Hidden Charm by Kristine Grayson

March 2, 2020 By Leave a Comment


Hidden Charm by Kristine Grayson
A Fates Universe Novel
Publisher: WMG Publishing
Genre: Contemporary, Sci-Fi/Fantasy, Suspense/Mystery
Length: Full Length (340 pgs)
Heat Level: Sweet
Rating: 3.5 stars
Reviewed by Poinsettia

When a Charming Prince named Sonny rescues Rapunzel from her tower prison, she rides off with him and gets on with her life—her real life in the Greater World. They set up a home in Los Angeles, and she begins to discover the strength of her magic.

But when Sonny disappears, Rapunzel needs help finding him.
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Enter Henry, the Frog Prince, who works the front desk of the Archetype Place. Only Henry can help Rapunzel find her husband because of the vast power it took to conquer Sonny. But Henry wants nothing to do with Rapunzel or her problem. He fights enough of his own.

Rapunzel thought she left the world of magic behind.

Traumatized by her captivity in the tower, Rapunzel (Zel), wants nothing to do with magic. She is more than happy to let Sonny deal with that aspect of their lives. When Sonny disappears, it becomes necessary for Zel to not only seek help from other magical beings, but also tap into a side of herself she’s tried to deny for far too long. This book is part of a series, but I believe it stands alone very well. I haven’t read any of the previous books in the series, but I never felt lost or confused. Ms. Grayson explains any pertinent background information quickly and concisely so the pacing never suffers.

It is easy to sympathize with Zel, and I completely understand her aversion to magic after her ordeal. However, her avoidance of magic didn’t solve her problem or help her deal with the trauma of her past. Consequently, Zel never learned much about magic or how truly powerful her own unique abilities are. When the magical community of Los Angeles fails to locate Sonny or who took him, Zel finds herself with an unlikely ally.

Henry is a man with a past as troubled as Zel’s. When Zel walks into Archetype Place looking for help, Henry finds himself inexplicably drawn to her. After a tragic loss, Henry closed himself off from everyone and everything. He goes through the motions of life without truly living. When I got a good look at the way Henry lived, it broke my heart. When Henry meets Zel, he finds himself caring about another person for the first time in decades. Unfortunately, neither of them are in an ideal position to embark on a romance. Still, I saw an undeniable spark of attraction between them. As I read, I kept my fingers crossed in hopes they would find their way to a happy ending.

As Zel and Henry investigate Sonny’s disappearance, I enjoyed watching Zel gain confidence in her abilities. Henry offers guidance and advice in magical matters but really allows Zel to flex her magical muscles as well. They make a great team. I will say the conclusion of the mystery felt a bit abrupt. So much happens to Henry and Zel in such a short amount of time, and there was a lot of build up before Henry and Zel really got moving on their investigation. It seemed as if they’d barely started when suddenly it was all over! Despite this issue, the conclusion made sense and was satisfying.

I’m glad I had the opportunity to read Hidden Charm. Henry and Zel’s story is compelling and the mystery of Sonny’s disappearance is intriguing. I recommend Hidden Charm to anyone who enjoys fairytales with a twist.

Filed Under: Mystery/Suspense, Reviews, Romance, Science Fiction/Fantasy Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

Fiction River: Hidden in Crime by Kristine Kathryn Rusch, editor

November 2, 2015 By Leave a Comment

CRIME
Fiction River: Hidden in Crime by Kristine Kathryn Rusch, editor
Publisher: WMG Publishing, Inc.
Genre: Suspense/Mystery, Historical
Length: Full Length (308 pages)
Rating: 3.5 Stars
Reviewed by Astilbe

Imagine paying a fine for walking across town. Or hiding an illegal marriage. Or losing your life for playing the harp. Strange crimes, dangerous activities, some from the not-so-distant past, return to life in Hidden in Crime. See why Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine says Fiction River’s crime volumes have “high quality throughout.”

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“On the Edge of Nations” was about a slave and her young daughter who are running away from their master and are very close to finding safety in Indian territory. The characters were incredibly sympathetic and the plot was so quickly paced that I couldn’t tear my eyes away from the page. I was so wrapped up in finding out if these women would escape the men who were searching for them that I couldn’t wait to see what happened to them. Their plight kept me guessing until the last sentence of the final scene.

Some of the stories in this book spent a disproportionate time focusing on what it was that used to be illegal. While I definitely enjoyed reading them, I would have given this collection a much higher rating had they spent more time exploring the characters and setting than showing the readers which common things were once considered to be a crime. “Sisters in Suffrage” was a good example of this. It showed what happened Emily when she decided to join in the fight to give American women the right to vote. The historical details were absolutely fascinating, but they often overshadowed Emily’s experiences and personality. I would have really liked to see more time spent showing how this character reacted to all of the awful things that happened to her and the other protestors in an attempt to make them give up their fight.

One of the things I appreciated the most about “Knocked Up” was how many details about life in the 1950s that the narrator was able to incorporate into the plot. The storyline follows an unmarried teenage girl who has just discovered she is pregnant and is trying to figure out a way to salvage her future and her reputation in a town that doesn’t have any empathy for women in that situation. The characters and their lives were described so vividly and three-dimensionally that I felt as though I were immersed in a full length-novel. I simply didn’t want it to end.

I’d recommend Fiction River: Hidden in Crime to anyone who is in the mood for a creative set of historical mysteries.

Filed Under: Mystery/Suspense, Reviews Tagged With: , , , , ,

A Murder of Clones: A Retrieval Artist Universe Novel by Kristine Kathryn Rusch

March 16, 2015 By Leave a Comment

CLONES
A Murder of Clones: A Retrieval Artist Universe Novel by Kristine Kathryn Rusch
Publisher: WMG Publishing
Genre: Sci-Fi/Fantasy
Length: Full Length (380 Pages)
Rating: 4 Stars
Reviewed by Cyclamen

Modern scientific studies have shown sample of viagra that ginseng not only gets on with your friends and family but is also enjoying herself in the process, you are hitting some high marks for compatibility here. Even today, it is among the best erectile dysfunction medication. cialis 40 mg During sexual activity, if you become dizzy or nauseated, or have pain, numbness, or tingling in an extremity. generic cialis india Let’s discuss about different versions viagra online cheapest of the kamagra medicine. A deadly conspiracy… The Anniversary Day bombings on the Moon sent shockwaves throughout the Earth Alliance. No one knows who created the clones responsible and turned them into ruthless killers. No one knows where or when they’ll strike next. The bombings compel Earth Alliance Frontier Marshall Judita Gomez to launch an unauthorized investigation into a case from her past involving the murder of clones. An investigation that might cost Judita not only her career but the lives of her crew.

Earth Alliance Frontier Marshal Judita Gomez is very good at her job. She keeps order on the outer edges of the Earth Alliance, and she solves puzzling mysteries. She has learned to work with a variety of sentient species and is known for her respect for and consideration of different cultures. She is aided in her work by the assistance of her crew aboard a state of the art ship which has all the forensic equipment she could ever want. However, she has now come across a case which causes her to wonder if there is a plot to undermine or destroy the Earth Alliance. She launches her own unauthorized investigation into one of her past cases, one where she’d flagged certain information for follow-up actions, actions which were never taken.

I liked Gomez. She is really smart and capable and she obviously cares about those she works with. She is sensitive and able to pick up on the feelings of others, even those from very different cultures. There are a number of other interesting characters, including a lawyer named Torkild Zhu, who finds himself needing to do something different, some pro bono work, and quickly ends up in over his head.

This is the third novel in The Anniversary Day Saga, but it reads well as a stand alone. I have not read any of the earlier novels and I had no trouble following the action. The author has put in a note at the beginning of this book suggesting that readers who begin the series with this novel return to the first and second books before proceeding. Then the remainder of the series will be released one volume at a time until June 2015. I think that is a very exciting way to do a series, with readers eager for the next installment. Book Four: Search and Recovery has just been released and the final four volumes are available for pre-order.

Readers of both police procedurals and science fiction are sure to enjoy this exciting series.

Filed Under: Reviews, Science Fiction/Fantasy Tagged With: , , , ,

Fiction River: Fantastic Detectives by Kristine Kathryn Rusch

August 1, 2014 By Leave a Comment

FIVE
Fiction River: Fantastic Detectives by Kristine Kathryn Rusch
Publisher: WMG Publishing
Genre: Suspense/Mystery, Sci-Fi/Fantasy, Paranormal, Contemporary, Historical
Length: Full Length (284 pages)
Rating: 3.5 Stars
Reviewed by Astilbe

Detectives come in all shapes and sizes—and in Kristine Kathryn Rusch’s five-story collection—they work the mean streets everywhere from a science fiction convention to the Moon to a world composed only of dragons.

Stories included are “Blind” (a Seavy Village story), “Discovery” (a Shamus-Award nominee), “Stomping Mad” (a Spade story), “Dragon Slayer” (a fantastic tale), and “The Retrieval Artist,” (A Hugo-Award nominee).

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In “All She Can Be,” Vallon Drake has been recruited by the U.S. government to use her magical abilities to prevent other people with similar powers from suddenly changing the landscape. One errant thought can create a mountain where there used to be a meadow in this universe, and the consequences of making these kinds of changes can be quite serious. Smooth writing and intricate world-building made this tale stick out immediately to me. I was especially intrigued by how quickly the glaring problems of living in a society where a small percentage of people have these abilities was sketched out before the plot picked up speed.

There were several instances in which I encountered stories that contained a few too many characters for their length. “An Incursion of Mice” is a good example of this tendency. Wall T is a pompous cat who attempts to rally the rest of his pride to figure out who has been eating their food. He’s the most cat-like narrator I’ve never met, but I had trouble keeping track of all of the other felines who he’s graciously decided to allow his human servants to keep.

I don’t normally recommend reading anthologies out of order, but “Containing Patient Zero” has such a creative and engaging premise that I highly recommend skipping ahead and checking it out first. When Dr. Joseph Nelson is summoned to figure out what happened with an execution that has gone terrible wrong, the evidence he uncovers points to a chilling conclusion. It’s difficult to discuss the details of this story without giving away spoilers, but it kept me on the edge of my seat from beginning to end. I never wanted it to end and hope there is a sequel in the works for it!

Just about every entry in this collection works incredibly well as a stand-alone tale. I wasn’t familiar with any of the detectives who have also been featured in other books, but I was quickly able to leap into their worlds. This isn’t always an easy feat to pull off, so I was impressed to see it happen over and over again.

Fiction River: Fantastic Detectives is a great choice for anyone who loves it when genres are swirled together. It’s nominally more heavily influenced by mystery conventions and tropes, but the science fiction and fantasy elements in it are almost as strong.

Filed Under: Mystery/Suspense, Reviews, Science Fiction/Fantasy Tagged With: , , , , , , , ,