Review: Hostage to pleasure - Nalini Singh

 Psy-changelings 5

Genre: paranormal romance
Pages: 330
Published: 2008

Now, as the deadly Psy Council tightens its grip, a rebel Psy scientist finds herself at the mercy of a changeling who has sworn vengeance against her kind...

Ashaya Aleine was separated from her son, forced to create a neural implant that will forever enslave her psychically gifted Psy race. After fighting a desperate battle to save her child and escape the PsyNet, she’s lead not to safety, but into the lethal danger of a sniper’s embrace.

DarkRiver sniper Dorian Christensen lost his sister to a Psy killer. Though he lacks the changeling ability to shift into animal form, his leopard lives within. And that leopard's rage at the brutal loss is a clawing darkness that hungers for vengeance. Falling for a Psy has never been on Dorian's agenda. But charged with protecting Ashaya and her son, he discovers that passion has a way of changing the rules...

This is the reason why I should write reviews at once, this one was left behind not to mention that I started and finished it over some weeks since I had that crazy library loot.

But ok, here we have another psy and changeling falling in love. But this one was different because Ashaya was not like other Psy and therefore it worked better for me. Ashaya wants to save her kid, Dorian helps her, people hunt her, he lusts after her, and she is troubled. In this book another bad guy shows up, a human alliance that wants to take over and sure the Psy sucks but this new alliance is rotten.

What did I get from this book, well there is this rat shifter called Treyan or something, and the freaky thing is that I'd like to see more from him..a rat shifter, I must be crazy. But he sounds cool, the rats are so sneaky and great spies.

I liked Dorian, and here he finally gets saved or looses it since he is really angry with the Psy after his sister getting murdered. So of course he will fall for a Psy who saves him. And I liked her, even with that crazy sister of hers.

Not so much council politics in this one since there were many after them. An ok book and a world I do like. The world is truly the best thing about these books.

Tomorrow I will review Branded by Fire, and yes my fav so far :D

Blodeuedd's Cover Corner: Ok

Reason for reading: Borrowed

Final thoughts: Ok series

Review: Post Human - David Simpson

Genre: Futuristic, sci-fi
Pages: 188
Published: 2009

The future should have been perfect. Microscopic robots known as nans could repair any damage to your body, keep you young by resetting your cellular ...more The future should have been perfect. Microscopic robots known as nans could repair any damage to your body, keep you young by resetting your cellular clocks, and allow you to download upgrades like intelligence, muscle strength, and eyesight. You were supposed to be able to have anything you wanted with a simple thought, to be able to fly without the aid of a machine, to be able to live forever. But when a small group of five terraformers working on Venus return to Earth, they discover that every other human in the solar system has been gruesomely murdered. Now, James Keats and his four companions must discover what happened to the rest of humanity and fight back if they wish to avoid the same, horrifying fate. Welcome to the post-human era.

Little unsure about one thing, sometimes it had the feel of YA and sometimes not. But YA readers could definitely read this book, and especially boys.

This is the future and everyone is used to having everything served on a silver platter. They are all smart and getting smarter with each upgrade. They can fly (well not really but thanks to technology), wounds are healed, they live and live, and everything is just perfect.

But some resist, a group called the Purists, and they are us, we who live now that is. I got pretty irritated when the group came across purists and went all "gross, they eat things from the ground, and meat, and they operate on people to save them." I felt the post humans were pretty ungrateful, if people in the past hadn't invented things they would not be where they are now. So they annoyed me then. I wanted to shake the person and say, hey, your world is not perfect.

Cos that brings us to the story, a group is away on Venus terraforming and when they get back everyone is dead, yes everyone. Then they have to find who did it and they have to save themselves.

It had this futuristic matrix kind of feel to it. AI, robots and technology for everyone. I did wonder though, if everyone is so smart, then who has the more crappy jobs. I mean everyone on the planet has an IQ of 147 and wouldn't they all want good jobs? Their world seem to perfect but at the same time it was scary. It was too perfect, living forever, being smart, and I will not say what, but obviously it all went to hell.

A sci-fi thriller for those who enjoy these kind of books.

Blodeuedd's Cover Corner: Nah, not for me.

Reason for reading: Got asked  and since the file was in the email I accepted.

Final thoughts: This is gonna sound crazy but the ending was too happy! I would have liked another ending. Now where is this coming from?

You can check out his website here

Review: Nefertiti - Michelle Moran

Genre: Historical fiction
Pages: 528
Published: 2007

Nefertiti and her younger sister, Mutnodjmet, have been raised in a powerful family that has provided wives to the rulers of Egypt for centuries. Ambitious, charismatic, and beautiful, Nefertiti is destined to marry Amunhotep, an unstable young pharaoh. It is hoped that her strong personality will temper the young ruler’s heretical desire to forsake Egypt’s ancient gods.

From the moment of her arrival in Thebes, Nefertiti is beloved by the people but fails to see that powerful priests are plotting against her husband’s rule. The only person brave enough to warn the queen is her younger sister, yet remaining loyal to Nefertiti will force Mutnodjmet into a dangerous political game; one that could cost her everything she holds dear.

I read my first Michelle Moran book last year and enjoyed it, she has this way of bringing history to life. Ever since that I wanted to read her previous novels and now I finally got to read the first one.

This book is about a famous time in the history of Egypt. But it is not told through the eyes of the big players. No the main character here is Mutnodjmet who was the sister to the famous Nefertiti who married Amunhotep who would start a new religion and build a new capital. 

Mut was the younger sister and when Nefertiti got married she came with her. First there are court intrigues with Amunhoteps first wife Kiya, then there is the intrigues surrounding him wanting a new religion and by doing that getting all the money from the Amun priests. Mut watches her sister ensnare the pharao and trying to keep his attention, and giving him the son he needs. But Mut has a mind of her own and there comes a time when she wants to break free from her sisters hold.

I liked how Mut was portrayed. First as a young girl thrown in to the political game, then as a young woman falling in love. Her whole story is not told here, and the book ends before a new rule sets in. So yes, what did I do, of course I googled. By now you can see I am rather obsessed with that. I sat and read about Egyptian history and what happened later to Mut. And even if we can't know everything, Moran has followed what might be true. This is a great historical novel about a woman who stood near the throne at a turbulent time, and who isn't as well known as her famous beautiful sister. But that is what I liked, to get to know a lesser known historical figure who still stood at the centre of things then and afterwards.

Moran truly brings history come to life. I am there in ancient Egypt and everything feels so near. One thing that this book made me want is to read The Heretic Queen, the book that follows Ramsesses II who became Pharaoh near this period of time, a couple of Pharaohs down since much happened in a short period of time. Because she truly is a great historical author and I want more. Not to mention read her new book that is coming out.

If you are interested in Egypt then this is a book for you, or if you are a historical fan, or if you just want a good book.

Blodeuedd's Cover Corner: Love it

Reason for reading: My awesome library loot, missing that city now.

Final thoughts: I do want more.

Review: Painting Mona Lisa - Jeanne Kalogridis

Also published as: I, Mona Lisa

Genre: Historical fiction
Pages: 526
Published. 2006

My name is Lisa di Antonio Gherardini Giocondo, though to acquaintances, I am known simply as Madonna Lisa. My story begins not with my birth but a murder, committed the year before I was born…”

Florence, April 1478: The handsome Giuliano de’ Medici is brutally assassinated in Florence’s magnificent Duomo. The shock of the murder ripples throughout the great city, from the most renowned artists like Leonardo da Vinci and Michelangelo, to a wealthy wool merchant and his extraordinarily beautiful daughter, Madonna Lisa. More than a decade later, Florence falls under the dark spell of the preacher Savonarola, a fanatic who burns paintings and books as easily as he sends men to their deaths. Lisa, now grown into an alluring woman, captures the heart of Giuliano’s nephew and namesake. But when Guiliano, her love, meets a tragic end, Lisa must gather all her courage and cunning to untangle a sinister web of illicit love, treachery, and dangerous secrets that threatens her life. 

I picked up this book thinking to learn something more, and then I googled after having read for a little while and realized the story is total fiction. The people existed but she has re-invented history and put together this fictional story.

Young Lisa grows up in Florence where de Medici rule. Her father is a wool merchant and her mother is sickly. The de Medici family rules everyhting, even marriages and she is sent to be inspected so they can find her a husband. But she meets Giuliano de Medici and falls in love, when 12 or 13. But a preacher is preaching about hell fire and soon all of Florence will be turned into darkness. But Lisa has her love, and friendship in a painter known as da Vinci. She also has a thirst for revenge.

Yes, my biggest concern is how historically incorrect this book was. I mean she did a great job, really followed what happened but then she made some people disappear and re-shaped Lisa's life. It makes a good story but I would rather have seen more accuracy. I never really got the love story either, they met briefly, she gets a letter and then she is suddenly in love. Must I preach about lust again. I just never felt it. Later yes, but not then.

But I did enjoy Florence, how the de Medici worked, the city and later Savonarola. He was one scary guy and Florence really turned into a hell hole after he has preached for a while. No one was safe, well perhaps except for the pious sad ones. It was certainly an interesting time.

In the end an ok book, I guess I might have liked it better before I went to google.

Blodeuedd's Cover Corner: lovely

Reason for reading: Library loot, yes my final one! Last review up tomorrow

Final thoughts; Ok.