Stephy Reading Challenge - Book 26

 

Botticelli - Images of Love and Spring by Frank Zӧllner

This whole book was just an in-depth look at five different Botticelli paintings. The paintings are Mars and Venus, La Primavera: A Wedding Picture, Minerva and the Centaur, The Birth of Venus, and The Villa Lemmi Frescoes.

My favorite of these is Mars and Venus.

It was a very interesting read. I like art, but I never looked too closely into the subtle references or meanings in art. I just like pretty things. So it was cool to learn this kind of stuff. 

I also learned what the seven liberal arts are. So now whenever Jaskier mentions them my brain is feeding me a definition. So that is fun while reading Witcher fan-fiction...

Stephy Reading Challenge - Book 25

 

Supergirl at Super Hero High by Lisa Yee

This book opens with Kara (you know, Supergirl) being sent away from Krypton as the planet is destroyed. She arrives on Earth, like, 20 years later. Superman finds her and takes her to live with his parents. After a bit, she goes to Super Hero High.

At Super Hero High, Kara feels like she doesn't belong and struggles to control powers that she's only had for a couple months.

And someone is trying to use the school's Boom Tubes. Which is bad.

Supergirl makes friends and helps save the day, so it all worked out in the end.

I enjoyed this book and think it is a great book for kids. As are the rest of the books in the series. And the original cartoon. Fuck that new series...

My only complaint was that Amanda Waller was too nice. But I guess they didn't want her putting bombs in teenagers. Which she totally would do...

Stephy Reading Challenge - Book 23

 

Wicked Deeds on a Winter's Night by Kresley Cole

Immortals After Dark

Bowen MacRieve, of the Lykae Clan (third in line for the throne, fancy), lost his mate a long, long, long, long time ago. Nix (*holds up sign that says I 💗 Nix*) tells him that he'll find his mate if he enters the Talisman's Hie. So he does. While on a task he comes across Mariketa the Awaited, a witch.

Bowen thinks Mariketa put a spell on him to make his Instinct be all "Look Bowen! Mate! Our Mate!" (not sure why I picture The Instinct as an over-excited puppy... Cause that doesn't fit with the writing, but I do...) Bowen ends up trapping Mariketa in a tomb with some others from the Lore. She blasts him with a spell that turns off his regeneration right before he traps them, though.

In Bowen's defense, he assumed with two demons and three fey, the witch could get out fairly quickly.

They do not get out fairly quickly.

Weeks later, a war is brewing because Mariketa hasn't returned and she's the leader of the Witches. And they're pissed at Bowen.

So, he has to go fetch her and bring her home. 

They have to jump a bunch of hurdles to get back to New Orleans. And then a couple more hurdles happen after they return to New Orleans. 

In the end, things work out and they get a happy ending. 

Lovely book. Lovely characters. Lovely all around.

Stephy Reading Challenge - Book 22

 

Vittorio, the Vampire by Anne Rice

I spent a lot of time while reading this book rolling my eyes at Vittorio. Because teenagers thinking they know best is apparently not a modern trope.

When Vittorio was 16, his entire family was slaughtered by vampires. An attractive female vampire, Ursula, allows him to live though. Which... Stupid...

Vittorio travels to a town, trying to find a way to have his revenge on those vampires. After a nightly visit from Ursula (when I think they had sex...), Vittorio learns that the town gives their undesirables to the vampires.

So, Vittorio goes vampire hunting.

And fails.

The vampires capture him and feed him a bit of vampire blood, which, I think Ursula did before... Anyway. It's a vampire court... A Satanic vampire court.

Ursula begs Florian (the leader) to turn Vittorio. Which doesn't happen. Instead, Vittorio passes out and wakes up in Florence (I think it was Florence...) where, holy shit, he can see angels now! At first, he just sees Fra Filippo Lippi's guardian angels. Then another angel. Then finally his own guardian angels. He convinces the angels to help him destroy the vampires. They agree, with the vow that he will kill all the vampires.

The angels take him to the vampire's castle, help him enter their daytime resting place. Where he slaughters the vampires. Well... All but Ursula.

He tells the angels that he's going to redeem Ursula's soul.

Ursula wakes up and tricks Vittorio and makes him a vampire. Because of course she does.

Together they slaughter the captive humans at the castle and most of that town that Vittorio stayed at before. 

They make their way back to Florence (I think...) where, hey, it's the angels! Since Vittorio broke his promise to the angels, they punish him by making it so he can see people's souls. 

And, that's the book.

I enjoyed it, but... I had some issues. Mostly the Vittorio and Ursula romance. He meets her when she is trying to steal away his younger brother and sister. Then the next night he's all "Monster! Let's kiss!" And the next night they're all "I love you!" Seems... Weird to me... But whatever.

Good side story to the Vampire Chronicles.

Stephy Reading Challenge - Book 21

 

The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl: Squirrel Meets the World by Shannon Hale and Dean Hale

This book was super cute and funny. 

Doreen Green is an average, optimistic 14-year-old girl who has a squirrel tail and squirrel powers. 

In the book, you follow her as she starts a new school, makes friends, and takes down a supervillain wannabe.

Two friends that Doreen makes are Ana Sofia and Tippy Toe.

Ana Sofia is a super-smart deaf girl that has mad detective skills.

Tippy Toe is a squirrel. What else would you expect?

There are chapters in Doreen's point of view, as well as Ana Sofia, Tippy Toe, and the super-villain wannabe. All with footnotes from Doreen.

Like I said before, the book was super cute. Wonderful characters and some cameos from other Marvel characters. Fun and enjoyable read from beginning to end.

Stephy Reading Challenge - Book 20

 

Twice Bitten by Lynsay Sands

An Argeneau Novel

This was not the book I had planned for T. I had a Star Wars book planned. Even started reading it, but got cranky for reasons I won't rant about here. So, I dug out another Argeneau book, cause they make me happy.

This book focuses on Elspeth Argeneau and Wyatt MacKay.

Elspeth moved to Canada to get away from her controlling mother. She rents a room from Meredith, a sweet old lady. Everything seems to be going well until Elspeth is stabbed and comes home to find her mother and younger twin sisters have invaded her home. Made that stabbing not the worst part of her day. Then she meets Wyatt, Meredith's grandson. The thing is, she's met Wyatt before. She just doesn't remember it. And then someone keeps trying to kill her. Things seem pretty shitty for Elspeth. But hey! She met her lifemate! Again...

I really liked Elspeth and Wyatt. Elspeth was a tough character but also caring and kind. Wyatt took everything calmly, which was refreshing. No panic about any of it. 

Also, G.G. is fantastic and I love him.

As always with this series, great read.

I didn't much like Martine (Elspeth's mother) for what she did, but I enjoyed seeing another side to the immortals. She wasn't evil. She didn't do what she did to hurt her children. She is just a long-lived woman who suffered a great loss and did not cope well. I don't agree with her choices, but it was interesting to read. 

Stephy Reading Challenge - Book 19

 

Born to Bite by Lynsay Sands

An Argeneau Novel

This is a lovely story about Eshe and Armand meeting and falling in love. 

Oh. 

And figuring out who murdered Armand's previous three wives and his daughter-in-law. 

Soooo... A paranormal romantic murder mystery! Yay!

Eshe is a strong, bad-ass, smart, beautiful immortal and I am a little in love with her.

Armand is a bit broody, which... Understandable. Three of his wives have been murdered. But still likable. Also, he's a farmer, which was fun. I mean, a vampire is talking about birthing cows and cleaning stables. Fantastic.

Romance was good. Mystery was solid. Great book all around.

Oh!

And Bricker!

Yay Bricker!

I love you Bricker. At one point he acts as the Voice of Reason, but he did very good and we're all very proud of him.

Stephy Reading Challenge - Book 18

 

Rosemary's Baby by Ira Levin

Trigger Warning!

rape mentions ahead

Oh. This book.

Let me start by saying this was written in the 60s, and it shows. There were some words, phrases, and ideas that just aren't cool by today's standards.

Also, I have watched the movie with Mia Farrow a few times over the years. So, I knew what was going to happen from page one. I also feel like I've read this book before, but I could be wrong.

Now, for those that don't know, this book is about Rosemary. A young wife to an actor living in New York. Rosemary and her husband, Guy, move into a new apartment. Soon they meet their neighbors, an elderly couple named Roman and Minnie. Rosemary becomes pregnant. And in the end, she discovers she gave birth to Satan's son. Oh, and Roman and Minnie and all their friends are Satan-worshipping witches. Book ends with Rosemary rocking the baby and cooing over him.

Not sure if it was because I knew what was going to happen, or if Rosemary was blind to red flags. I mean, there were so many red flags that Rosemary could have made curtains, a set of sheets, and a few dresses from them all. 

Also, for some reason, I kept picturing Ray's parents from Everybody Loves Raymond (a show I've never watched a full episode of) as Roman and Minnie. No idea why. But it did send me into giggle fits at times. 

Out of everyone, Rosemary's husband was the worst. And that includes the Satanists and Satan himself. After he drugged his wife and let her be raped by Satan, he tells her the scratches on her body are because he fucked her while she was passed out drunk.

What.

The.

Fuck.

And in the end, he was like "They promised you wouldn't be hurt. And you weren't. Not really." Dude. She was drugged, raped by Satan and y'all made her think she was crazy! Oh, and you all killed one of her closest friends. All so you could be a famous actor. I would have applauded if Rosemary slit his throat. Actually, I'm just gonna pretend that's how the book ended. Cause fuck him.

This was... a frustrating read. I was just so angry at Rosemary's husband throughout the whole thing. And it was frustrating that she didn't kill him. But, it was a solid horror read. I also recommend the movie with Mia Farrow. I have not watched the newer mini-series yet so I have no opinion of it.

Stephy Reading Challenge - Book 17

 

Who Was Queen Elizabeth by June Eding

This was the best I could do for a Q. All other Q books I have went into hiding.

This is a book for kids, and honestly, it did its job well. It didn't overly sugar coat things. It did occasionally gloss over or soften the blow of some details that would have probably been a bit much for its target audience. 

My child has a few books from the Who/What Was/Is series and I highly recommend them for kids. Well written and informative with some nice pictures.

 

I'm a history nerd, and as such, this book entertained me. And I wish this series was around when I was a kid because I would have read them all.

Stephy Reading Challenge - Book 16

Pleasure of a Dark Prince by Kresley Cole

Immortals After Dark

When Lucia the Huntress was a teenager she did something stupid and has been forced to pay for her mistake for the rest of her life. Which has been a millennium or so now. One part of this is that she can't have sex, which hasn't been that difficult. Until she meets Garreth MacRieve.

Lucia is Garreth's mate. He's a Lykae. They have those things. When Lucia finds this out, she runs. Lucia runs for a year. And he follows. Then they end up together in the Amazon. 

Lots of fun and action and some big ass caiman later, they're in love. 

Really enjoyable read. Full of interesting characters and giant caimans.

Lucia was badass.

Garreth was heavy-handed at times, but not so much that I disliked him. Just rolled my eyes and whispered, "dude, no."

Sorry, this one is a bit half-assed. I forgot to write up the review until about three books later and had to go back and write something up. My bad. 

Stephy Reading Challenge - Book 15

 

One Foot in the Grave by Jeaniene Frost

A Night Huntress Novel

This is the second book in the Night Huntress series. Told you I needed more Cat and Bones. Though, it was the first book I ever read in the series.

This takes place four years after the previous book. Cat is working for the government hunting down vampires. And missing Bones. At least until he shows back up at her best friend's wedding. 

Cat meets the man who turned Bones into a vampire, Ian. Ian decides he wants Cat as part of his collection. Which... Creepy, dude.

Someone is trying to kill Cat, as well.

Secrets are revealed. Which some were downright gasp-worthy.

I enjoyed this book. Characters are interesting. Plot is great.

The only part I didn't like was Cat's mother. Gods does that woman bother me. So. Fucking. Much. I'd want her to die, but that would upset Cat and I don't want that. But gods, there is nothing likable about her. Didn't like her in the last book. Didn't like her in this one. Probably not gonna like her in any of the other books.

Stephy Reading Challenge - Book 14

 

No Rest for the Wicked by Kresley Cole

Immortals After Dark

Okay, so Kaderin the Cold Hearted is a Valkyrie who, after the deaths of her sisters, got a 'blessing' where she no longer felt any emotion. She spends most of her time killing vampires.

Sebastian Wroth is a vampire who was unwillingly turned by his brother. He hates his existence, so when Kaderin shows up to kill him, he's okay with that.

But, instead of doing that, they make out a bit. 

One thing I forgot to mention before, in these books, each vampire has a fated Bride. Vampires are all male, and somewhere is a female that will make their heart beat again. Give them breath. And make it possible for them to do the horizontal bop again. So, when Sebastian sees Kaderin, his heart starts beating again, them doing a little kissy-kissy, and over the clothes heavy petting isn't that outlandish.

Kaderin runs off after the makeout session, cause she kills vampires. She does not kiss them! Plus she has to get ready for the Talisman's Hie. An epic scavenger hunt that happens every 250 years. She is the reigning champ.

The majority of the book takes place during the Hie. Showing how badass Kaderin is and how doting Sebastian is to his Bride. And showing how Kaderin is dealing with her returning emotions (which, spoiler, not great...)

By the end, they realize they love each other. Because this is a paranormal romance novel, and we get happy endings over here.

I loved this book. Just as I love the entire series. Characters are great. Plot is fantastic. Writing is wonderful. Five stars. 

Stephy Reading Challenge - Book 13

 

Moon Fever

Featuring "Tempting Fate" by Susan Sizemore, "The Darkness Within" by Maggie Shayne, "Cobwebs Over the Moon" by Lori Handeland, and "Crazy for the Cat" by Caridad Piñeiro

Tempting Fate was good. I've read other books in this series, but it's been so long that I've forgotten pretty much everything. The story was good, but it felt too short. I wanted more.

I really enjoyed The Darkness Within. A haunted house mystery with a dash of romance? Yes, please.

Cobwebs Over the Moon felt like a prequel to a bigger story. No idea what else the writer has done. I should check that out.

Crazy for the Cat was good. Action-packed and enjoyable. 

Stephy Reading Challenge - Book 12

 

Love Bites by Lynsay Sands

An Argeneau Novel

Going back quite a bit in the Argeneau series from the one I posted before. This is the second book in the series.

Love Bites is about how Etienne Argeneau meets Rachel Garrett and they fall in looooooove. Etienne is an immortal video game designer, Rachel a mortal coroner. When Rachel is fatally wounded trying to protect Etienne's maybe dead body, Etienne turns her. 

Rachel stays with Etienne while she learns how to deal with being an immortal, and of course, she falls in love. 

There are some other bits and hurdles, but no more spoilers. Go read the book. Read the entire series. It is one of my favorite paranormal romance series and I will always recommend it. 

Oh!

Another great part of this book?

Thomas!

Oh, Thomas, how I miss you when you're not around, you perfect Immortal cupid, you.

Stephy Reading Challenge - Book 11

 

How to Seduce a Vampire (Without Really Trying) by Kerrelyn Sparks

A Love at Stakes book

Yet again, a book from the middle of a series. Oops.

Zoltan is a Romanian vampire. Which, my brain was like "Romanian? Sebastian Stan is Romanian! I shall be picturing him now." 

That did not work out for me. Instead, I was picturing Zoltan from The Witcher. For those that don't know who that is, he is a dwarf with a mohawk. I mentioned this problem to my friend and he mentioned Zoltar from Big. So, then I had that image in my brain. My brain was a mess.

Anyway.

Zoltan meets Neona, who is a member of a group of women who live in a hidden valley in Tibet. I think it was Tibet...

The women are tasked to protect something. A couple somethings. And don't trust outsiders. Especially men. And Zoltan has to convince them to trust him and his friends. 

I enjoyed Zoltan and Neona's banter. And that she had a pet snow leopard. Loved that snow leopard.

Fun read and I need to go back and read the books in this series that I missed.

Stephy Reading Challenge - Book 10

 

Justice League

Volume 1: Origin

Not sure how to do one of these for a comic.

Hmm...

Let's see...

So, the plot is basically that people don't like superheroes. Then Darkseid shows up. Batman, Flash, Superman, Green Lantern, Wonder Woman, Cyborg, and Aquaman team up to stop Darkseid. Then people love superheroes.

I enjoyed the bits of humor. Lantern calling Batman a tool was hilarious. 

The art was beautiful.

Just loved it all, really.

Stephy Reading Challenge - Book 8

 

Vampire in Paradise by Sandra Hill

A Deadly Angels Novel

This book takes place before the one I posted about before. This reading challenge isn't about reading things in order! Except for alphabetical order...

Anyway!

According to my GoodReads account, I've read this before. I remember nothing about it. One point for bad memory!

Anyway!

Marisa is a single mom with a terminally ill daughter, Izzie. She needs 70,000 dollars for an operation that might save Izzie's life. In her desperation, her thoughts get a little... sinful...

Sigurd is one of the seven Sigurdsson brothers. The big sinners. And Sigurd's sin was envy. And in case you forgot, he is a Viking Vampire Angel. And he's gonna fuck those sinful thoughts right out of Marisa!

What?

Talking didn't work! Seducing did! Sort of.

As with the other books in this series, this was a fun read. A bit ridiculous at times. A little preachy on what counts as a sin, but hey, angels are supposed to be preachy.

Also, Izzie recovers. 'Twas a miracle it was. So yay for happy endings!

Stephy Reading Challenge - Book 7

 

(pictured with Wicket, the reluctant book stand)

Seduce the Darkness by Gena Showalter

An Alien Huntress Novel

Bride is a vampire, and as far as she knows, she's the only one on Earth.

Devyn is the King of the Targons, an alien race, who after discovering space travel decided they wanted to rule themselves. They let him keep the title though.

Bride just wants to survive and find her friend Aleaha.

Devyn just wants to have sex with pretty much every woman he comes across. 

Then they meet each other.

Bride was a good character. Smart, witty, and stubborn. I didn't get annoyed by her at all. And I empathized with her choice. 

Devyn... Devyn is a lovable asshole. He was a womanizer, but he was upfront about just being in it for sex and only sex. I liked that. Yeah, he sleeps with any woman that he wants, but he doesn't lie to do so. Respect. 

I loved the banter between Devyn and Dallas. Give me more dudes being friends and acting like a married couple at points. 

Bride and Devyn's relationship went from "eeeehhhhh" to "fuck they're adorable" pretty quickly for me. Their banter and inside jokes, y'all *heart eyes*

I was almost crying at the end because there were only a few pages left and shit was not looking good. But happy ending for Bride and Devyn! So yay!

Stephy Reading Challenge - Book 6

 

Halfway to the Grave by Jeaniene Frost

Trigger Warning!

Mentions of rape

Cat Crawfield is a half-vampire who hunts vampires. As you do.

Cat's mother was date-raped by a vampire and five months later, Cat was born. When Cat was 16, her mother told her that her father was a vampire and that they were all evil and deserved to die. So, Cat starts killing vampires. One night, Cat meets Bones, a vampire. After failing to kill him, he offers to train her to kill vampires better. As one does.

You could cut the sexual tension between those two with a dull knife. So, I was applauding when they got together. And almost crying at the end of the book.

This is the first book in the Night Huntress series, so the ending leaves you slightly hanging. Good thing I have the other books!

Though, must wait until I'm done with this challenge of mine. But I might read the entire series after I'm done. Need more Cat and Bones.

Cat is a little naive and prudish, but those personality traits make sense and aren't annoying. She is a great character that does grow a bit throughout the book.

Bones is... Bones is dreamy. Seriously. He's a British vampire. Who doesn't love a British vampire? Seriously, though, Bones is fun.

Stephy Reading Challenge - Book 5

 

"Even Vampires Get the Blues" by Sandra Hill

On Archive of Our Own (my preferred website for my fan-fiction addiction), there is a tag "Crack Treated Seriously" and it popped into my head a lot while I was reading this book. Which, for those unaware, the tag basically means "I'm gonna take this ridiculous as fuck idea and treat it like it is a Serious Thing". Why did I think of that tag? Because this series is about Vikings that were turned into Vampire Angels by the Archangel Michael. This is not an insult to the book, the series or the author. Because I love this series and that tag. But, come on, that premise is fucking ridiculous. 

This book is paranormal about Harek Sigurdsson and Camille Dumaine. Harek is one of the Sigurdsson brothers that were originally turned into the Viking Vampire Angels to atone for their sinful nature. Each brother was pretty much the embodiment of one of the Seven Deadly Sins. Harek's sin was greed. Dude was a greedy fuck. 

Camille is a WEALS (in the WEALS? Whichever works), the sister unit to the SEALs. And she is bad-ass. I really liked Camille. She was funny, smart, and had a great personality all around.

This book was a fun read, with a few serious bits thrown in. The whole series is pretty fun, though it's been awhile since I've read some of the previous books. It has a great dose of humor, which I fully appreciate. I recommend this whole series to anyone that enjoys fun and humorous paranormal romance books with plenty of steamy sexy scenes.