Snowflakes and Spider Silk

Round 4 of Bullet reviews features some not-quite-urban-fantasy books . I say not-quite because all three books involve our modern world and some paranormal creatures but none of them quite fit into the stereotypical UF mold. I was initially planning on making this set of reviews the last few books I read in November, but those three books were completely unrelated so I decided to grab a book from December to make the reviews fit better together. Vampire Academy by Richelle Meade Genre: contemporary, urban fantasy Rating: 4/5 stars What I liked: Full disclosure: I only picked this up because it started with a V and I needed to complete my A-Z challenge. That said, I had zero expectations going into this book and I ended up really enjoying it I loved how it focused on friendship. Yes, there were a lot of messy romantic feelings and such but the core of this story is a bond of friendship, and I'm a sucker for stories about amazing friends Lissa and Rose are bo...

Title:  Nightshades Author:  Melissa F. Olson Genre: Urban fantasy, mystery My rating: 3 of 5 stars Goodreads Summary : Alex McKenna is the new Special Agent in Charge of the Chicago office of the Bureau of Paranormal Investigations—the division tasked with investigating crimes involving shades. Or vampires, as they’re more widely known. Children have been going missing, and agents are routinely being slaughtered. It’s up to McKenna, and some unlikely allies, to get to the bottom of the problem, and find the kids before it’s too late. Nightshades is a new gritty urban fantasy from Melissa F. Olson. I'm not gonna lie, I requested this book on netgalley because of how cool the cover looked! Of course the synopsis sounded interesting as well, and at the time I was looking for a mystery/UF book and since this was a mix of both I decided to give it a shot. I thought the premise was interesting: vampires living among humans and kidnapping them a few at a time for ...

Let me start off this post with a universal truth: Neil Gaiman is freaking brilliant, and his imagination is unparalleled. There, now that that's out of the way, we can talk a little bit about why I have such a love-hate relationship with his books and stories.  Some of his books are truly some of the most gorgeously written books I have ever read. They're so rich and full of fantastical creatures that I would never have been able to think of my own head; even cliche creatures like fairies and princes and every-day-nobodies all have some sort of endearing or terrifying twist that makes them seem fresh and new no matter how many times you've read that kind of story before. Stardust and Neverwhere are two of my favorite Neil Gaiman books, and Neverwhere is one of my favorite  books, period. I also really liked the hilarious  Anansi Boys , and I don't know if "liked" is the right word for how 3rd grade me felt about Coraline  when our teac...

Top Ten Tuesday is a meme hosted by  The Broke and the Bookish . This week's theme:  Top Ten Halloween Books for the Faint of Heart I'm a really big scaredy-cat when it comes to horror. I get disturbed really easily and  I don't like reading books that are dark without any light-hearted parts or nice warm-fuzzies to balance them out. So here's a few creepy/Halloween-themed books that I liked and didn't freak me out too much!   This book is full of ghouls and ghosts and other things that stalk the night, but it's actually a really endearing coming of age story :)   This book terrified me when our 3rd grade teacher read it to us in class, but I loved it anyway. It's sinister and creepy without being gory or over-the-top.   I liked The Diviners better than Lair of Dreams, but this one is still a lot of fun and features ghosts and a lot of mysterious happenings.   This book isn't technically Halloween...

Title:  A Discovery of Witches Author:  Deborah Harkness Genre: literary fiction, urban fantasy My rating: 4 of 5 stars Goodreads Summary: Deep in the stacks of Oxford's Bodleian Library, young scholar Diana Bishop unwittingly calls up a bewitched alchemical manuscript in the course of her research. Descended from an old and distinguished line of witches, Diana wants nothing to do with sorcery; so after a furtive glance and a few notes, she banishes the book to the stacks. But her discovery sets a fantastical underworld stirring, and a horde of daemons, witches, and vampires soon descends upon the library. Diana has stumbled upon a coveted treasure lost for centuries-and she is the only creature who can break its spell. Debut novelist Deborah Harkness has crafted a mesmerizing and addictive read, equal parts history and magic, romance and suspense. Diana is a bold heroine who meets her equal in vampire geneticist Matthew Clairmont, and gradually warms up to him as the...

Title:  Blood Bound Author:  Patricia Briggs Genre: Urban Fantasy My rating: 4 of 5 stars Goodreads Summary : Under the rule of science, there are no witch burnings allowed, no water trials or public lynchings. In return, the average law-abiding, solid citizen has little to worry about from the things that go bump in the night. Sometimes I wish I was an average citizen... Mechanic Mercy Thompson has friends in low places-and in dark ones. And now she owes one of them a favor. Since she can shapeshift at will, she agrees to act as some extra muscle when her vampire friend Stefan goes to deliver a message to another of his kind. But this new vampire is hardly ordinary-and neither is the demon inside of him. creeeeepyyyy I should have known from the title that this was going to be a bloody book! Thankfully the worst of it was over in the prologue (which I had to skim...I don't do well with blood and guts). While we met the vampires in Moon Called, we didn't really...

Title:  Cry Wolf Author:  Patricia Briggs Genre: Urban fantasy, adult My rating: 4 of 5 stars Goodreads Summary : Anna never knew werewolves existed, until the night she survived a violent attack... and became one herself. After three years at the bottom of the pack, she'd learned to keep her head down and never, ever trust dominant males. Then Charles Cornick, the enforcer—and son—of the leader of the North American werewolves, came into her life. Charles insists that not only is Anna his mate, but she is also a rare and valued Omega wolf. And it is Anna's inner strength and calming presence that will prove invaluable as she and Charles go on the hunt in search of a rogue werewolf—a creature bound in magic so dark that it could threaten all of the pack. It is recommended you read the prequel "Alpha & Omega" before reading Cry Wolf.  I really enjoyed this! As usual, I think the audio made me a lot more invested in the characters than I would have been...

Title:  Moon Called Author:  Patricia Briggs Genre: Urban fantasy, adult My rating: 4 of 5 stars Goodreads Summary : Mercedes "Mercy" Thompson is a talented Volkswagen mechanic living in the Tri-Cities area of Washington. She also happens to be a walker, a magical being with the power to shift into a coyote at will. Mercy's next-door neighbor is a werewolf. Her former boss is a gremlin. And she's fixing a bus for a vampire. This is the world of Mercy Thompson, one that looks a lot like ours but is populated by those things that go bump in the night. And Mercy's connection to those things is about to get her into some serious hot water... Thanks Jessie for the recommendation! This was great! The only other urban fantasy series I'd read before this one is Anne Bishop's The Others, which is decidedly not typical urban fantasy. I liked how the main character was a paranormal creature instead of a "measly human", which gave hr a lot more...

Title:  Vision in Silver Author:  Anne Bishop Genre: Urban fantasy, adult My rating: 4 of 5 stars Goodreads Summary: The Others freed the  cassandra sangue  to protect the blood prophets from exploitation, not realizing their actions would have dire consequences. Now the fragile seers are in greater danger than ever before—both from their own weaknesses and from those who seek to control their divinations for wicked purposes. In desperate need of answers, Simon Wolfgard, a shape-shifter leader among the Others, has no choice but to enlist blood prophet Meg Corbyn’s help, regardless of the risks she faces by aiding him. Meg is still deep in the throes of her addiction to the euphoria she feels when she cuts and speaks prophecy. She knows each slice of her blade tempts death. But Others and humans alike need answers, and her visions may be Simon’s only hope of ending the conflict. For the shadows of war are deepening across the Atlantik, and the prejudice o...

Title:  Hexed Author:  Kevin Hearne Genre: Urban fantasy, humor, adult My rating: 4 of 5 stars Goodreads Summary : Atticus O’Sullivan, last of the Druids, doesn’t care much for witches. Still, he’s about to make nice with the local coven by signing a mutually beneficial nonaggression treaty—when suddenly the witch population in modern-day Tempe, Arizona, quadruples overnight. And the new girls are not just bad, they’re badasses with a dark history on the German side of World War II. With a fallen angel feasting on local high school students, a horde of Bacchants blowing in from Vegas with their special brand of deadly decadence, and a dangerously sexy Celtic goddess of fire vying for his attention, Atticus is having trouble scheduling the witch hunt. But aided by his magical sword, his neighbor’s rocket-propelled grenade launcher, and his vampire attorney, Atticus is ready to sweep the town and show the witchy women they picked the wrong Druid to hex. You know tho...

Title:  Written in Red Author:  Anne Bishop Genre: Urban fantasy, adult My rating: 4 of 5 stars Goodreads Summary : As a cassandra sangue, or blood prophet, Meg Corbyn can see the future when her skin is cut—a gift that feels more like a curse. Meg’s Controller keeps her enslaved so he can have full access to her visions. But when she escapes, the only safe place Meg can hide is at the Lakeside Courtyard—a business district operated by the Others. Shape-shifter Simon Wolfgard is reluctant to hire the stranger who inquires about the Human Liaison job. First, he senses she’s keeping a secret, and second, she doesn’t smell like human prey. Yet a stronger instinct propels him to give Meg the job. And when he learns the truth about Meg and that she’s wanted by the government, he’ll have to decide if she’s worth the fight between humans and the Others that will surely follow. This book was more fun than I was expecting. Written in Red is set in a parallel universe whe...

This is a meme hosted by  Rinn Reads  where anyone can join in and talk about anything Fantasy! I usually read high fantasy, but I've started reading some urban fantasy lately and I'm enjoying it. I've discovered that I love books that make me laugh, and a lot of urban fantasy features snarky main characters or just funny situations. There's just something about making me laugh that makes me that much more willing to let go of my annoyances with a book and just enjoy it. I kind of wish there was more high fantasy that didn't take itself so seriously. All those epic battles and revenge-fueled villains and dramatic showdowns are all well and good, but a little wisecrack here and there wouldn't go amiss . In that regard, I really enjoyed Half A King by Joe Abercrombie , since it featured quite a few instances of witty (albeit dark) dialogue. Also, that one conversation  between Adolin and Shallan in Words of Radiance . Yeah, you know the one. I laughed ...