The Sign of Seven Trilogy by Nora Roberts

As my newest pregnancy hits full swing, I find that I have to keep my reading/media on the light-hearted side of things.  Anything too heavy gets the hormones going, and nobody wants to cry over a book...at least not very often!

The Premise:  On the even of their shared 10th birthday, best friends Caleb, Fox and Gage embark on a glorious adventure: little debbie snack cakes, warm cans of coke, bike rides and camping - alone - in the forbidden Hawkins Hallow wood at the mysterious Pagan Stone.  As midnight and their birthday approaches, the boys use Caleb's boy scout knife to swear themselves as blood brothers.  They speak an oath and combine blood...and unleash a dark madness that was trapped under the Pagan Stone.

Now every seven years for seven days the demon the boys unwittingly unleashed on their birthday reigns terror upon the town and people of Hawkin's Hallow.  Buildings are burned, people murdered and only Caleb, Fox and Gage seem to remember that it even happened.

As their 31st birthday approaches, Caleb, Fox and Gage know in their guts that this Seven is their last chance to save their town from the Demon...if they can just figure out how.

Blood Brothers:  In the months before the Seven hits Hawkins Hallow, Caleb Hawkins feels the signs starting earlier and stronger than ever.  Animals are acting strangely, the woods behind his house seem to bleed, and a sense of wrong invades his dreams.  Which is why he agrees to an interview with paranormal writer Quinn Black.

Quinn comes to town with an open mind and isn't disappointed in what she finds.  Inexplicably, Quinn can see the signs as well, although she's not local to the town.  As Quinn digs into research and settles into Hawkins Hallow for the next few months, she learns that she's connected to what happens in the town.  And to the oh so handsome Caleb.

The Hollow:  Fox O'Dell is town hippie-turned-lawyer and a solid presence in Hawkins Hallow.  His ties to his family and friends keep him in town even when darkness descends for a week every seven years.  As the next Seven looms, Fox digs in to fight what he knows is the last battle between the darkness and the light.  What he doesn't expect is for the darkness to hit harder, stronger, and earlier than ever.

But hope isn't lost.  With the help of his best friends Cal and Gage, and sophisticated newcomer Layla Darnell, Fox starts to see that the future may not be all darkness and loss.  In fact, with Layla's help, he sees that the future is worth fighting for indeed.

The Pagan Stone:  Gage Turner doesn't feel tied to his home town of Hawkins Hallow, or to the father that beat him from the time he was a small boy.  But he does feel tied to his best friends Caleb and Fox.  So every seven years he returns home from wherever his wanders have taken him to help his friends fight to keep Hawkin's Hallow safe from the demon that terrorizes the town.  This Seven feels different from the last.  Not only is the demon coming on stronger than ever, his friends have help, in the form of Caleb's Quinn, Fox's Layla and their friend, researcher Cybil Kinski.

As the group of people come together to learn all they can to fight the demon, Gage feels himself pulled to Cybil.  But can he trust in love when he may only have weeks to live?

My Thoughts:  I'm torn about this series.  I absolutely love the premise: three childhood best friends are fated to unleash a demon when they are just boys.  For a week every seven years, the demon reigns terror over the town, causing its inhabitants to do unspeakable things, of which they will not remember when the Seven is over.  The three boys, Cal, Fox and Gage, aren't without weapons--they heal fast and can't be infected--but are totally outclasses by the demon.  As the final Seven approaches, three women come to town and end up saving the day.  Their fresh take and ruthless research help the men find the tools to face the demon with a chance of not only surviving but riding the town of evil for good.  This is right up my alley.  This is genius.  I shouldn't have been able to put this series down.  But I could and did frequently.  I think what this series lacks (for me...others will not agree) is the lack of balance between story, romance and characters.  I loved the story, thought the romance was OK, and didn't like some of the characters.  Usually a Nora trilogy sucks me under, and this one just didn't.

Rating:  This was good for a one time read, but I won't pick it up again.

Reviewed By:  Tami

Also Read by Author:  I've read almost all of Roberts' catalog, which you can find at her website.  You can check my other reviews on Robert's books by searching for Nora Roberts in the quick search on the right hand side of the page, or by clicking individual links here:  Shadow Spell   |   Dark Witch   |   Thankless in Death   |   Concealed in Death  |  The Collector  |  Blood Magick  |  Blue Dahilia  |  The Liar  |  Dance Upon the Air  |  The Obsession

"Exist" by Jennifer Cazey Daniels

I saw an instagram post soliciting bloggers to read an ARC of "Exist."  The book would be free in exchange for an honest review.  Here are my honest thoughts.

Summary:  Ember is a psionic, or a person who is more than human.  She has powers that allow her to read minds and feel/broadcast emotions.  When her soulmate breaks her heart, she disappears.  Although she is no longer visible, the Shadows are able to find her, and Ember must run for her life before they take her over.  As she searches New York City for others like her, she comes to terms with her powers and a legacy she didn't know she had.

My Thoughts:  I think Daniels has several good ideas throughout Exist.  Psychics + love stories + epic battles are a sure-fire recipe for an entertaining book.

However, I feel that Daniels put a lot of plot into her story without truly exploring any of the details for very long.  "Exist" almost feels like a summary an entire series instead of a standalone novel.  I want to read the story of Ember's past:  Ember grew up an orphan, raised by a government agency.  What happened to her while she was there?  The reader is told that she escaped the agency and I'd love to read about her daring and probably brutal escape.  Shortly after her escape she met the love of her life, Aden, and it was a love like no other.  Tell me more...was she able to instantly trust him, or was it a long process for her, seeing as she hadn't ever loved or trusted before.  (Or had she?)

Ember's life changes after her breakup with Aden.  She disappears for goodness sake!  I'd like to read more about why this happened---was it just because the breakup left her feeling insignificant or is there something deeper?  After the breakup, Ember takes off to hide from the Shadows chasing her.  This could be a tale on its own.  How does she get to NYC?  Does she meet anyone or learn anything on the way?  I'd love to see this story end with the epic first showdown with the shadows.

Finally Ember learns about the guild, her past, and the expectations her new society has for her..  This is a great opportunity to go into detail about the different kinds of psionic powers.  Let's see them in action.  Ember suddenly goes from shy girlie girl to warrior, without much in between.  I want to see her transformation!

There is so much unexplored potential in this book - I'd like to read more than what there is.

I'd also like to see Daniels take the time to polish her work.  There were some errors that could be fixed that I personally found distracting, and think others would as well:  the dialogue formatting was inconsistent, making it hard to tell who was speaking.  There were some situations where spell check chose the wrong word (ie her instead of he).  And towards the end of the story some of the sentences changed tense in the middle of the line.

Finally, I'm the type of reader that is frustrated by being told instead of shown.  I had a hard time connecting to Ember because of this.  I felt like she endured crazy, intense, interesting transformations but instead of seeing them unfold, I was just told they happened.  The only times I felt like I got to see what the characters were thinking were through massive chunks of monologue that seemed to go on for longer than was needed to get the point across.  But then again, I'm older than the target audience so it could only be a matter of taste.

Overall I think this is a decent first attempt at a young adult novel.  I like the plot lines and appreciate the creativity and effort that went into the story. It feels like a first draft to me, rather than a second draft or ARC ready copy.  I hope Daniels finds a professional editor who can help her break the story down and refine her ideas.

Rating:  "Exist" has a Mocking Jay meets New Moon vibe that I think the young adult audience will enjoy once the book has been polished and reworked.

Reviewed By:  Tami

Note:  Although I received an Advanced Reader Copy of "Exist" for free, all thoughts and opinions are my own.

"Watership Down" by Richard Adams

I picked this audio book because I remembered that several people had read it when I was younger and I wondered if I had missed something.

Summary: This is the story of two rabbits, Hazel and Fiver, who fear their warren is aboutto be destroyed by humans and decide to leave. They recruit several other rabbits to join them and they head out on an adventure. They cross dangerous rivers, fight off predators and encounter other rabbits. They find hutch rabbits on a farm, a seagull, human traps, other warrens, trains, cars and a world of other strange things. Their adventure puts them in danger over and over and it is through cleverness, gumption and luck that they persevere. 

When the adventure lulls, the rabbits tell each other stories of the legendary rabbit El-ahrairah, an incredibly clever guy who could trick any of his enemies into working for him. And each chapter starts out with one or two quotes that relate to the events of that chapter. 

The book is written from a rabbit's perspective meaning that human contraptions are described as a rabbit might see it. Also, great care is taken that the rabbits don't do things that are not possible. They never use thumbs, for instance. The book also uses a rabbit language called Lapine which has words for all the things a rabbit might find important, but for which a human wouldn't have a nice word.

What I Liked: I am a fan of adventure stories and this is an epic tale. The character development is good, even though they are rabbits. I liked the stories of El-ahrairah and enjoyed each of their challenges in turn. 

What I Didn't Like: Hmmm.  (Tami notes:  this book is about bunnies.  BUNNIES.)

Also Read By This Author: None.

Rating: Highly recommended. 

Reviewed by: Nick

"Monster Hunter Legion" by Larry Correia

I found this book in a used bookstore. I had already read the first three books of the series and decided to grab this one based on that. This one happens to be a signed copy from a book signing I never knew about. Every copy was signed, which was something I've never seen before.

Summary: Monsters are real and governments know all about them. In the US the Monster Control Bureau issues out secret PUFF bounties on paranormal creatures deemed dangerous to the human race. Private contractors compete to clean up these horrors in order to cash in on the huge bounties. In this series you follow Owen Zastava Pitt (aka: Z), a gun-loving accountant who survived a werewolf attack years ago. Like other surviviors, Z was recruited by Monster Hunters International, a private firm. A lot happens in the first three books, ranging from minor outbreaks to game-changing near-apocalypse. The consistent theme from all the books is that the rate of outbreaks is increasing in number and intensity. The MCB is having trouble keeping it off the front pages and private hunters are fearing a world ending event. Z has a unique heritage and subsequently plays a unique role in the monster hunting world. Each book reveals a little more. 

In this fourth installment a wealthy and mysterious benefactor has organized the first annual International Conference of Monster Hunting Professionals. Hunters from all over the world gathered to share trade secrets and brag to their peers. After putting all the hunters in one place, all we need is a monster! Enter the Nachtmar. The rest of the book is trying to find a way to defeat the Nachtmar while government agents play internal politics.

What I Liked: This is a fun action thriller with a variety of monsters and interesting plots and backstories. There are a lot of funny lines and satisfying resolutions. The characters are badass heroes and the villains are scum. It's a good classic framework with modern places, ideas and tools folded in. I also like how the monsters strike the right balance of terrifying, but killable. Guns work, if you use them right.

What I Didn't Like:  Correia's range of dialogue is lacking. All the characters speak with the same voice and slang which is awkward considering the variety of backgrounds. 

Rating: Solid monster action, worth the read, just read them in order. 

Also Read By This Author: Monster Hunter International,  Monster Hunter Vendetta, Monster Hunter Alpha.

Reviewed By: Nick

"Sisterland" By Curtis Sittenfeld

Summary:  Twin sisters Vi and Kate have "senses" that allow them to occasionally see the future---which childhood friend's father is cheating, which high school classmate is going to die young, even who they themselves will one day marry.

As they grow up through a strange childhood, tumultuous teen years and into adulthood, Vi embraces her extra sense while Kate wishes for nothing more than to be a normal stay at home mom of two.
When Vi predicts a major earthquake on national TV, Kate is forced to come face to face with everything she fears most; her own psychic ability, being tied to her eccentric twin sister and worse...that her sister's terrible prediction may come true.

What I liked:  This story was about so much more than ESP, although Kate's ability to sense the future played a major factor in developing her as the main character.  Sisterland is about the relationship between sisters that are so incredibly different yet achingly similar.  It's about growing up and dealing with life the best you can.  And it reminds us that no matter what life throws at us, it all comes back to family.

What drove me nuts:  The main character tried so hard to be normal that she ended up a little boring.  Until the very end....

Rating:  Definitely worth a read!

Also Read By This Author:  "American Wife"

Reviewed By:  Tami