Another little piece by Kate Karyus Quinn

Annaliese Rose Gordon vanished in dramatic circumstances and now she has returned in circumstances that seem just as dramatic.  She has no memory of who she is or how she got to Oklahoma where she was found - and she has no memory of how she got the injury that left her with a scar on her forehead and a permanent bran injury.  The doctor said she was brain damaged, a monster, and as time passes the person inside Annaliese realises that the doctor has no idea.  On the outside she might be Annaliese, but on the inside she is someone else entirely, someone with incomplete memories and no idea how she came to be inside Annaliese's body - living her life.

When she is sent home to live Annaliese's life memories start to leach back into her life, memories that imply she has lived for a long time, memories that make no sense.  One thing is clear, the mother is scared that she will vanish again.  As she tries to settle into her new skin and her new life Anna, the person inside Annaliese, has to figure out which of the memories might be true and which might be plain nightmares (because surely they can't all be true).  As time passes and Anna learns more about who and what she is, she also comes to understand what it means to truly make connections with people, and what it can mean to loose someone you love.  When the time comes to make the ultimate choice who will she protect - the world, or herself?

Down with the shine was the first book I had read by Kate Karyus Quinn and it was such an unusual but well written story that I ordered the first two books she had written to see if they were as quirky and addictive.  Another little piece was an interesting and engaging read, from the start you couldn't help but feel Annaliese's confusion about what has happened, and why it has happened.  The characters are interesting and come with their own little flaws and quirks that make them more interesting and human - although the occasional cliche appears to make sure you know it really is high school.  I took longer to read Another little piece than I had hoped, and I think my picking it up and putting it down lead to the occasional moment of huh? (having to go back a few pages to make sense of something I was reading).  

Quinn doesn't fit neatly into any of the traditional genre, she takes pieces from horror, fantasy, romance, supernatural, and thriller and blends them into a unique genre that just doesn't have a name yet.  There are a few authors exploring this new genre at the moment so no doubt a name will be found for it soon.  For a debut novel Another little piece was well polished and had surprising depth.  An author and book that deserve to be discovered.

If you like this book then try:

• Anna dressed in blood by Kendare Blake
• Throne of glass by Sarah J. Maas
• The forest of hands and teeth by Carrie Ryan
• The bodies we wear by Jeyn Roberts
• The weight of feathers by Anna-Marie McLemore
• Daughter of smoke and bone by Laini Taylor
• Thirteen days to midnight by Patrick Carman
• Burn bright by Marianne de Pierres
• Something strange and deadly by Susan Dennard
• Asylum by Madeleine Roux
• Graceling by Kristin Cashore
• Vessel by Sarah Beth Durst
• Paranormalcy by Kiersten White
• Walk on Earth a stranger by Rae Carson
• Cinder by Marissa Meyer

Reviewed by Brilla

A study in sable by Mercedes Lackey

Nan Killian and Sarah Lyon-White are good friends who just happen to share complimentary psychic gifts.  They are more like sisters than friends, and since they left their school days behind they have enjoyed the patronage of Lord Alderscroft which has made their lives stable and comfortable.  With their bird companions, Grey the parrot and Neville the raven, and their little ward Suki they live lives that are anything but conventional.  When they are called upon to work with the residents of 221 Baker Street it is not the famous detective that they work with, but rather the good Doctor Watson and his wife Mary who both happen to be elemental masters.  Nan and Sarah are uniquyely skilled and qualified to help the couple with any number of tasks, and between Lord Alderscroft and the work of the White Lodge, there are a great many tasks to be completed.  There are also the cases that Holmes dismisses as nonsense that the Watsons know are real and could use the talents that Nan and Sarah have been cultivating since they were children.

Despite his skepticism about the existence of magic and psychic powers Sherlock Holmes does indeed involve the girls in his case - the mysterious disappearance of the sister of a German opera singer who appears to have abandoned her fiancee to run away with a Canadian.  The case is made more intriguing by the lack of emotion from the grieving parents and fiancee when they arrive in London and talk to Holmes directly.  When Sarah is called upon to help the missing girls sister she thinks it will be a simple case of reassuring the woman, but instead she finds a sea of ghosts intent on haunting the opera star.  As Sarah works to free the diva from the spirits that surround her it drives a wedge between her and Nan - who can only watch as her friend drifts fruther away in body and in spirit.  The diva seems determined to keep Sarah close and while Sarah doesn't seem to mind, those closest to her are determined to uncover the diva's secret.

A study in sable is the latest book in the Elemental Masters series and focuses on two characters that have until now been mainly bit characters in other books - including Home from the sea.  Nan and Sarah are interesting characters because they are not elemental masters but are instead gifted with talents around ghosts and the past.  It did take a little while to settle into the story, mainly because I had to dredge through my memory to remember Nan and Sarah, but also because Lackey took the rather interesting gambit of introducing Sherlock Holmes and his world to the story.  I have never read Sherlock Holmes by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, although I have read some of the more modern interpretations and it was a shock and then a pleasant surprise to see him and his compatriots appear in this series.  Overall, this was a pleasant read and a good addition to the series, although like Home from the sea I could not place a fairy tale or traditional story that might be the source material for A study in sable.  

For the purists out there who enjoy the fractured fairy tale element of this series this is one of the books in the series that might be less appealing, but it did add some new aspects of mythology to the series and essentially creates a spin off for the series that focuses on Nan and Sarah.  It will be interesting to see if we get more of the story of Nan, Sarah, and Suki - and if Sherlock Holmes and the Watson's make more of an appearance in the future.

If you like this book then try:

• The Fire rose by Mercedes Lackey (not officially part of the series)
• The serpent's shadow by Mercedes Lackey
• The gates of sleep by Mercedes Lackey
• Phoenix and ashes by Mercedes Lackey
• The wizard of London by Mercedes Lackey
• Reserved for the cat by Mercedes Lackey
• Unnatural issue by Mercedes Lackey
• Home from the sea by Mercedes Lackey
• Steadfast by Mercedes Lackey
• Blood red by Mercedes Lackey
• From a high tower by Mercedes Lackey

Reviewed by Brilla

The hostage by James Patterson and Robert Gold

Welcome to the new Tribeca Luxury Hotel in London - come for the grand opening and stay for the hostage taking.  The morning was going so well for Jon Roscoe, everything was in place and running smoothly until a masked man grabbed the Chairman of Tribeca Luxury Hotels and made a spectacle of him in front of the crowds gathered outside the hotel.  Now Roscoe has to figure out who the masked mad man is and what he wants - no easy task when he is saddled with the help of the incompetent Inspector Peter Savage.  Savage and Roscoe have never gotten on, and that rivalry and friction could stop them from stopping a rampage through the hotel.  A hotel makes the perfect playground for a murderer, espeically when people are keeping secrets.  

The hostage is part of the new Bookshots series and I have to say that it lived up to it's promise and then some.  The premise for the series is plot driven stories under 150 pages that you can read on the go and not want to put down - displayed rather admirably in the trailer with a man running down the road and doing stunts without putting down his book. The hostage was fast paced and kept me guessing about what was really happening for most of the book - no mean feat for such a compact story.  A lot of Patterson's novels read like a movie script, in the case of Bookshots it is more like an episode from a television series - but very very cleverly written.  

Bookshots has a lot of promise both as a vehicle for shorter stories from one of today's leading authors and his coauthors, but also as a way to encourage people to jump into something that has real substance but doesn't take the time commitment of a full novel.  Some people will definitely struggle with the Bookshots concept - one of my coworkers doesn't like the idea because she likes to settle into a book and take her time.  Me, I loved the idea and had an enjoyable afternoon reading a few of the books in one sitting while I waited for my next full length novel to be available at the local library.  A great concept and it looks like there are many more to come!

If you like this book then try:

• Step on a crack by James Patterson and Michael Ledwidge
• Eeny meeny by M.J. Arlidge
• The surgeon by Tess Gerritsen
• Kill switch by Neal Baer and Jonathan Greene
• NYPD Red by James Patterson and Marshall Karp
• Kill me if you can by James Patterson and Marshall Karp
• Private by James Patterson and Maxine Paetro
• Kiss the girls by James Patterson
• The slaughter man by Tony Parsons
• The surgeon by Tess Gerritsen
• One step too far by Tina Seskis
• The postcard killers by James Patterson and Liza Marklund
• Vodka doesn't freeze by Leah Giarratano
• The edge of normal by Carla Norton

Reviewed by Brilla

Private Royals by James Patterson and Rees Jones

Jack Morgan is in London, enjoying the celebrations for the Queen's 90th birthday when he is called in to help with a kidnapping.  Abbie, the daughter of the Duke of Aldershot may be way down the list of heirs to the throne, but she is still a member of the British royal family.  The Duke has asked Private for help and at his request they keep the kidnapping a secret from the Police, but the kidnapper has unreasonable demands and a very tight timetable to follow.  As Jack Morgan and the team at Private London tackle the case they discover that things are not what they seem and that young Abbie is in serious danger of becoming part of the Trooping the Colour in the worst way possible.

Private Royals is part of the new Bookshots series and I have to say that it lived up to it's promise and then some.  The premise for the series is plot driven stories under 150 pages that you can read on the go and not want to put down - displayed rather admirably in the trailer with a man running down the road and doing stunts without putting down his book.  The plot for Private Royals was fast paced and what you would expect from a full length Private novel, it just happened to be condensed into a gorgeous little novella that I was able to knock off in no time.

Bookshots has a lot of promise both as a vehicle for shorter stories from one of today's leading authors and his coauthors, but also as a way to encourage people to jump into something that has real substance but doesn't take the time commitment of a full novel.  Some people will definitely struggle with the Bookshots concept - one of my coworkers doesn't like the idea because she likes to settle into a book and take her time.  Me, I loved the idea and had an enjoyable afternoon reading a few of the books in one sitting while I waited for my next full length novel to be available at the local library.  A great concept and it looks like there are many more to come!

If you like this book then try:

• Private by James Patterson and Maxine Paetro
• Private London by James Patterson and Mark Pearson
• Private games by James Patterson and Mark Sullivan
• Private # 1 suspect by James Patterson and Maxine Paetro
• Private Berlin by James Patterson and Mark Sullivan
• Private Oz by James Patterson and Michael White
• Private India by James Patterson and Ashwin Sanghi
• The hostage by James Patterson and Robert Gold
• Zoo 2 by James Patterson and Max DiLallo

Reviewed by Brilla

Down with the shine by Kate Karyus Quinn

Nearly six months ago Lennie's best friend Dylan went to a biker bar to meet a guy and never came home.  At first it looked as though Dylan had just gone away for a few days, shaking off authority like the wild child she is, but then her body is found in pieces and Lennie is considered a suspect in her death.  Fast forward to the now and Lennie is about to crash the ultimate high school party, her only hope of not being evicted as the social outcast she is are the jars of her uncles famous moonshine.  Her uncles are legends for their shine and Lennie has learned the rituals and words that make drinking the shine worthwhile - "May all your wishes come true, or at least just this one".  

What Lennie never realised is that the words aren't just words, they seal the bargain between the wisher ad the person granting the wish.  Her uncles always encouraged people to make small wishes, and the next morning Lennie realises exactly why that is.  Her wild wishes from the night before have all been granted - with some rather alarming and serious consequences.  Discovering you have supernatural abilities is never an easy thing - discovering that you have some serious mojo is seriously scary.  People Lennie loves are in danger and need her help, and one of those friends is the one she wished back from the dead.  They say you should be careful what you wish for - and now Lennie knows why.

I wasn't expecting much when I picked up Down with the shine, I expected to read a few chapters and then discard it - but instead I read it almost in one sitting as I just couldn't put it down.  Lennie was so down to earth and grounded, nothing seemed to phase her and she just got on with things rather than sulking or throwing her hands up in despair.  In some ways the book reminds me of the movie version of Practical magic - when the witch sisters bring someone back to life and both hilarity and spookiness ensue.  There are subtle strands to the story that make it more than just a teen romance, more than a coming of age story, more than a mean high school story, and more than just another supernatural read.  

This is a book with substance and class, and was far from the cliche I was expecting - so much so that I have requested other books by the author to see if this was a fluke or if she really is this talented about creating a world that is believable and unbelievable at the same time - with characters that you really care about.  Loads of fun to read and hopefully not a one off.

If you like this book then try:

• Anna dressed in blood by Kendare Blake
• Red queen by Victoria Aveyard
• Throne of glass by Sarah J. Maas
• The forest of hands and teeth by Carrie Ryan
• The bodies we wear by Jeyn Roberts
• The girl of fire and thorns by Rae Carson
• The weight of feathers by Anna-Marie McLemore
• Daughter of smoke and bone by Laini Taylor
• Thirteen days to midnight by Patrick Carman
• Burn bright by Marianne de Pierres
• Something strange and deadly by Susan Dennard
• Asylum by Madeleine Roux
• Graceling by Kristin Cashore
• Vessel by Sarah Beth Durst
• Paranormalcy by Kiersten White
• Crown duel by Sherwood Smith
• Walk on Earth a stranger by Rae Carson
• Princess of the midnight ball by Jessica Day George
• Mechanica by Betsy Cornwell
• Cinder by Marissa Meyer

Reviewed by Brilla