In My Mailbox #1

Emma And The Walkabout Gnomes- Marcus Clearspring

[[Unfortunately I am unable to post the cover at the moment]]

Title:Emma Meets the Walkabout Gnomes

Author: Marcus Clearspring

Publisher:Wordit

Pages: 52

Summary: The Walkabout Gnomes are left by the house owners whose yard they live in, but they have forgotten to check their waterproofing! The Gnomes leave the yard for the first time, discovering the world outside of their home.

My Thoughts: This was something that we don't normally read, but I decided to take it on for a change of pace. From the cover, I immediately think middle grade, and through further reading it very well could be classed as middle grade except for the odd curse word here and there. To me it looks like the cover has been hand done (or computer drawn) and I commend the author for getting this cover done, the bright colours are appealing, and the manga style of the cover to me is more associated with graphic novels, but the cover is nice none the less. The little pictures at the beginning of the chapters works well with the younger feeling of the book. The Gnomes, are charming little characters and I love how they are pretty much garden gnomes, running from the rain (because they're waterproofing is wearing off! I love that little bit). The font size of the ebook is nice, big and easy to read (Yes!).

Rating: 3 out of 10

She Smells the Dead- E. J. Stevens

Title: She Smells the Dead

Author: E. J. Stevens

Publisher: Ebook

Pages: 178

From the back of the book: It's the beginning of senior year and Yuki's psychic awareness of ghostly spirits is threatening to ruin her life. Her ability to sense spirits of the dead isn't glamorous like on TV. SHE SMELLS THE DEAD. Yuki is being visited in her dreams and suspects that her friend Calvin is involved in something strange. Will Yuki be able to save the spirits and herself?

Review: She smells the dead. When I read that my first thought was… who would have that as a title. Second thought was Ashley do I have to read it? And finally I just sucked it up and read the book. Actually I power read it, I was finished this and the sequel “Spirit Storm” in less then two days, normal it takes me weeks to read ebooks.

From the first paragraph I was hooked and pulled into the story. I was thinking about what would happen next when I was away from my computer. The characters felt like my best friends and at point I felt like I was a character, that’s always the best feeling I look for in a book and I got it!

The plot was paced very well and wasn’t overly dull, though there were a few times in the book that did drag a bit, that just let me get some relaxing done before the next big thing happened.

I would recommend this book to anybody looking for a great read and isn’t afraid to read a book that has a weird name and is different from the rest of books you find.

Rate: For the reasons I have stated above I give this book from 1, I couldn't finish it to 10, unputdownable, I rank this book a 10.

Reviewer: Bec

Released- Meagan Duncan

Title: Released

Author: Meagan Duncan

Publisher: Ebook

Pages: 260

From the back of the book: After a demon apocalypse kills their parents and everyone they know, 17-year old Abby Phillips, her brother, Carter, and friend, Max flee their home to travel through what has become the wastelands of America. When radio transmissions of a resistance offering shelter and safety cease, Abby is tempted to give up. Struggling to overcome life-threatening obstacles in their dangerous journey, Abby and her companions quickly discover there are much worse things lurking in the dark than they could have ever imagined.

Review: I have a strong dislike for books about apocalypse, Ash is usually the one who reads and enjoys them, but after I read the back description I wanted to give this book a chance.

I was amazed at what I found inside this book. I was drawn into the book in the first few pages… not right away like I had hoped but it didn’t take long until I was no longer to go anywhere without my laptop or kobo!

The characters in the book were almost always believable, not always so but for the most part they were. And the plot! It was very well written, very believable for an end of the world book. I dislike when they are so over the top, this one was but not overly so.

THE ENDING! That was not an ending! I wanted to yell that at the computer when I read the last line. I really hope that there will be a sequel coming soon! I recommend this book to any reader who is looking for a book with a different view on the end of the world.

Rate: For the reasons I have stated above I give this book from 1, I couldn't finish it to 10, unputdownable, I rank this book a 9 ½ .

Reviewer: Bec

Star Wars Outbound Flight

Title: Star Wars Outbound Flight

Author: Timothy Zahn

Genre: Science Fiction

Cover Rating: 4/5

Pages: 420

From the back: The Clone Wars have yet to erupt when Jedi Master Jorus C’baoth petitions the Senate
for support of an ambitious mission: to contact intelligent life and colonize undiscovered worlds beyond
the know galaxy. But government bureaucracy threatens to scuttle the expedition before it can even start
– until Master C’baoth fiols a murderous conspiracy plot, winning him the political capital he needs to
set in motion the dream of Outbound Flight. Or so it would seem. The evil Sith Lord Darth Sidious has
his own interests in Outbound Flight. Yet even he is not the mission’s most dangerous challenge. Once
under way, the starship crosses paths with the forces of the alien Chiss Ascendancy and the brilliant
mastermind known as “Thrawn.” Thus what begins as a peaceful Jedi mission is violently transformed into
an all-out war for survival.

My thoughts: First of all, I knew how this book would end before I even started to read, because I’m a
huge Star Wars fan, and for me seeing how the author would get me to that ending was my main reason
for reading it. I was greatly impressed with the journey that Zahn took me on in Outbound Flight, from
his portrayal of Thrawn, to the many plot twists that left me wondering how exactly the characters would
get of the next situation. I also really like how the tension of the Republic at this time in the Star Wars
universe was shown through different characters.

Recommendation: I would recommend this book to anyone that likes Star Wars. It will especially appeal
to you if you’re interested in Thrawn’s backstory, if you, like me, want to know what exactly happens to
Outbound Flight or if you’re interesting in reading about something that happens in between the Battle
of Naboo and the lead up to the Clone Wars. (Between movies The Phantom Menace and Attack of the
Clones)

Over All Rating: 9/10

Halo Cryptum- Greg Bear

 

Title: Halo Cryptum The Forerunner Saga

Author: Greg Bear

Genre: Science Fiction, Adventure

Cover Rating: 5/5

From the back: One hundred thousand years ago the galaxy was populated by a great variety of beings. But one species – eons beyond all other in both technology and knowledge – achieved dominance. They ruled in peace but met opposition with quick and brutal effectiveness. They were the Forerunners – the keepers of the Mantle, the next stage of life in the Universe’s Living Time. And then they vanished. This is their story.

My thoughts: First, I’ve been waiting for a book about the Forerunners probably since I started reading Halo books, so for me this has been a book that I very much looked forward to read and I have to say I loved it. The book starts off fast and you have to pick up every detail that you’re told, and if you don’t know anything about the Halo Universe, then you’re going to be completely lost as to what’s happening in the book. For example you really need to know what a Halo is, and it wouldn’t hurt to know what a San’Shyuum is if you visualize what’s happening in the book in your mind. As the novel progresses it slows down to a very comfortable pace and becomes very hard to put down.

Recommendation: I would recommend this book to anyone that knows a lot about the Halo Universe and is look to understand the Forerunners, why the Halos were made, and why there were seven of them. If your someone that’s only played the Halo video games then I’d recommend reading some of the other Halo novels first before jumping into Cryptum. 

 

Over All Rating: 9.4/10

Reviewer: Zack