Review: Frost Moon by Anthony Francis

Frost Moon by Anthony Francis introduces us to the incomparable Dakota Frost, magical tattoo artist and skindancer. Not only can her tattoos perform some useful function such as make a transformation smoother for a were, they can move on the skin of the wearer. In the case of Dakota, this can make for one impressive display since she has several tattoos inked on her, mostly by her own hand. Most impressive in description to me was her dragon tattoo that started on one foot and ran all the way up her body.

The book opens with Dakota being escorted into the police station, not for anything she's done wrong, but because of what her father's old partner, Rand, hopes she can do. A serial killer is stalking those with magical tattoos and worse taking a tattoo as a trophy of sorts on or near the full moon. The police and the feds hope that she can shed some light on this and help warn others.

Dakota meets a wide variety of characters over the course of the book including vampires, weres, magic users, and some relatively normal people. Anthony Francis does a nice job of world building an "Edgeworlder Atlanta" where all these non-mainstream people live. He does a great job in fleshing out all of the characters involved including the minor ones. The subplots tie together nicely with the main plot at the climax to the novel.

Dialog is believable. Dakota has some nice banter with Philip, her main love interest and man in black. Dakota banters well in general and isn't afraid to speak up for herself. Occasionally as a result, she will put her foot in her mouth like when she is first being introduced at the werehouse. This makes her more endearing.

I was surprised at the identity of the serial killer. I don't think there was really any foreshadowing leading up to it, but it wasn't totally unbelievable either. You'll have to judge for yourself. And it is worth the time.

I received a copy of this book in return for my unbiased opinion.

Friday Reads

This week I am encouraging you to check out Friday Reads on the web or on Twitter. To quote the site: FridayReads is a global community of thousands of people who come together each week to share whatever they’re reading. Our goal is simple: to raise reading’s visibility and encourage more people to join in!


Every week thousands of people chime in on Facebook on their FridayReads page, on their homepage (FridayReads.com), on Tumblr, and on twitter using the hashtag #FridayReads and let the world know what they are reading. And audiobooks count too. Kindle, Nook or paper - it doesn't matter just so long as it's a book. Kids books are fine. Middle grades, YA, Grown-up, whatever you're reading just post it.


You can see what other people are reading in the feeds and lists as they appear, but Friday Reads also does a blog post about which books were the top listed books for the week. This is interesting as sort of real world information and not necessarily what the newspapers are saying, but what people are really reading. 


Check it out on Tumblr  this week and participate for a chance to win a copy of The Power of Six by Pittacus Lore. This is the sequel to I Am Number Four.


I've been participating in Friday Reads for a while now and I find it interesting to share and see what other people are reading as well as watch the number of people admitting to reading climb each week.


Give it a shot, why not? Let them know on the web or on twitter what you've been reading or are reading today.  

Wordless Wednesday

Review: The Door to Lost Pages by Claude Lalumiere

The Door to Lost Pages by Claude Lalumière
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I was drawn to The Door to Lost Pages because among other things it sounded like a wonderful bookstore, one you'd like to find on a little side street and explore. The chapters in the book are really more short stories that are loosely strung together with Aydee and the store as common elements.


"Bestial Acts" introduces Aydee as a 10 year old leaving home and encountering supernatural beings that in turn give her comfort and lead her to the store. The other chapters have different main focuses, though through it all Aydee continues to grow up. Then in "Lost Girls" Aydee must confront herself, her own worst fear as it turns out.


Perhaps especially intriguing is the tale marked "Coda" which appears after "Lost Girls". It seems to be from the author's perspective and talks about the weird building across the street from him that is changing appearance and aspect daily. He is tempted on more than one occasion to enter the building, but ultimately only one visage will truly tempt him.


The book is well written and the writing is varied from easygoing stories like "Let Evil Beware!" to erotica and coming of age in ":Dregs" to horror that reminded me of H.P. Lovecraft in "Dark Tendrils". Lalumiere shows that he has a wide range of writing that he is capable of and that he can do it well.


I would recommend this book to adult fans of urban fantasy and sci-fi/fantasy. It's not a long read, but it is a good read.
The Door to Lost Pages

I received a copy of this book in order to provide my unbiased review.


View all my reviews

Review: Play Dead by Anne Frasier

Play Dead by Anne Frasier
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Elise is a Savannah detective who has had a somewhat unorthodox education as a teenager from a root doctor. David is a Yankee, former FBI agent, and working on recovering from his son's death at his ex-wife's hands. Together they are investigating the deaths of young men in Savannah that resemble zombiism. Paralyzed by tetrodotoxin, the poison of the pufferfish, the young men are aware of their fate up until their deaths.


The book was taut with suspense. I did not see who the killer was before the identity was revealed.

This is a mystery book, but I also shelve it under horror because the idea of being paralyzed, but aware of everything and under the control of a criminal is horrifying. Not to mention finding out that the body you are cutting into to autopsy is really alive and not dead after all would be horrifying both to the supposed corpse and the medical examiner. And to make it worse, there is an element of necrophilia that eventually comes up. Don't kiss me with that corpse breath!


In addition, the author handled the culture of Savannah and that of the root doctors well.


Overall, I enjoyed the book and I would love to see a sequel with these detectives in Savannah.


View all my reviews (My Goodreads book reviews anyway).

Review: Don't Shoot Me in the Ass and Other Stories by Michael Stephen Fuchs

Don't Shoot Me in the Ass and Other Stories by Michael Stephen Fuchs is a hit selection of short stories. There are 10 tales in the collection varied from action/adventure to humor to philosophical and emotional. He shows that he can write diversely and do it well.

When I picked up the book, I was afraid that it would be simply a wise cracking collection. To my surprise it opened with a what if action/adventure story based on the idea of rioting immigrants in response to the passing of the newer immigration laws. It's quite believable, yet told with liberal dashes of humor. As to what happens, no spoilers here. You'll have to read it for yourself.

Other examples of stories include high tech corporate espionage, hijacking airplanes, a relationship tale in a corporate setting, and still there's more.

I gave this book 4 out of 5 stars. I read it in about 3 sittings. I hated to see it end!

I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an unbiased opinion. This is a Kindle edition.