Review: The Last Archangel

Title: The Last Archangel
Author: Michael D. Young
Source: Received for review from NetGalley.
★★★☆☆

Xandir has been exiled to earth until the end of time. But when his cherub trainee disappears, Xandir makes a deal with rogue angels and giants that could restore life to the mortal woman he loves and end his assignment as a destroying angel in exchange for helping them bring about the end of the world and all of mankind.

I was not able to get through this book… Around about 65% through I forced myself to give up and accept that I couldn’t keep dragging it out… After 2 weeks of trying to get through The Last Archangel, I figured it was safe to quit. I wanted to like this. I really, really did. In theory and summary, this sounds like a book I would end up loving. But in reality,  the formula was just too wrong for me.

First I will start with what I liked about this book: It has a very original concept. Never before have I read something that is so rife with culture and mythology. Young definitely did some research for this.… He makes paranormal, seem normal, if that makes sense. Young was able to make me believe that things like angels, demons, giants, cherubs, and Atlantis could actually exist without being seen.

Now, for the things I didn’t like…

(1) This could not hold my attention for more than 10 minutes. It seemed like there was quite a bit of action, but I was unable to fully invest myself in it (and I usually love reading action scenes).
(2) 65% into the book and no love story, no background on this mortal woman he loves so much (well only a little). I just couldn’t feel the passion that Young was trying to portray! I was very disappointed about this. I would have liked to see a passionate love flashback every once and awhile to make me understand WHY Xandir was jumping through hoops to save her.
(3) I felt no connection with the characters and had no desire to see whether they succeeded.
(4) My time spent reading this, was time spent wondering what else I could be reading.
(5) I had to force myself to read.

In conclusion, this book may be worth a shot if you are a fan of angel-themed books, but it definitely was not for me! And don’t read this if you are looking for an epic love story (not that I was, but I hoped it would turn into one). This could have been a great book, but it was lacking in so many different areas that I think it was unable to recover.

Review: Blue Galaxy

Blue Galaxy by Diane Dooley
Publisher: Carina Press
Format: Ebook
Source: NetGalley
Amazon | Goodreads
★★★☆☆

Falling in love is easy; staying alive long enough to enjoy it just might be impossible.

Javan Rhodes, the hard-drinking, disreputable captain of space freighter The Kypris, took a mission to save himself from hitting the bottom of the food chain. Transporting Sola, a beautiful young aristocrat, from Earth to an unknown destination on the outer rim of the colonies is lucrative, but also highly illegal.

As tough as it is to evade both the law and the lawless, the hardest part of the job is not falling in love with his irresistible cargo. Just as he decides that he will never be able to hand her over to the warlord she must marry, he discovers that Sola has been playing a very dangerous game—one that could not only cost them their lives, but could also affect the balance of power in an increasingly dangerous universe.

This is a tough book to review because there is only one major turn-off for me: Sola’s character. I liked everything else: the writing was great, the steamy scenes were great, and Diane Dooley is a very talented writer for sure.

Allow me to explain. When I read a romance I expect to fully vested in the characters. They are an enormous part of it for me! I loved Javan, his character was very real, but Sola… was a lying, manipulative bitch! Who wants to read a romance where one of the main characters turns out like this? Javan’s character was an idiot for even being interested in Sola after her betrayal! Something else that really got to me: There is not way this would be a happy ending... sorry. Dooley somehow manages to twist and force this into a happy ending. It didn’t make sense at all to me.

Once I started to see Sola’s true colors I was tempted to put this book down, but I pushed through hoping there would be some redeeming quality in her. She just used him to the end though. I guess Javan didn’t care… I don’t know what guy would want to be in a relationship with a girl who he can never trust again.

If you’re a fan of sci-fi romance maybe give this a shot. You might find it interesting. Like I said, the writing was great. I enjoyed everything except Sola. The only problem is that she was just a large enough part of the story to ruin it for me.

Review: Collision Course

Collision Course (8th Wing, #1) by Zoe Archer
Publisher: Carina Press 
Format: Ebook
Source: NetGalley Amazon | Goodreads
★★★★☆

Summary
Mara Skiren is a scavenger, a black-market dealer. Blackmailed into helping Commander Kell Frayne infiltrate a treacherous corner of the galaxy, Mara learns that her biggest danger is from her sexy, by-the-book partner. She’s a loner with more than a few battle scars on her heart, but something about Commander Frayne stirs up her long-buried need for an intimate connection.
 
An ace pilot for the elite Black Wraith Squadron, Kell’s mission is to rescue a lost pilot and ship. Unable to deny his attraction to the beautiful, rebellious woman, he decides bedding her would cool his ardor. But one taste is not nearly enough, and he finds himself sharing more of his real self with Mara than he has with anyone.

With deadly criminals on their heels and an increasingly dangerous assignment to complete, he’s starting to wonder…. If they survived, could he let her go? And will Mara want to stay?

First off let me say, this was a very entertaining read! You have Mara a stubborn, beautiful, in-control scavenger and you put her with Kell, a sexy, strong, 8th wing officer and you get the recipe for a a great, super-steamy romance!

The characters could not have been more likeable! Mara was the epitome of 'I don't give a shit' kick-ass while Kell was tied to his duty as an 8th wing officer. This contradiction made for some great interactions. It was fun watching each of them learn that neither was quite what the other expected. Don't judge a book by it's cover right?

The reason I give this book four stars instead of five is because it seemed to take awhile for the action to start in the book... Yeah, the sexual tension is great, but I also wanted to jump right into the adventure as well! About 1/3 of the way in the action really picked up and I was happy I waited. The romance just did not feel natural until that point.

Zoe Archer made a believable universe that left me wanting to learn more about it's inhabitants. Collision Course was a wonderful, sexy sci-fi romance packed with adventure and action. It was a very quick read (only 199 pages) and I highly recommend it! I will definitely be on the look out for the next in the series!

Review: The Twisted Tale of Stormy Gale

The Twisted Tale of Stormy Gale
by Christine Bell
Carina Press
Advance uncorrected proof received from NetGalley
Genre: Historical Romance, Time Travel
★★★☆☆


 
I'm a time pirate-born in 1810, now a 21st-century woman. I travel through time trying to right wrongs without disrupting the fragile balance between what is and what can never be.

That's why it's vital that I go to 1836 and find the man who conned my brother out of his Time Travel Mechanism as quickly as possible. If the technology falls into the wrong hands, it could change the world as we know it. The notorious Duke of Leister definitely qualifies as the wrong hands. An amateur scientist of the slightly mad variety, he's bound to figure out how to use the TTM sooner rather than later.

I knew this wouldn't be easy. But I wasn't counting on him being as sexy as hell. Or winding up chained to his bed...

via goodreads

What I Loved

• Original plot
• Saucy and tough female protagonist
• Quick and mildly entertaining read
• Time travel elements

What I Didn't Like

• This book was quite short, and a bit too slow for my liking. There was always something going on, but I just couldn't get into it.
• The characters just seemed very shallow to me. Perhaps this is because there was not enough time to really get to know them.

Overall Rating: ★★★☆☆

Review

I think this story would be best for someone looking for a quick read. I was looking for something with a bit more substance. I personally felt that the plot was rather simple and shallow, though it does get a bit more interesting later in the book. Characters could have been somewhat more developed as well. I finished this book feeling as if I had not really accomplished anything by reading it. It always felt like it was missing something. As I said earlier, I recommend this for someone who is looking for a quick, mildly entertaining read (airplane ride perhaps?).