The Genesis by K. L. Kerr

The Genesis by K L Kerr(Cover picture courtesy of Love YA Books.)

An Uncontrollable Power. An Unstoppable Corporation. A Vampire God.

The vampires of Dayson city are preparing for war. Having lived in constant fear of the Archway Corporation for decades, desperation has forced them into action. Their solution is to bring the First vampire, Alistair, back from the dead, a warrior famed for eradicating entire armies in the name of his kind.

For fledgling vampire Catrina Malinka, the fabled return of some unknown deity falls low on her list of concerns. Between fending off strangers trying to kill her in her dreams and trying to rein in an uncontrollable power that no one else even understands let alone shares, Catrina is forced to fight her assumed role in the war against Archway, which threatens to send her down a path she doesn’t want to travel.

The first book in The Blood of Ages series, “The Genesis” is an urban fantasy about the inescapable nature of Fate and the corruption of power.

[Full disclosure: I received a free ARC ebook through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.]

First off, you need to read this book right now.  Yes, The Genesis by K. L. Kerr is so good that I’m starting my review with my recommendation.  But I know what you’re thinking: “Vampires again?  You’re kidding me, right?”

No, imaginary reader, I’m not.  Why would I give such a blanket recommendation of a vampire book when vampires are so over-used in mainstream fiction?  Because these are real vampires: they are bloodthirsty killing machines with very little or no remorse when they take human lives.  They die in the sunlight rather than sparkle and romance certainly isn’t the main focus of The Genesis.  The main focus is Catrina’s change into a vampire and her slow journey to find out why the Clan wants her to be the Vessel to return the mysterious Alistair.

Catrina is an awesome protagonist with an occasionally mysterious backstory that is one of the very few narrators that doesn’t go into complete and utter denial when she becomes a vampire.  No, she learns a bit about being a vampire and actually believes Fox when he tells her he turned her into a vampire because of the clues she notices around her and the changes to her own body.  A logical narrator?  Heaven forbid!  If her being extremely logical isn’t a satisfactory explanation, there’s more of an explanation later on but it’s a spoiler.

The lack of information given to Catrina by Fox is a little frustrating as a reader at times, but considering Fox’s personality it makes sense.  The only thing I didn’t like was that we knew so little about Catrina’s own backstory and there’s really no excuse for this.  However, with the fascinating vampire mythology and the slow, suspenseful reveal of the real conflict I guess I can forgive that.  Coupled with the fact that there were quite a few unexpected plot twists, I really can’t complain about the lack of backstory.  I’m sure K. L. Kerr will explore Catrina’s and Fox’s pasts in the next book in her Blood of Ages series.

I give this book 4.5/5 stars.

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Why Girls Hate Game of Thrones—A Rebuttal

After I found this highly sexist article called Why Girls Hate Game Of Thrones I’ve been on what I like to call a “slow burn”.  I’ve been stewing about it for two weeks now, biding my time until I got into full rant mode and now I’m ready to explode.  Maybe it’s because I’m feeling crankier than usual due to a strep throat, but either way I couldn’t resist the urge to refute this sexist, idiotic excuse for an article.

Because I’m feeling particularly rant-y I will now dissect the article piece by piece, but be warned that the original article contains coarse language you do not normally find on my blog.  No, there’s no swearing but there are terms I would not use in polite conversation.

So here is why Renata Sellitti thinks all girls hate Game of Thrones the TV series (which can also apply to the books):

Jaime and Cersei

Point #1: “We hate gross things. Know what’s gross? Screwing your sibling.” Continue reading →

End Dayz by Kellie Sheridan

End Dayz by Kellie Sheridan(Cover picture courtesy of Kobo Books.)

Prequel collection to Mortality.

It’s month after the dead first began to walk. The miracle vaccine that was supposed to save us all has failed.

Now, four teens fight to stay alive as a stronger, smarter breed of zombie begins to appear, threatening to end humanity for good.

Four short stories, 11,000 words total

[Full disclosure: I received a free ebook through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.]

After reading Kellie Sheridan’s first book in The Hitchhiker Strain and seeing that there was a prequel anthology to it, I just had to read it.  After all, Mortality was pretty awesome and I was interested in learning about the characters lives during the apocalypse itself.  But did End Dayz add to my overall enjoyment of Kellie Sheridan’s world?

Absolutely!  Learning more about Pierce, Belle, Alex and Zack was awesome.  Not only did I get to learn more about the characters themselves, but also about the zombie apocalypse and what it was like to live in that chaos.  Not only that, I learned a little about how Savannah was orphaned but I won’t go into detail about that because it’s a spoiler.  Unlike so many anthology collections by the same author, each character in End Dayz had an unique voice in their writing.  Some of them were chronicling the apocalypse through letters to their family, diary entries or mission reports.  But in the end, everyone sounded different and that allowed me to get a real sense of their personality.

Belle is the bubbly young woman we meet in Mortality, Pierce is slightly stuck-up, Alex is the underdog and Zack is the serious team leader.  That may sound like they’re all one dimensional characters, but they’re not.  There are unique spins on each of the archetypal characters, which I was so thankful for.  Kellie Sheridan is one of those writers that seems to stay away from clichés as much as possible and that’s what makes The Hitchhiker Strain one of my top series to follow into the future.

I give this book 5/5 stars.

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Blog Tour: The Path of the Fallen by Dan O’Brien

As a side note, those of you who want to see my review of The Path of the Fallen can do so here.  I loved the book so much that when Dan O’Brien contacted me to ask if I’d be interested in the tour, I agreed to help out!

Welcome to the sixth day of The Path of the Fallen blog tour. It will run until July 8th and will feature excerpts, new author interviews each day, character interviews, and a casting call by the author. But first, here is the obligatory blurb about the novel to settle you into this sprawling fantasy world:
Set against the backdrop of the tundra and a world desperate for hope, the journey of a young man, E’Malkai, will come to define a realm that has been broken by an evil that does not sleep. A bitter betrayal, and the inception of a war that will consume the world, forces E’Malkai to confront the past and undertake a pilgrimage that is his birthright. Follow him on his journey and be transformed. 
An interview with the characters from The Path of the Fallen:
As I sit down at my computer, I am struck by the eerie presence of someone behind me. Leaving behind the blinking cursor, I realize that the cast of my latest novel, The Path of the Fallen, are standing behind me. E’Malkai, sullen and burdened by the weight of the pilgrimage he has undertaken, stands behind the immovable figure of his Umordoc guardian, Elcites. Arms crossed over his chest, his gaze unsettles me despite how much time I have spent in his company whilst writing The Path of the Fallen. Arile, proud hunter of the north, leans against his spear and inspects the wall with a carefree look upon his face. Fe’rein, shrouded in the darkness that complements him so well, seethes with a dark mix of irritation and confidence. Continue reading →

Ignite by Erica Crouch

Ignite by Erica Crouch(Cover picture courtesy of Goodreads.)

Penemuel (Pen) fell from grace over a millennium ago, yet there are still times she questions her decision to follow her twin brother, Azael, to Hell. Now that the archangel Michael has returned, threatening Lucifer’s vie for the throne, she begins questioning everything she has always believed.

As Hell prepares for war – spreading a demonic virus and pilfering innocent souls to build an army – the lines separating the worlds blur. Fates erase and the future is left unwritten. Azael is determined that he and his sister will continue to serve as demons together, but for the first time in her life, Pen is not ruled by destiny. She has the freedom of choice.

With choice comes sacrifice, and Pen must decide which side she’s willing to risk everything fighting for: the light, or the dark.

[Full disclosure: I received a free ebook through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.]

I had mixed feelings about Ignite.  On one hand, Erica Crouch overturned many old YA tropes in the course of her novel, especially ones about Heaven and Hell.  On the other hand, she used a trope that I’m really starting to get tired of: immortals behaving like awkward teenagers.

Okay, so Michael is the archangel who comes back to life after being killed and having his soul trapped in Hell for a long time.  Pen is a demon who is tasked with keeping him busy while her brother Azael helps Lilith start the apocalypse on Earth.  Naturally, this leads you to assume that Pen and Michael will fall in love with each other and I don’t think it’s that big of a spoiler to say that yes, they fall in love.  And yes, I know it’s okay for Michael to be so awkward because he has no memories of his past life but there’s no excuse for Pen.  Yes, it’s her first time in love, but she’s thousands of years old!  You would think she’d be a little less naive.

So other than the whole unbelievable forbidden romance angle, Pen was a decent enough character.  She’s flawed but her love for her brother makes her sympathetic, even if her naivete is frustrating at times.  I would have liked to see her struggle more over her changing views of Heaven and Hell, but I think that’s more of a personal preference than anything.  Her backstory and her actions make her reasonably believable, though. 

What I really enjoyed about Ignite is how Erica Crouch dissected some of the old Heaven and Hell tropes, particularly about the nature of the battle between the two.  She raises questions about what led to Lucifer’s rebellion without really taking one side or the other, which was a nice change.  She also managed to write about the looming threat of the apocalypse without making it feel like one of the many terrible documentaries the History Channel airs regularly about the apocalypse.  For that alone, I love her writing.

I give this book 3.5/5 stars.

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