Review: A Wild Light by Marjorie M. Liu

A Wild Light by Marjorie M. Liu is the third novel in the Hunter Kiss series. In this book, we find the main character, Maxine Kiss, doing her life’s work: hunting zombies. These aren’t the typical zombies that everyone thinks of, eating brains and walking slowly, these are humans possessed by demons who feed on fear and suffering and are bent on ruining the human race. Maxine has her own demons as well, five of them tattooed across every inch of her skin, and many more burdening her heart. The external ones help her fight zombies and be nearly invincible; the internal ones just make her life harder. In A Wild Light, Maxine finds herself over her grandfather’s dead body with no recollection of what happened and no memory of the man that she loves. Maxine fears the darkness of her demons has taken over her and she will never be as she once was.

Liu does an excellent job of painting an intricate and substantial world and very complex characters to go with it. Because I had not read the first two books in this series, The Iron Hunt and Darkness Calls, I did find myself a bit lost throughout, but managed to keep up with the basis of the story. I did feel like I was missing out on some details of the character’s lives, but it’s my own fault for not reading the first two first. I can say the story was compelling, interesting, and very well-written. Liu is clearly an established writer and really has a way with storytelling. This novel is definitely in the fantasy genre and can be paralleled to Charlaine Harris or Kelley Armstrong’s style and genre of writing. I would definitely recommend reading this, though I would say that reading the first two books ahead of time would be beneficial. I have already put them on hold at my library so I can read them and then reread A Wild Light.

Marjorie Liu is an attorney and a New York Times bestselling author of short stories, novellas, and two ongoing series: Dirk & Steele novels of paranormal romance and this series, the Hunter Kiss urban fantasy series. She also wrote NYX: No Way Home, X-23, and Black Widow for Marvel Comics and is co-writing the ongoing bestselling Dark Wolverine series. Liu divides her time between her home in Indiana and her native Beijing/Shanghai, China. For a complete listing of her work, visit her website at www.marjoriemliu.com.

A Wild Light retails for $7.99 in paperback and can be found on Amazon.com, Penguin.com, and at other major book retailers.

Thank you to the Penguin Group for sending us a complimentary review copy of this book to base this review upon.

Review: "Dark Fairies" by Dr. Bob Curran

“Walt Disney has a lot to answer for.” Or so thinks Dr. Bob Curran, author of Dark Fairies, a book highlighting the true, dark, and violent nature of fairies. In ancient times, fairies were not the Tinker Bell that we all visualize today, they were feared and never to be trusted. They were dangerous and unpredictable spirits that flitted about doing wicked things and were more commonly known as manifestations of demons, fallen angels that did the bidding of the Devil himself.

In Curran’s book, he goes into great historical detail about the history of these amazing, mysterious beings. Dark Fairies is split into four major parts: "The People of the Mounds", "The Host of the Gir", "The Dwellers in the Depths", and "Away with the Fairies". Each section goes into great detail and is very well written and researched. It even includes real-life stories from people who believe in or believe they had encounters with fairies, ghost stories of sort. One such person is Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, creator of Sherlock Holmes. Doyle was an avid believer who even staged séances and had photos of what he believed strongly to be real fairies. The public, however, disagreed and thought his photos were staged.

I found this book to be very interesting and enlightening to the truth behind some of our “fairy tales” that I grew up with. It is very much steeped in fantasy, so it won’t be a favorite for everyone. For those interested in mythology, history, and/or fantasy, this is a fascinating read. Curran does a great job of telling these stories with credibility and his writing is very smooth.

You can find Curran's Dark Fairies at Barnes & Noble, Amazon.com, and other major book retailers.

Thank you to Career Press for sending us a copy of this book free of charge to base this review upon.