Sunday, October 22, 2017

My Week in Review: 10/14/17-10/21/17



Last week I read a few pretty great books and I am excited to share them with you.  

Here goes:

The Book of the Unnamed Midwife by Meg Elison 
4 Stars ****


When she fell asleep, the world was doomed. When she awoke, it was dead.

In the wake of a fever that decimated the earth’s population—killing women and children and making childbirth deadly for the mother and infant—the midwife must pick her way through the bones of the world she once knew to find her place in this dangerous new one. Gone are the pillars of civilization. All that remains is power—and the strong who possess it.

A few women like her survived, though they are scarce. Even fewer are safe from the clans of men, who, driven by fear, seek to control those remaining. To preserve her freedom, she dons men’s clothing, goes by false names, and avoids as many people as possible. But as the world continues to grapple with its terrible circumstances, she’ll discover a role greater than chasing a pale imitation of independence.

After all, if humanity is to be reborn, someone must be its guide.

Witch Slap by Val St. Crowe - 4 Stars ****


Welcome to Ravenridge College.
Get drunk. Make stupid decisions. And kick serious interdimensional butt.

Petra Brightshade was under the impression that college meant going to, like, classes. But she was recruited to this “prestigious mage college” because she’s something called a primal. Her innate magic is uniquely suited to fighting monstrous creatures from another dimension. Those creatures are pouring through a breach in the fabric of the universe right into the college’s library.

Petra would rather carve the word “primal” into her own stomach than fight those freaking creatures. She’s been fighting them her whole life, and they haunt her nightmares.

But that hot gargoyle that recruited her said that she was pretty much the only hope to save the world. And he’s intriguingly straight-laced. She can’t help but want to loosen him up a bit. And it’s true that the other primals seem to subscribe to the philosophy, “Fight hard. Party harder.”

So, Petra’s in. She’s going to fight. As soon as she gets some coffee, that is.

Z-Burbia by Jake Bible - 4 Stars ****


Whispering Pines is a classic, quiet, private American subdivision on the edge of Asheville, NC, set in the pristine Blue Ridge Mountains. Which is good since the zombie apocalypse has come to Western North Carolina and really put suburban living to the test!

Surrounded by a sea of the undead, the residents of Whispering Pines have adapted their bucolic life of block parties to scavenging parties, common area groundskeeping to immediate area warfare, neighborhood beautification to neighborhood fortification.

But, even in the best of times, suburban living has its ups and downs what with nosy neighbors, a strict Home Owners’ Association, and a property management company that believes the words “strict interpretation” are holy words when applied to the HOA covenants. Now with the zombie apocalypse upon them even those innocuous, daily irritations quickly become dramatic struggles for personal identity, family security, and straight up survival.

Welcome to normal life in Z-Burbia!

Dysphoria and Grace by Christina Rozelle - 4 Stars ****


Twenty-year-old orphan, Grace Vincent, is damaged beyond repair. She’s had a rough life, and with the state of the world, things aren’t getting any better. With crime on the constant rise, and all licensed civilians age sixteen and up armed, it’s no wonder she has a pet name for her 9 mm, Suki.

While attending the slummiest community college in Selam, Texas, Grace still lives at home with her adoptive parents and their “miracle” baby, but only for a few more months until she graduates and they buy her a new car. She smokes and drinks a little too much, loses herself in music, and to keep things interesting, she’s falling hard for her best friend.

But when the government imposes Martial Law, requiring civilians ages twenty-one and up to be vaccinated in an effort to eradicate violence, and things don’t go as planned, Grace is left to navigate a frenzied world while wrangling difficult realizations and regrets. With nothing else to lose, a decision must be made—fight and live, or surrender and die.

When Grace has lost all hope, two chance encounters prove there are secrets in Selam, lies about how the end happened, and hope for her yet, despite the insanity in her screwed-up mind. The world may have ended, but Grace’s new life has just begun.

The Creeping Dead by Edward P Cardillo - 3 Stars ***


It’s the summertime rush in the Jersey Shore resort town of Smuggler’s Bay, as tourists flock to the beach, boardwalk, and rides…but it’s not all fun and games. 

As a superstorm looms, threatening to destroy the town, something else threatens the Bay…something lurking in the shadows…the creeping dead. As a mysterious infection spreads, the town must pull together if they are to weather the storm and survive a plague of living dead.

That wraps up my week.  I hope you are reading something great. 

Thanks for stopping by,
Michelle

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