Month: February 2017

Graphic Novel Review: Suicide Squad Vol.1 – The Black Vault

Categories Book Reviews (by Genre), Graphic-Novel, Supernatural2 Comments on Graphic Novel Review: Suicide Squad Vol.1 – The Black Vault

32993892Author: Rob Williams
Illustrator: Jim Lee
Release Date: 7th March 2017
Series: Suicide Squad (Vol.1)
Genre: Supernatural, Graphic Novel, Sequential Art
Edition: E-book
Pages: 160
Publisher: DC
Rating: ★★★★★

Blurb:

A part of DC Rebirth!
From writer Rob Williams, superstar artist Jim Lee and Philip Tan comes the new Suicide Squad!
The government has once again handpicked the worst of the worst for its Task Force X. Harley Quinn, Deadshot, Captain Boomerang, Katana and Killer Croc. All deadly criminals sent on the most dangerous missions possible by a governement that wants them killed. But their newest challenge? A teammate so powerful that even this group of murderers and thieves can’t control.
Behind the pencils of Jim Lee and Philip Tan, as well as the pen of writer Rob Williams comes SUICIDE SQUAD VOL. 1! Collects issues #1-6 and SUICIDE SQUAD: REBIRTH #1.
Rebirth honors the richest history in comics, while continuing to look towards the future. These are the most innovative and modern stories featuring the world’s greatest superheroes, told by some of the finest storytellers in the business.
Honoring the past, protecting our present, and looking towards the future. This is the next chapter in the ongoing saga of the DC Universe.  The legacy continues.

Review

This book was pretty awesome and I loved the illustrations! The story was pretty good too and I liked the part where all the backgrounds were given. It helped me connect to all the characters as I didn’t know about half of their pasts.

The dialogues were good too and overall I think this is one of the best graphic novels that I’ve read in the recent years. The female characters were neither over-dramatically sexy or muscle-ly or gay. They were really awesome and bad-ass and I really liked Harley Quinn and Katana.
I loved Deadshot and Colonel Rick Flag and even Croc, but Boomerang was just… meh.. though his background story was cleverly told.

All in all, I liked this book better than any other that had Harley Quinn in it and hence, I’ll be giving it an extra star.

Goodreads and NetGalley

Book Review: Amber Alert by Dan Lawton

Categories Dan LawtonLeave a Comment on Book Review: Amber Alert by Dan Lawton

31847203Author:  Dan Lawton
Release Date: 11th November 2016
Series: –
Genre: Mystery, Suspense
Edition: E-book
Pages: 300
Publisher: Solstice Publishing

Rating: ★★★★

Blurb:

Time is running out.
Nine-year-old Chloe Janis is abducted.
Abby, her mom, is now faced with revealing her dark past, hidden these last seventeen years, or losing her daughter forever. A cryptic message from a man she’d shoved into the dark recesses of her mind forces her into an impossible situation—revealing secrets best kept hidden or losing her daughter forever.
Secrets, deception, and betrayal surround the small town of Mifflinburg, Pennsylvania. All eyes are on the community, threatening to split open as yet unhealed wounds are probed. Fates will be rewritten and careers redefined. Everyone involved will confront their pasts if there’s any hope of Mifflinburg becoming a town at the heart of redemption and forgiveness.

Review

Amber Alert by Dan Lawton is a suspenseful mystery read that keeps the reader engaged throughout the book.

The plot line of the story is fairly straight and this is not your typical who-dun-it suspense story. The real deal is in the plot buildup that is done excellently well with the use of multiple POVs that keeps the reader reading further without wanting to miss anything.

The characters were all nicely done. I felt bad for Scott, though I did not like Abby at all and I’m quite sure that this was intentional based on the story. I felt really sad for what little Chloe had to go through and felt bad for her father too.The ending was good and appropriate keeping with the personalities of the characters. Though I do wish that Abby should have been locked up in the jail because she truly deserved it. But things are never black and white and this book showcases this very fact beautifully.

The ending was good and appropriate keeping with the personalities of the characters. Though I do wish that Abby should have been locked up in the jail because she truly deserved it. But things are never black and white and this book showcases this very fact beautifully.

I liked the writing style of the author as it had a great flow to it and made reading this book enjoyable and quick. It was simple and free of complex words, which really appealed to me.

I’d recommend this book to all the genre lovers and to everyone who wants to read a light, yet gripping mystery/suspense read.

Goodreads and Amazon

Book Review: The Man You Scripted by Calvin Honors

Categories Calvin Honors, Drama, DystopianLeave a Comment on Book Review: The Man You Scripted by Calvin Honors

 

32032973Author: Calvin Honors
Release Date: 4th September 2016
Series: –
Genre: Dystopian, Psychological Drama
Edition: E-book
Pages: 129
Publisher: Self-Published

Rating: ★★★★

Blurb:

2115 London
The city is overrun by organ traders in truck size hearses trawling the streets in the aftermath of the Hemo plague. Writer James Nolte meets Laila an X1 cyborg sent to scan humans for signs of Hemo.
Modern Day New York City
Internal Affairs agent John Azolo connects the dots from an unfinished manuscript to unravel a mystery surrounding his friend’s suicide. Detective Laila Carter, whom John audits, might just hold the key to both stories.

Review

The Man You Scripted by Calvin Honors is a Psychological Dystopian Drama based on a remarkably unique futuristic concept.

The fast paced book offers a lot for the genre lovers. It explores a unique writing style of combining two parallel, seemingly unrelated stories and then bringing them together to a great climax. The characterization was god and all the characters were relatable.

The writing style had a nice flow and made this book an easy and quick read.

I enjoyed reading this book and would recommend it to al the Dystopian and Speculative fiction buffs. This is one book you wouldn’t want to miss.

Goodreads and Amazon

Book Review: How Will I Know You by Jessica Treadway

Categories Jessica Treadway, Mystery, SuspenseLeave a Comment on Book Review: How Will I Know You by Jessica Treadway

32489596Author: Jessica Treadway 
Release Date: 6th December 2016
Series: –
Genre: Suspense, Mystery
Edition: E-book
Pages: 416
Publisher: Grand Central Publishing

Rating: ★★★★

Blurb:

A page-turner about the murder of a teenage girl, from the author of Lacy Eye.

On a cold December day in northern upstate New York, the body of high school senior Joy Enright is discovered in the woods at the edge of a pond. She had been presumed drowned, but an autopsy shows that she was, in fact, strangled. As the investigation unfolds, four characters tell the story from widely divergent perspectives: Susanne, Joy’s mother and a professor at the local art college; Martin, a black graduate student suspected of the murder; Harper, Joy’s best friend and a potential eyewitness; and Tom, a rescue diver and son-in-law of the town’s police chief. As a web of small-town secrets comes to light, a dramatic conclusion reveals the truth about Joy’s death.

Review

How Will I Know You by Jessica Treadway is a compelling read that will leave you with so many thoughts that you’d be thinking about this book for days even after it is over.

When I started reading this book I had this idea that this book will revolve around a murder and then it’ll turn out to be a fast-paced who-dun-it kind, but as I got into the book I realized that I completely started forgetting about the actual murder as the story focused on the people and the relations Joy was surrounded with when she was alive. This book shows so transparently the truth about how exactly the things would be like if a murder of this kind happens in real life of a normal teenager.

This book shouldn’t be misinterpreted as a Thriller, but it is a realistic approach of the author towards the situation on the whole. After reading this book (actually, while reading this book) I realized how easily we form an opinion about someone whom we’ve never really known. How easy it is for everyone, including the parents and the best of friends, to misinterpret the actions of someone and come up with their own theories about how things would have played out and what might have happened and how they start believing and, in a way, living in those theories. Human nature is such a tricky and immensely complex thing that you never know what might happen in the next few minutes.

The writing was really good and had an easy flow to it that made reading this book a good experience and the slow-to-medium pace of the story was completely in sync with the story itself.

The characters were so real and full of life that I was able to connect with each and every single one of them. And I’m really thankful for it because this book is, in all respects, a character-driven story and these strong characters served the purpose perfectly well.

The beginning was great and I was pulled into the story right from the first chapter. The ending doesn’t fail to tell the readers about what really happened on the day of the murder and who did it, so in a way it served as a beautiful closure because otherwise, I’m sure it would have been a really gut-wrenching read.

I’d recommend this book to all the mystery and suspense lovers and also to all those readers who don’t mind reading about dark subjects such as depression and coping with the loss of a loved one.

Goodreads, NetGalley, and Amazon

The Reading Bud’s Top Ten Books Of 2016

Categories Best books of the year5 Comments on The Reading Bud’s Top Ten Books Of 2016

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In 2016, we reviewed a total of 90 books at TRB! 90 books!! And it is extremely difficult to hand pick only 10 of them, but selecting the best of the best is the whole point of this post, hence, here’s our 2016’s list of top ten books –

The Reading Bud’s Top Ten Books Of 2016:

  1. The Girl With All The Gifts by M.R. Carey
  2. Warren The 13th And The All-Seeing Eye by Tania del Rio
  3. In The Blood by R.L. Martinez
  4. Over The Dragonwall by H.C. Strom and Dennis D. Montoya
  5. The Secrets Of Lizzie Borden by Brandy Purdy
  6. The Eighth Day by Joseph John
  7. Losing Lauren by Alretha Thomas
  8. Security by Gina Wohlsdorf
  9. The Conveyance by Brian W. Matthews
  10. Sleeping Giants (Themis Files #1)

Please check out the slideshow below to have a look at all these amazing books.

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Note for the authors of the Top Ten Books:

If you want to use the above TRB logo or share this post with your readers on your blog or social media, then please feel free to do so. A link back will be greatly appreciated.

Apart from these books, there were some books that also deserve a mention in this post:

Book Review: The Little Yarmouth Abduction by Tim Van Minton

Categories Tim Van Minton, Young Adult3 Comments on Book Review: The Little Yarmouth Abduction by Tim Van Minton

31355126Author: Tim Van Minton 
Release Date: 1st August 2016
Series: –
Genre: YA, Mystery, Suspense
Edition: Ebook
Pages: 204
Publisher: CreateSpace

Rating: ★★★★★

Blurb:

Falsely accused of murder, twelve-year-old Evan Peregrine battles through a raging storm to get home to the island of Little Yarnmouth, only to find it deserted. Searching for explanations he is soon plunged into the savage world of the Conkwoyoto, an Arctic tribe that turned to piracy after the polar ice cap broke apart. But there is something strangely familiar about these fearsome men and their tattooed faces, and memories of the day he lost his leg and his mother in a collision with an iceberg come flooding back. Now Evan must avoid being captured by the police and the Conkwoyoto while trying to track down the missing islanders, prove his innocence in a murder, and uncover the mystery of the Arctic tribe that’s traveled thousands of miles to Little Yarnmouth Island.

Review

The Little Yarnmouth Abduction by Tim Van Minton is a delightful Young Adult read that will capture your heart and leave you smiling in its wake.

I’ve been reviewing books for almost 3 whole years now and sometimes I come across a book that makes me realize again just why I keep on reading self-published books and reviewing them month after month. Ever so often I come across books that completely steal my heart and leave a long lasting impression on me, sometimes so strong that I have to read those books again, and again, to relive their brilliance. The Little Yarnmouth Abduction is exactly that kind of a book (and so much more, if I am being truly honest.)

Recently, there has been a steady stream of hit YA books that are making big bucks all around the world. Some are good and some are, well, not so good, but when I read this book they all paled in comparison. I honestly don’t know where to begin praising this book, and even how to do it. This book is a delightful, delightful read. I savored reading each and every single page of it and, in fact, looked forward to reading the entire book again as soon as I finished it.giphy-4

The storyline was well thought out and, for me, simply astonishing. I have never heard of mass island kidnapping or anything close, so I thoroughly enjoyed the story all the way through. It was a marvelously brilliant and an extremely clever plot and I loved the pacing and tension that the author cleverly practiced.

The characterization was so brilliant that I’m pretty sure I fell in love with Evan the moment he got up groggily from his sleep on the first-second page and innocently attached his leg to his knee. He is sure to stay with me forever as one of my favorite (and awfully adorable) characters. The cast of secondary characters was equally brilliant and I loved each and every single one of them.

giphy-14

The ending was absolutely smashing as it gave me hopes that there’s a second part on the way (or at least I hope that it is.) The writing was clever and smooth and the light and witty tone of narration was a perfect fit for this story.

I would recommend this book to each and every person who loves reading a good book with impressive characters. I am very sure that this book will definitely win your heart in the first chapter itself.

Goodreads and Amazon

Book Review: Truth According To Michael by Stevan V. Nikolic

Categories Stevan V. Nikolic, True StoryLeave a Comment on Book Review: Truth According To Michael by Stevan V. Nikolic

31568408Author: Stevan V. Nikolic 
Release Date: 21st September 2016
Series: –
Genre: True Story
Edition: Ebook
Pages: 448
Publisher: Istina Group DBA, New York

Rating: ★★★★★

Blurb:

“Truth and reality are just our personal perceptions of the things and conditions we see, hear, or feel.”

A novel about the man addicted to love. Based on the true story, it follows thirty-three years in the life of Michael Nicolau. The story takes us on the long path of Michael’s soul-searching and understanding of circumstances that brought him to become a homeless man living in the Bowery Mission, a New York City shelter. Eager to vindicate himself and his actions, he speaks about his life, for hours, day after day, to a social worker in the Bowery Mission. At the same time comic and tragic, villain and hero, Michael is wrestling with the concepts of truth, reality, hope, faith, love, and honor.

Review

In the beginning, the title of the book made me curious, as I am a person that searches the truth in many aspects of life but the most important the personal truth.

Then I started reading and in the first chapter, Michael was in deep trouble, no money, no friends, no home. Then he accepts to make part of a program, the Bowery Mission, a shelter created to rehabilitate homeless people.

Michael is not a classic drug addicted homeless and that’s why his story is more interesting. Every chapter describes a part of his life in the program and a part of his past. Gradually we find out everything about him. His purpose, his problems, his thoughts.
This character is a contradiction. He is intelligent and hardworking but he keeps ending in the same situation of having nothing, but a dream. He keeps searching a woman, an obsession that nobody accepts.

The ending surprised me. Finally, Michael found a way of doing things his way, living as he wanted to, not the way everybody told him to. He finally understands the purpose of his life.

Today’s philosophical questions are illustrated in beautifully in this well-written book. Success, money, business, love, God, religion, freemasonry is all mixed up in a story that kept me tuned.

Goodreads and Amazon

Book Review: Sting by Sandra Brown

Categories Sandra Brown5 Comments on Book Review: Sting by Sandra Brown

29203612Author: Sandra Brown 
Release Date: 16th August 2016
Series: –
Genre: Thriller, Suspense
Edition: Ebook
Pages: 408
Publisher: Grand Central Publishing

Rating: ★

Blurb:

When Jordie Bennet and Shaw Kinnard lock eyes across a disreputable backwater bar, something definitely sparks. Shaw gives off a dangerous vibe that makes men wary and inspires women to sit up and take notice. None feel that undercurrent more strongly than savvy businesswoman Jordie, who doesn’t belong in a seedy dive on the banks of a bayou. But here she is . . . and Shaw Kinnard is here to kill her.
As Shaw and his partner take aim, Jordie is certain her time has come. But Shaw has other plans and abducts Jordie, hoping to get his hands on the $30 million her brother has stolen and, presumably, hidden. However, Shaw is not the only one looking for the fortune. Her brother’s ruthless boss and the FBI are after it as well. Now on the run from the feds and a notorious criminal, Jordie and Shaw must rely on their wits-and each other-to stay alive.
Miles away from civilization and surrounded by swampland, the two play each other against their common enemies. Jordie’s only chance of survival is to outwit Shaw, but it soon becomes clear to Shaw that Jordie isn’t entirely trustworthy, either. Was she in on her brother’s scam, or is she an innocent pawn in a deadly vendetta? And just how valuable is her life to Shaw, her remorseless and manipulative captor? Burning for answers-and for each other-this unlikely pair ultimately make a desperate move that could be their last.
With nonstop plot twists and the tantalizing sexual tension that has made Sandra Brown one of the world’s best-loved authors, STING will keep readers on the edge of their seats until the final pages.

Review

DNF at 10%.

I’ve read Friction by Sandra Brown earlier and loved it, so I was really looking forward to reading this one. I was well aware that Brown’s novels had steamy scenes in them, but in Friction, the scenes went well with the story. But this book was way too much and the sexual tension shown between the 2 main leads in the first 10% of the book made me feel so awkward that I simply couldn’t go further.

The writing felt off too and it was more tell than show. On top of all this, the snide remarks of the protagonist were way too much for me.
This book felt more like an overly sexed up New Adult rather than a Thriller. Or at least that’s how I felt.

If you don’t mind reading this kind of content then you might actually like this book. I don’t usually have trouble reading normal sexy stuff (seriously, who does?!), but it’s just that I was hoping to read a really good Thriller and really high expectations from this one.

Goodreads, NetGalley, and Amazon

Book Review: The Phoenix Syndrome by Claire Gem

Categories Chick-Lit, Claire Gem, Romance1 Comment on Book Review: The Phoenix Syndrome by Claire Gem

32313788Author: Claire Gem
Release Date: 29th September 2016
Series: –
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Edition: Ebook
Pages: 267
Publisher: Erato Publishing

Rating: ★★★★★

Blurb:

Rock Star Contemporary Romance
Turning forty rocks a research technician’s world. Her husband leaves her, and then she’s bitten by a mouse at work. She snaps, taking off to chase after her old dream of a music career and her new crush: a rock band drummer.
Turning forty, for Lannie Marvin, is rough. It’s the day she discovers her marriage has been over for awhile. . .she just never got the memo. At work, a crazed lab mouse brutally bites her–one being treated with a libido-enhancing drug. Lannie snaps and takes off for a wild weekend.
Allard, drummer & songwriter for a metal band, lost his wife and muse to breast cancer five years ago. So when the sexually charged Lannie literally plows into him at the backstage reception, Tristan is ready to learn more about her–and her long-buried interest in musical composition.
But their frenzied affair can’t last. Tristan is headed to the UK to audition his next album. And Lannie soon learns an elevated libido isn’t the only effect of that experimental drug.
The treated mice have gone deaf.

Review

The Phoenix Syndrome by Claire Gem is a fun and light romantic comedy that is a highly pleasant read.

The book started out at a steady pace, but before I knew it I was so engrossed in the plot that I found it difficult to put it down even to make a cup of coffee! This book is one of those books that gives you a feel-good feeling about the story and makes the time go by in the blink of an eye. I enjoyed reading this book thoroughly and found myself chuckling quite often owing to the author’s witty, sarcastic and intelligent\remarks.
I’ve previously read Hearts Unloched by the author and loved her writing style, but this book was even better and I found the writing style even more engrossing. I’m really looking forward to reading her next releases.

I loved the characterization and was able to connect to the main character, Lannie. Even though I rarely read books about characters above 30 years of age, this book proved to be a pleasant experience. I also loved the other secondary characters and enjoyed the background stories of them all. The ending of the story was perfect too.

I’d recommend this book to all the romance and chick-lit lovers and also to those who won’t mind reading a warm funny read.

Goodreads and Amazon