ARC REVIEW: Reincarnation Blues – by Michael Poore

Title: Reincarnation Blues
Author: Michael Poore
Genre: Science Fiction, Fantasy, Romance
First published: August 22nd 2017
Publisher: Del Rey Books
Finished reading: August 12th 2017
Pages: 384

“Death was a door. You went through it over and over, but it still terrified people.”

*** A copy of this book was kindly provided to me by Netgalley and Del Rey Books in exchange for an honest review. Thank you! ***

This book isn’t exactly what I would normally pick up, but there was just something about the cover and blurb of Reincarnation Blues that caught my attention and made me want to read it. Reading books out of my comfort zone can go either way, but all in all this novel by Michael Poore turned out to be a little gem. The first thing that stood out when I started reading Reincarnation Blues was the writing style. I fell in love almost immediately with the way this story was told and I found myself completely absorbed into this piece of speculative fiction with a sci-fi twist. This story is about a man called Milo who is reincarnated through many many lifetimes set both in the past, present and future. He is now about to start life number 9.996… Just when he finds out he only has five more lives to get it right and reach Perfection. The chapters are a mix of what happens during these lives, what happens in between and how he fell in love with Death herself.  Some lives are told in more detail while others seem less important, but they all help develop his character in a very fascinating way. Basically you can say Reincarnation Blues is a collection of connecting short stories about the different lives Milo lives and how his actions influence his next life. The romance is subtle, very well done and didn’t bother me at all; the wordbuilding of the different world in between fascinating. I personally didn’t enjoy some of the chapters set in the future (for example chapter 14, which is set in a prison in space) as much as the rest of the story, but that could have been just me not being into full-blown science fiction in the first place. The wonderful writing and rest of the story in general mostly made up for those feelings though. Reincarnation Blues isn’t for everyone, but it is a truly fascinating read that I can definitely recommend if you think this sounds like your cup of tea!

Milo has been reincarnated nearly 10.000 times when he finds out he only has five more lives to get it right and reach Perfection so he can become part of the Oversoul. He is not sure he truly wants this though because it might affect his relationship withhis one true love: Death herself. They only see each other in between lives and he can’t imagine having to continue without her… But Milo doesn’t seem to have any other option than to try his best, because if he doesn’t get it right before the deadline, his soul will vanish forever. His lives take him from ancient India to outer space to Renaissance Italy to the present day in the hope of finally living that perfect life. Will he be able to reach that goal in time?

Reincarnation Blues isn’t the type of book I normally pick up, but sometimes browsing outside your comfort zone can bring some very pleasant surprises. This book turned out to be a hidden gem and I really enjoyed following Milo’s story as he lives his lives through time and space. Some chapters were a bit too futuristic for me, but that is probably mostly me since sci-fi isn’t really my genre in the first place. The writing was wonderful though as well as the rest of the story.

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ARC REVIEW: Dead To Me – by Stephen Edger @bookouture

Title: Dead To Me
(Detective Kate Matthews #1)
Author: Stephen Edger
Genre: Mystery, Thriller, Crime
First published: August 17th 2017
Publisher: Bookouture
Finished reading: August 10th 2017
Pages: 352

“A rush of adrenaline swept over her. Nothing ever quite compared to the buzz of a new crime scene, an untouched puzzle fresh out of the box.”

*** A copy of this book was kindly provided to me by Netgalley and Bookouture in exchange for an honest review. Thank you! ***

!! Happy publication day !!

I think just about everybody already knows by now just how hard I find it to resist a Bookouture thriller… Dead To Me by Stephen Edger was no exception to that rule. This book had me at the cover and the mention of a serial killer and I was initially very excited about this title. But then mixed reviews started popping up, and my excitement turned into worry. What if I didn’t like the story either? I posponed picking it up for longer than I would have liked, but finally did read it last week. And I was pleasantly surprised by what I initially found when I started Dead To Me. There is no doubt that Stephen Edger‘s writing style is very engaging and draws you right in. The plot itself is well developed and intruiging with a lot of plot twists that will keep you guessing for a long time. And that serial killer! Very twisted indeed and there were things I didn’t see coming at all. This all sounds very positive, so why the lowish rating? One word: Kate. Basically, the main character Kate ruined what could have been a great and intense thriller for me. I absolutely despised her! The way she treats her daughter, doesn’t care about her safety and even forgets she’s there at times… Not caring about police protocol, doing whatever she wants without considering the consequences, endangering others, undermining active murder investigations… And I can go on with that list if I want to. Ugh! It’s a shame one character can influence my opinion about a story that much…  But I personally found it really hard to keep tolerating Kate AND enjoying Dead To Me at the same time, especially since she plays such a big role in the story and the developments in the plot. As I said before, the writing is GOOD, the plot intense and twisty and this first book of a new detective series has a lot of potential. Unfortunately my dislike for the main character will stop me from continuing this series… I have seen others not being all that bothered by Kate though, so give this book a chance if the things about Kate I mentioned above don’t curl your toes.

Detective Kate Matthews is called in to investigate the brutal murder of a woman, who was found in an abandoned bar near the Southampton docks. Kate still hasn’t recovered from her role in the death of a close colleague, and is told she must solve the case to prove she is still up for a leading role. Her team keeps hitting dead ends, until Kate discovers something that will blow not one but various cases wide open… But nobody seems to believe her findings or theory, and that leaves her with a very difficult decision.

There is a lot to love in Dead To Me and I would probably have given it a lot higher rating if it wouldn’t have been for the main character Kate. Sadly I couldn’t ignore the fact that she is the most important character of this new series and the whole story is told around her… And it’s really hard to properly enjoy a story when you absolutely despise the main character, no matter how good the writing and plot are. The writing, plot, twists and intense feel were more than promising and I do hope there will be a ‘Kate-less’ thriller by his hand in the future.

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WWW Wednesdays #150 – August 16th

WWW WEDNESDAYS is a weekly meme hosted by Sam @ Taking On A World Of Words and is all about answering the three questions below.

• WHAT ARE YOU CURRENTLY READING?

I decided to give Girl In Snow by Danya Kukafka another shot since the deadline is coming up, and this time it’s definitely going a lot better. I can’t say I love it, but it seems to be a very fast read so far. As soon as I reach the final page, I’m picking up The Missing Girls by Carol Wyer. I’ve been dying to read this book ever since it appeared on my kindle and I can’t bear to wait any longer! I’ve also posponed Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro for now because I just can’t get into the story.

• WHAT DID YOU RECENTLY FINISH READING?

1. Dead To Me by Stephen Edger (2,5/5 stars) REVIEW 17/08
There is a lot to love in Dead To Me and I would probably have given it a lot higher rating if it wouldn’t have been for the main character Kate. Sadly I couldn’t ignore the fact that she is the most important character of this new series and the whole story is told around her… And it’s really hard to properly enjoy a story when you absolutely despise the main character, no matter how good the writing and plot are. The writing, plot, twists and intense feel were more than promising and I do hope there will be a ‘Kate-less’ thriller by his hand in the future.

2. Reincarnation Blues by Michael Poore (4/5 stars) REVIEW 18/08
Reincarnation Blues isn’t the type of book I normally pick up, but sometimes browsing outside your comfort zone can bring some very pleasant surprises. This book turned out to be a hidden gem and I really enjoyed following Milo’s story as he lives his lives through time and space. Some chapters were a bit too futuristic for me, but that is probably mostly me since sci-fi isn’t really my genre in the first place. The writing was wonderful though as well as the rest of the story.

3. The Jungle Book by Rudyard Kipling (3,5/5 stars) REVIEW 20/08
I was pleasantly surprised by just how easy it was to read this classic. Sure, the dialogues felt a bit dated, but the rest of the writing read naturally and made it really easy to enjoy Mowgli’s story. The other four stories included afterwards weren’t as enjoyable for me and lowered the rating a bit, but all in all I can definitely recommend The Jungle Book to those who are looking for an easy and entertaining classic. The songs at the beginning of the chapters were a nice touch!

4. Midnight At The Bright Ideas Bookstore by Matthew Sullivan (4,5/5 stars) REVIEW 21/08
I have been looking forward to this title for a while now and it was without doubt just as good or even better than hoped. I had such a great time reading Midnight At The Bright Ideas Bookstore and the two mysteries/puzzles that are included are both fascinating and well executed. The bookish elements are a true delight and I had a great time discovering more about Joey and Lydia, their past and their development. The writing is wonderful as well and made me fly through the pages… All in all I can highly recommend this title.

• WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU’LL READ NEXT?

I really need to pick up The Secret Of Heaven by Felix Alexander since it’s an ARC way past due… Afterwards I’m probably going to pick up Monsters Of Men by Patrick Ness next because I really want to know how the story ends. I also need to read The Accident by S.D. Monaghan to help me clean out my Netgalley shelf (which is going really well as I only have eight titles left; and two less after I finish my current reads). My newest TBR jar pick is still The Kind Worth Killing by Peter Swanson. Looking forward to be reading it soon!

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ARC REVIEW: The Other Girl – by Erica Spindler @StMartinsPress

Title: The Other Girl
Author: Erica Spindler
Genre: Mystery, Thriller, Suspense
First published: August 22nd 2017
Publisher: St. Martin’s Press
Finished reading: August 8th 2017
Pages: 352

“She’d left everyone from those days behind – everyone except that girl she had been. All these years,carrying her around like an invisible anchor.

The girl she had been.”

*** A copy of this book was kindly provided to me by Netgalley and St. Martin’s Press in exchange for an honest review. Thank you! ***

I was personally invited to read this title a while back and since I’ve read and enjoyed Erica Spindler‘s work in the past the answer was an easy one. I’ve been looking forward to pick up The Other Girl ever since and I can say now the actual story is just as good as the cover. This new stand-alone thriller starts out strong and stays that way until the very end. The storyline switches between flashbacks of what happened to the main character and now officer Miranda about fourteen years ago and you slowly learn how these events are or aren’t connected to the present. I personally wasn’t a fan of Miranda, but her character development is interesting and it was intriguing how she was trying to put the past behind her and change her life. The writing style draws you right in and had me hooked almost instantly. A little warning for the more sensitive readers, because some of the scenes can be called pretty disturbing and graphic. Because boy, they have one heck of a case on their hands! There are a lot of twists and intrigue included in The Other Girl, although I did start to suspect the who and why quite early on. This put only a tiny damper on my reading experience though, since this thriller is so well written and action-packed that the journey alone makes it a worthy read. If you like a good crime thriller with a twist, The Other Girl is a great choice!

Officer Miranda Rader has a dodgy past, but she has worked hard for years to leave the girl she used to be behind and earn respect as an officer of the Hammond PD in Louisiana. But when Miranda and her partner are made part of the investigation of the murder of one of the most beloved college professors of the town, her past might just be back to haunt her. Because the murder isn’t just gruesome, but seems to be connected to her personally when she finds a faded newspaper clipping at the scene. What is happening and who is behind the murder? Things are about to become very complicated…

I had high expectations for The Other Girl and there is no doubt this story has met these expectations. The strong start had me hooked right from the beginning and I liked the balance between the flashbacks to the past and the present. Miranda isn’t exactly likeable, but her character development is well done and there is no doubt she is an interesting one. I did see the ending coming quite early, but still had an excellent time reading The Other Girl.

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Teaser Tuesdays #153 – August 15th: Midnight At The Bright Ideas Bookstore

TEASER TUESDAYS is a weekly book meme hosted at The Purple Booker. To participate, just open the book you are currently reading to a random page, and choose two ‘teaser’ sentences from somewhere on that page. (no spoilers!)

I’m currently reading Midnight At The Bright Ideas Bookstore by Matthew Sullivan, another pending Netgalley title and one I’m really excited about finally reading. I love books about books! I’m not all that far into the story yet, but I definitely like the writing style so far and can’t wait to further dive into this story.

My teaser (17%):

“I guess it just bugs me to be paying so little, he added. Something’s wrong in the air, you know, when a book costs less than a bullet. Or a Coke. Values-wise.”

What are you reading right now?

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BOOK REVIEW: The Ask And The Answer – by Patrick Ness

Title: The Ask And The Answer
(Chaos Walking #2)
Author: Patrick Ness
Genre: YA, Science Fiction, Dystopia
First published: May 4th 2009
Publisher: Walker Books Ltd.
Finished reading: August 7th 2017
Pages: 536

“If you ever see a war,” she says, not looking up from her clipboard, “you’ll learn that war only destroys. No one escapes from a war. No one. Not even the survivors.”

Ask me why on earth it took me this long to pick up the sequel, and I don’t have an answer. Ask me why I always ended up reading other series instead of continuing with one I had already started and loved, and I don’t have an answer either. The fact is that it took me just about TWO years before I finally opened my copy of The Ask And The Answer (I checked). Like I said before, I really don’t know why because I loved the first book… And have had Patrick Ness on my list of favorite authors ever since. There is one thing I do know though: I won’t wait this long to read the final book. Because The Ask And The Answer has reminded me just how much I enjoyed reading about this dystopian world. True, the slang the men use still bothered me considerably (it’s probably the philologist in me who’s to blame), but that’s my only real complaint. The whole slang use (cuz, yer, thru, addishun, instruckshuns etc. etc) in Todd’s chapters was highly annoying, but I did appreciate the fact that this way it was very easy to distiguish Viola’s chapters, which do have ‘normal’ language. This sequel is quite easy to follow even if you don’t remember all the details of book one. How I can know this? It had been two years since I read The Knife Of Never Letting Go and I didn’t do a reread before starting with The Ask And The Answer; I was able to pick up the storyline quite easily anyhow. I quite enjoyed the sequel and learn about how things continue and see the main characters develop. The writing style is quite unique and apart from the slang I absolutely loved it. I had a great time reading this story and literally flew through the pages… You don’t feel it at all this book has actually 500+ pages. I can’t wait to read book number three now!

WARNING: Possible spoilers! Please don’t read this summary if you haven’t read the first book of this trilogy yet. I’ll keep the summary super short but it’s impossible to keep it completely spoiler-free…

They thought they would be safe in Haven, but what they found was something completelydifferent. Because instead of fleeing successfully the army that was trying to catch them, Todd has carried Viola right into the hands of their worst enemy. They are separated and imprisoned, forced to see the new way if they want the other to be safe… But can they be sure the other is still alive? Will they be able to escape and be together again?

It’s been too long since I read the first book, so I can’t properly compare the two… But what I do know is that I enjoyed The Ask And The Answer just as much as the first book. I had once again the same reaction to the slang the men use in Todd’s chapters, which I found mostly highly annoying. That would be my only real complaint though and I still thoroughly enjoyed this sequel. I’m definitely going to read the third and final book soon now!

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Bookstagram Sunday #9 – August 13th

I’ve recently decided to create a separate place to share my recent Bookstagram photos rather than squeezing them all into one huge wrap up post every month. I’ve only started using Instagram for my bookish photos back in January but I have quickly fallen in love with the Bookish community there. And while I don’t think my photos come even close to the many gorgeous accounts and photos there, I’m having a lot of fun adding my own photos to the mix!

As at of my 5 Step Plan to beat my reading/blogging slump, I’ve decided to limit my social media time… Which also means I’ve been posting on my Instagram a lot less than normal. These photos below are actually of the last two weeks instead of one. Four with my kindle and one with a bookstack… And the first post also has a photo of Lila. My favorite is probably the third because of the colors, although I like the fourth as well.

Feel free to add me at @yvo_about_books if you want to! I will always follow back bookstagram accounts.

On to the photo spam:

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