TMST

 

 

Tell Me Something Tuesday is a weekly discussion post where bloggers discuss a wide range of topics from books and blogging to life in general. Weigh in and join the conversation by adding your thoughts in the comments. If you want to do your own post, grab the question and answer it on your blog. Feel free to leave your links in the comments if you are participating.

3/4/2025 What are three things you'll never get tired of doing?

Hugging my family

Exploring the woods

Thinking about books

3/11/2025 Have you ever ventured out of your comfort zone and ended up having a nice experience?

3/18/2025 Have you met any bookish/blogging friends in person?

3/25/2025 Are you satisfied with your blog?

4/1/2025 What is your current genre of choice? Has it changed recently?

4/8/2025 Which author do you wish you could meet? And what would you say to them?

4/15/2025 It's been a while... tell us more about you!

4/22/2025 What types of music do you enjoy?

4/29/2025 What is your favorite thing about spring?

Tell Me Something Tuesday is a weekly discussion post where bloggers discuss a wide range of topics from books and blogging to life in general. Weigh in and join the conversation by adding your thoughts in the comments. If you want to do your own post, grab the question and answer it on your blog. Feel free to leave your links in the comments if you are participating.

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Carole´s Monday: King of Flesh and Bone

Author: Liv Zander

Narrator: Auri Alden, Gregory Salinas

Title: King of Flesh and Bone

Series: The Pale Court Duet #1

Genre: Fantasy, Dark Romance, Paranormal

Format: Audiobook

Published:  April 21, 2022

Where I got It: Borrowed from library

Summary: 

Worse than a ruthless king... is a king obsessed.

Isolation, darkness, and rotting flesh,

Surrounds me, suffocates me,

But I am the vile ruler who controls it all.

I long for warmth,

Yet, all that I touch,

Is cold.

Then, she stumbles in to my domain,

Lost and frightened,

Alone and confused.

And I terrify her even more.

She calls me the devil,

So I show her pleasure,

Like only the devil can.

I am the heat that stirs her flesh,

The longing that trembles her bone.

She begs her body to refuse,

To escape my embrace,

But I am her master,

The puppeteer of passion.

I am the King of Flesh and Bone.

Welcome to my court, little one.

King of Flesh and Bone is a full-length dark fantasy novel, and book one in The Pale Court duet. The two-part story features a ruthless man, the woman who can't escape his love, and a HEA. This world contains dark themes, violence, loss, and elements of horror some may find disturbing. What this book doesn't contain is a hero - because villains do it better.

Review:

A friend of mine recommended this to me. She said it was messed up but something I should read. So why not?

The story follows the Enosh and Ada.  Ada is a mortal. She is nothing special by all accounts. She is a midwife who is now a widow and childless in a terrible world. People think she is cursed since she could never have a baby. Enosh is not just a King, but a god. His life was destroyed by the mortals he swore to protect. His job, as god, is to help the bodies of those who passed rot and become one with the Earth again. After what the mortals did to him, he won't do it anymore. Those dead are now still roaming the Earth as soulless beasts.

This was certainly dark. Lots of triggers for people so for sure be aware before reading this book.

I.....actually didn't mind this book. I'm not one for overly dark romances or Eroticas but.......I ended up liking it and put book 2 on my TBR list. Yes, some scenes bugged me a bit but...I kept on reading.

Enosh is an asshat for sure. Yes, what the mortals did to him and his family was terrible (grrr dumb humans), but man what a terrible punishment. The world is littered with (essentially) zombies. Super, duper dark for sure. 

Poor, sweet Ada. I felt so bad for her especially at the end. Now I HAVE to read book two SIGHS. I need to know how things are going to get fixed. I won't spoil anything but I will say again....................................dumb humans. 

The plot was limited but I feel the world was crazy detailed. I want to understand more about the other gods. We got to meet two others, I hope we learn more about the "balance" and the role of more gods in the next book. 

One big issue I had was the use of modern phrases. A slip up or two doesn't bug me normally, but there were a LOT of modern phrases especially during the smex scenes. Mmm. It annoyed me. This is supposed to be a fantasy medieval world so it just didn't fit with the vibe.

The narrators did fine. I liked the girls voice. I felt like the male voice had little to do. Why even bother having him? I think he read only a few pages overall. I would've liked to hear the male voice do the male voices or something. Maybe a back and forth narration. Or more Enosh internal monologues would've been nice. 

All-in-all, I'm shocked I liked this as much as I did. I couldn't stop reading! LOTS of triggers so be aware of that. Very dark, lots of smex, lots of zombies, lots of dumb humans, lots of trauma. I'll give this 3 stars. 

- Favorite Character(s): Ada?

- Least Favorite Character(s): Too many to list. Humans are dumb.  

 Challenge(s):

- Audiobook #11

- Library love #6

- Reading Romance #9 (Fantasy/SciFi)

Best of February

 

Here are our bests from February!!!! 

Best Book of the Month:

Blodeuedd - Marked in Flesh by Anne Bishop

"I have to chose this one as the best book of the month because ALL the feels."

Carole - Sugar Shack Witch Mysteries #1-2 series

"I'm loving these! Book 1, book 1.5, and 2 are sooooo good."

Best Movie of the Month:

Carole -  Downton Abbey (2019)

"Such a great continuation of the show. Weeeee!"

Blodeuedd - Nadda

"Best movie, as always I do not remember. I did watch one with a man and his daughter renovating a villa. And sure you could watch it, but I do not even remember the title so..."

Best TV show of the Month:

Blodeuedd - Ghosts (s1) & Love is Blind

"I watched s1 of Ghosts, finally! And also lots of Love is Blind. I just need that drama."

Carole - Downton Abbey (S 6)

"Wah. What am I going to do now that I am done? SOOO good."

Best Cover of the Month:

Carole's pick: Can't stop looking at it. 

Blodeuedd's pick: "Much prettier in RL."

Audio. The Bennet Inheritance by Jann Rowland

By: Jann Rowland

Narrated by: Harry Frost

Length: 14 hrs and 57 mins

Release date: 02-18-25 by Tantor Media

Pride and prejudice variation/ Audio received from Tantor

I am always up for a Pride and Prejudice variation. They are so much fun and I can never get enough.

This one was different because there was no Lydia and Kitty, and you know, that worked really well.

Mr Bennet is a widower, yes I liked this, no Mrs Bennet being a nervous wreck. Instead Mr Bennet is calm, he used to be a parson, now he has inherited Longbourn. He does wonder, maybe he should remarry?

And then we have Lizzy, Jane, and Mary being good friends and sisters.

Darcy is an old friend who Bennet has not seen in a while and of course he will fall for Lizzy when he sees her again. Bingley will also show up. Everything will work out well.

Yes there is some drama. Some are angry that Mr Bennet got Longbourn, even though it had been stolen from his family. Caroline does show up and we know she is annoying. Wickham shows up, and we all know he is a real piece of work.

An enjoyable PP variation

Great narration by Harry Frost. He does well with his female and male voices. He manages to fit the tone of the era

20 Years after conspiring men denied his father the inheritance that was his by birthright, Mr. Henry Bennet returns to Longbourn with his three daughters, having received the estate on the death of its previous master. Mr. Bennet has no notion why the man who stole it from his father willed the property to his control, but he is grateful to return to the lands of his forebears.

As the Bennets settle into their lives as gentlefolk once again, their new friends welcome them to the neighborhood, and they begin the struggle to turn Longbourn again into a prosperous estate. In this, Mr. Bennet finds assistance from his friend, Fitzwilliam Darcy, a scion of the family who proved his father’s salvation. Mr. Darcy, eager to help his dear friend learn how to become master of the estate, takes an immediate liking to the man’s second daughter, Elizabeth, who works her way into his heart with little effort.

Unexpected to them all, their new position opens vistas wide to them, for the prospect of love and devotion, a future filled with promise, is open to them, from the eldest to the youngest. Of even greater importance, the Bennets will learn something of themselves and discover something of the betrayals that led to their family’s hiatus from the estate.