Review- Killing Season (Violet Darger #2)

Killing Season (Violet Darger #2)
By: L.T. Vargus & Tim McBain
Website: https://ltvargus.com/
Release Date: July 31st, 2017
Publisher: Smarmy Press
Series: Violet Darger
Rating:


On to the official book two in this series, and not just a novella. I’m very glad this was a full-fledged novel as I don’t think this story could have been accomplished within a novella.

In Atlanta there is a serial killer hunting people. Not just stalking and killing, but actually hunting. Taking shots carefully the killer first takes out eight victims and causes a massive pileup on the highway. The following morning a grocery store is attacked. When Violet and Loshak finally get there the city is in a panic and it’s time for the hunters to be hunted.

Violet and Loshak do a fantastic job in this book as they grow as partners. I also was so taken in by the surprise plot twists, the idenity of the gunman and a host of other chaotic moments throughout the book. I will say that even though the killings in this book are horrible it felt easier to swallow than the previous ones, perhaps because this serial killer does it at a longer distance, rather that close-up and personal. Learning about the killer was also interesting and seeing things through his eyes felt like I could swallow this case a bit easier than the others. (Reminder for anyone who hasn’t read the previous books in the sereis; book one focuses on body mutilation of young women and the novella focuses on a family annihilator. Pick your poison.)

I will also say that if you wanted to read only one Violet Darger book this may be the one to pick. While there are some call backs to the previous works here it isn’t impossible to follow along without any of the previous context. Still, I prefer having all the context so I’d still suggest reading the series.

#MangaMonday Review – Downfall by Inio Asano

Downfall Inio Asano Downfall
By: Inio Asano
Illustrator: Inio Asano
Translator: Jocelyn Allen
Release Date: February 18, 2020`
Publisher: VIZ Media LLC
Received From: Publisher
(All reviews are our own, honest opinions.)
Rating:


Where do you go after you finish the greatest work of your life? What lies past the completion of your life’s work? How do you find it? How do you live up to the world’s expectations, let alone your own? These are the questions poised within Downfall by Inio Asano, the Eisner nominated author of the series Solanin and Goodnight Punpun. This is a single-volume manga as opposed to the much more common series length manga works.

Review- Image in a Cracked Mirror (Violet Darger #1.5)

Image in a Cracked Mirror (Violet Darger #1.5)
By: L.T. Vargus & Tim McBain
Website: https://ltvargus.com/
Release Date: June 8th, 2017
Publisher: Smarmy Press
Series: Violet Darger
Rating:


When I saw that there was a novella between book one and two of the series I was curious as to why it was just a novella and not a full blown book. However, I agree with the decision made by the authors to keep this short as the case, while disturbing, wasn’t too complicated and it gave us further insight into Violet and Loshak.

Review- Dead End Girl (Violet Darger #1)

Dead End Girl (Violet Darger #1)
By: L.T. Vargus & Tim McBain
Website: https://ltvargus.com/
Release Date: April 12th, 2017
Publisher: Smarmy Press
Series: Violet Darger
Rating:


The upside of having a Kindle is when you are given recommendations for books you might like. Well, I definitely liked this first book in the Violet Darger series and I dove straight in to the entire series, enjoying my visit into yet another twisted mystery.

#MangaMonday Review – Wave, Listen to Me! by Hiroaki Samura

Wave, Listen to Me! Vol. 1
By: Hiroaki Samura
Illustrator: Hiroaki Samura (Illustrations); Darren Smith (Lettering)
Translator: Adam Hirsch
Release Date: May 26, 2020
Publisher: Kodansha
Series: Wave, Listen to Me!
Received From: Publisher
(All reviews are our own, honest opinions.)
Rating:


If you have been enjoying anime’s Spring 2020 season, you might be interested in the first volume of manga series Wave Listen to Me! by Hiroaki Samura, whose previous series include Blade of the Immortal and Die Wegelder.

Review – This is How You Lose the Time War by Amal El-Mohtar and Max Gladstone

This Is How You Lose the Time War
By: Amal El-Mohtar & Max Gladstone
Release Date: July 16, 2019
Publisher: Saga Press
Award: Hugo Award Nominee for Best Novella (2020), Nebula Award Nominee for Best Novella (2019), British Science Fiction Association Award Nominee for Best Shorter Fiction (2019), Los Angeles Times Book Prize Nominee for Science Fiction, Fantasy & Speculative Fiction (Ray Bradbury Prize) (2020), Goodreads Choice Award Nominee for Science Fiction (2019) Reddit r/fantasy Stabby Award for Best Novella (2019)
Rating:


If you like time travel, romance, and epistolary style novels look no further. This Is How You Lose the Time War by Amal El-Mohtar and Max Gladstone is an utterly fantastic novel and so very deserving of the many award nominations it’s been nominated for recently – including a Nebula Award Nominee for Best Novella (2019), British Science Fiction Association Award Nominee for Best Shorter Fiction (2019), and Ray Bradbury Prize (2020).

Review- The Body Keeper (Detective Jude Fontaine Mysteries #3)

The Body Keeper (Detective Jude Fontaine Mysteries #3)
By: Anne Fraiser
Website: https://www.annefrasier.com/
Release Date: June 4th, 2019
Publisher: Thomas & Mercer
Series: Detective Jude Fontaine Mysteries #3
Rating:


The final part of this amazing trilogy is here and when I tell you that I could barely stop reading I mean that I took a day off work to finish it. I couldn’t resist the pull of this well-written, heart stopping finale.

Review- The Body Counter (Detective Jude Fontaine Mysteries #2)

The Body Counter (Detective Jude Fontaine Mysteries #2)
By: Anne Fraiser
Website: https://www.annefrasier.com/
Release Date: June 12th, 2018
Publisher: Thomas & Mercer
Series: Detective Jude Fontaine Mysteries #2
Rating:


Picking up a few months after book one we see that Jude and Uriah have grown to trust each other as partners, despite some of their own suspicions of one another. When a series of apparently random crimes hits, with no real pattern other than the dead bodies they must figure out who the killer is- fast.

Review- The Body Reader (Detective Jude Fontaine Mysteries #1)

The Body Reader (Detective Jude Fontaine Mysteries #1)
By: Anne Fraiser
Website: https://www.annefrasier.com/
Release Date: June 21st, 2016
Publisher: Thomas & Mercer
Series: Detective Jude Fontaine Mysteries #1
Rating:


Another mystery series? Don’t mind if I do…

Detective Jude Fontaine was held captive for three years. Her captor, her only contact for that entire time became the subject of Jude’s focus as she studied every single detail about him during each horrendous and difficult interaction.

Review- In The Darkness (Zoe Bentley Mystery #2)

In The Darkness (Zoe Bentley Mystery #2)
By: Mike Omer
Website: http://strangerealm.com/mikeomer/
Release Date: June 25th, 2019
Publisher: Thomas & Mercer
Series: Zoe Bentley Mystery
Rating:


Book number two in the series didn’t disappoint me and with strong characters, a twisting plot, the return of the best crazy grandfather ever and a creepy killer to be hunted, well it was easy to finish this book fast.