My Love Will Set You Free

My Review: 3.5 Stars

This short work of fiction by Ms. Storm is quite charming. In a poignant journey to the 1950's we meet Rip Rockwell and Deborah Walker, two souls trying to survive having had their hearts and psyche's torn apart.

Rip Rockwell's character is tenderly written. The trauma of watching his best friend die in battle, and then surviving, is an anguish we can keenly feel. For those who have experienced something such as this in real life, the depiction may be simplified, but I appreciate Ms. Storm taking on the challenge of finding the path and purpose to survival.

Deborah Walker is a simple girl of the era. She finds out that her boyfriend, James, whom she'd hoped to marry, has died in battle as well. The news, delivered by his friend Tommy, leaves Deborah wondering what her future will be. In a time when marriage and babies were a woman's future, things look bleak for Deborah. She has few skills and little ambition. The loss of James forces her to take a long look at herself and the changing world around her.

When Deborah and Rip meet, the attraction is instant and sweetly written. Ms. Storm manages to convey physical and emotional connection through a series of innocent encounters. Deborah's loss allows Rip to share his PTSD with her, and there begins the journey of their healing.

It is challenging to write a short story. In very few words one most convey the descriptive narrative, dialog, and emotions succinctly, yet paint a full enough picture that the reader feels the story has been completely told. My Love Will Set You Free has many threads worthy of pursuing more completely, leaving me wishing for many more pages. I felt like a rock skipping across the water, splashing down on pivotal moments, wanting to fully experience them.

This book is a great taste of her work as an author, and I look forward to reading Ms. Storms other work.

Rise of the Flame

My Review: 5 Stars

Ms. Lees epic novel is the first piece of fantasy fiction that I have read in quite some time. I found the book utterly transporting, imaginative, and gripping.

The first in four books, Rise of the Flame introduces us to all the major players in this saga. With six races, four realms - including humans  - there are a lot of pieces to the puzzle to keep a hold of when reading the book, much like reading JR Tolkien's Lord of the Rings series. Like all epic novels, where worlds, beings, hierarchy, rebellions and alliances are being formed, there is a lot of data to track. However, if you give yourself over to Ms. Lee's skilled story telling and allow yourself to fall into the journey, all the pieces crystalize into a magical experience. Honestly, I cannot quite understand how she managed to keep track of all the threads, but she did.

In book one of The Eura Chronicles we meet Lilae. Immediately after birth she is taken and hidden from her people and all those who would wish to find this girl - gifted with a power so enormous she can bring all of the realms and races to their knees. The first portion of the book is dedicated to the years she grows up, amongst her surrogate family, and learns how to fight and protect those who will eventually need her. Unlike other books of this genre, she is not surrounded by those who love her or a villain or two. Everyone and anyone can become something or someone else. It is easy to feel compassion and revere for Lilae - for in an ever changing world, she is who she is, and she doesn't bend.

We are also introduced to Liam. Now leading his army against the realms that would annihilate his, he finds Lilae in his dreams, and soon realizes that she plays an important role in his destiny. These dreams however turn out not to be dreams, but another realm where they meet and come to understand the epic battles that lie ahead of them.
Ms. Lee brings us to the end of book one in desperate need of reading book two. The magnitude of the scale and detail of this book cannot be expressed, only utterly appreciated. I would recommend this book to anyone who love a truly epic journey. If you loved Lord of the Rings, you will love The Eura Chronicles.

Anyway You Slice It, Book One, The Upper Crust Series

My Review: 5 Stars

This is the first book of Ms. McDonells that I read, and I became an immediate fan. Inventive, tender, funny and full of identifiable characters, Ms. McDonells book are quick reads, but only because you don't want to put them down.

In this book, we meet Piper. She followed her boyfriend from Australia to the US only to find herself alone. Unwilling to give up on her own dreams, she stays in the US without a visa and follows her passion - which ends ups being a very smart decision. Her business, food trucks that serve Aussie Meat Pies, is becoming very successful... which is causing her a few legal problems.

Fortunately for Piper, her best friend Cherie has the answers. Cherie's cousin Aaron is on the market for a wife to solve a problem or two. Not the stuff of romance, the two meet and have a candid conversation about their reasons for marrying, and decide to move forward with getting married. An easy friendship turns into more, but not without complications.

What makes Ms. McDonells version of this story so charming are those complications. Despite the all the nuances that make Piper and Aaron a loveable couple, the problems they face may be bigger than Visas and people from the past.

In particular, what I've come to absolutely love about Ms. McDonell is that her characters are anything but predictable, but not in outlandish ways. They have gumption, tender hearts, passions and pursuits that all of us can identify with... but maybe on a level that takes us out of ordinary life and transports us to another stratosphere of life.

Peri In Progress - Brand NEW book.

My review: 4 Stars

This is a fun, fast read by Ms. Lavoie.

We meet Peri McKenna on her thirty first birthday, and though she survived turning thirty, she is barely surviving turning thirty-one. As a result of a rather underwhelming year in her life, Peri decides it is time for epic changes. EPIC. As she sets the changes in motion she soon discovers the fall-out of some of her decisions. With no choice but to proceed, Peri continues to sweep the cobwebs out of her life, and for that I truly loved her. She doesn't question her decision to make major changes, she deals with the pain and works works her way through her enormous list.

Just past halfway I thought, "All the pieces are in place... something's gonna happen." And that something is spectacular. Ms. Lavoie delivers an absolutely charming book that one can completely disappear into. It's the kind of book you keep on your shelf, so that you can pull it out and read it over and over.

Published on 10/28/15, this book is brand new, hence the low number of reviews. Nonetheless, a definite must read.