I'm coming for you. The whispers haunt her dreams and fill her waking hours with dread. Something odd is happening. Something...unnatural. Possession of the living. Resurrection of the dead. And Natalie Stewart is caught right in the middle. Jonathon, the one person she thought she could trust, has become a double agent for the dark side. But he plays the part so well, Natalie has to wonder just how much he's really acting. She can't even see what it is she's fighting. But the cost of losing her heart, her sanity...her soul. Praise for Darker Still, an Indie Next Selection:

Really enjoyed this book. Even better than Darker Still. 

The Twisted Tragedy of Miss Natalie Stewart find Natalie and Jonathan Whitby, Lord Denbury on the run. Natalie rescued Denbury from a spell that had his soul trapped in a painting while his body, inhabited by a demon, roamed the streets of late 19th Century New York City murdering young girls. There we have two gothic and steampunk progenitors: Oscar Wilde’s A Portrait of Dorian Gray and Robert Lewis Stevenson’s The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.

In this book, we get an added dose of Frankenstein as it turns out that Jonathan, as well as his mother and father, was the victim of secret group called “The Society” who seem to have several agenda including resurrecting the dead.

The main interest in the novel for me is how Natalie is developing as a character. A former voluntary mute, Natalie comes to more and more realize her strength and resourcefulness as she along with the clairvoyant Mrs. Northe and her friend deaf and dumb friend Rachel, who is in touch with the ghosts of the victims of the Society, uncover the group’s plot and once again face down the demon who possessed Jonathan’s body.

The plot is fast paced. The characters are multidimensional, the good not being wholly good and the bad, except for the demon, not wholly bad. Natalie and Jonathan have their moments of jealousy and even petty fights. The men involved in the Society’s ressurection work are motivated by their grief for past loved ones. There are others with worse agendas, but they are only visited and, I assume, will play a role in future books in the series.

Recommended for horror, fantasy, steampunk, and gothic romance lovers.

The Magicians by Lev Grossman 
Published by Penguin on 2009-08-11 
Genres: Fiction, Literary 
Pages: 416 
Goodreads 
 

The New York Times bestselling novel about a young man practicing magic in the real world Like everyone else, precocious high school senior Quentin Coldwater assumes that magic isn't real, until he finds himself admitted to a very secretive and exclusive college of magic in upstate New York. There he indulges in joys of college-friendship, love, sex, and booze- and receives a rigorous education in modern sorcery. But magic doesn't bring the happiness and adventure Quentin thought it would. After graduation, he and his friends stumble upon a secret that sets them on a remarkable journey that may just fulfill Quentin's yearning. But their journey turns out to be darker and more dangerous than they'd imagined. Psychologically piercing and dazzlingly inventive, The Magicians, the prequel to the New York Times bestselling book The Magician King and the #1 bestseller The Magician's Land, is an enthralling coming-of-age tale about magic practiced in the real world-where good and evil aren't black and white, and power comes at a terrible price.

I did not read all of Harry Potter, although I know it is a wonderful series and loved by many. Why is that important during this review? I’m glad you asked.

The Magicians had a distinct feel of a crossbreed of Harry Potter and Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe, but was written with adult situations intermingled. If the book had perhaps stuck with the innocence of children just budding from childhood to adulthood without the added profanity and adult situations it may have been more enjoyable to me.

Unfortunately this read like a bad fan fiction. Don’t get me wrong I have no problem with fan fiction, obscenities or adult situations. However, these things just didn’t seem to work in this “mash up.”

I have a dark sense of humor and laughed at all the wrong things in this book. So it was not completely a failed attempt at being entertaining. I think the author may have not been sure who he wanted to speak to with the book. It is for that reason that I would be hard pressed to tell others that they should read this book. If I can’t see that a story would fit in with what I’ve been told is interesting to them I can’t in good conscience recommend something that doesn’t fit.

I know this is a harsh review, and this is by far not the worst book I’ve read, but it’s up there. If I could reach out and speak to the author I would sit him down and say “who are you trying to relate to? If you figure that out and stay on course your end product will hit its mark much better.”

I want to be an author and my one hope in succeeding would be that people enjoy my writing and want to share it with others. A million one off buys of a product does generate money, but a million buys that recommend to 10 friends each to buy it too really makes solid financial sense.

Again this book was not a lost cause, but it’s not easily recommended as mainstream material….

The Murder Complex is an action-packed, blood-soaked, futuristic debut thriller set in a world where the murder rate is higher than the birthrate.Meadow Woodson, a fifteen-year-old girl who has been trained by her father to fight, to kill, and to survive in any situation, lives with her family on a houseboat in Florida. The state is controlled by The Murder Complex, an organization that tracks the population with precision. The plot starts to thicken when Meadow meets Zephyr James, who is—although he doesn't know it—one of the MC's programmed assassins. Is their meeting a coincidence? Destiny? Or is it part of a terrifying strategy? And will Zephyr keep Meadow from discovering the haunting truth about her family? This is a dark and compelling debut novel that will appeal to fans of Moira Young's Dust Lands series, La Femme Nikita, and the movie Hanna.

YA dystopia!

You know why I picked up this book don’t you? I mean just look at that cover! That TITLE! I was so ready for this book. I didn’t read any reviews because I didn’t want any spoilers. However, I feel cheated…I’m so mad at myself for wasting money on a PAPERBACK copy of this when I already have NINE versions of this no my book shelf already.

You’ve heard of The Bermuda Triangle right? Well I’ve come to the conclusion that there is sort of the same going on in dystopian novels.

I get that a “A dystopia is a community or society that is in some important way undesirable or frightening.” But the problem is that it’s all been done before!

Any author that tries to jump into this ring either makes their book just like everything else OR it makes no bloody sense AT ALL.  The Murder Complex (such a cool name by the way) was just a mash up of every other dystopian novel I’ve already ready.

The government is corrupt.

The heroine is strong but still just a hurt puppy looking for love in an unjust world.

The Hero has issues with his status in this world but WAIT there is a twist he actually dreams of our leading lady BEFORE he met her.

Blah Blah blah Killing.

Blah Blah blah Running way.

Blah Blah blah we aren’t going to make it everything is against us.

Blah Blah blah were in love.

Blah blah blah oh we made but just my the skin of our teeth! What happens next? Find out in book 2.

The End.

Sigh.

I think it’s time we walk away from this genre for now. Honestly I think we’ve sucked out as much as we possibly can for now. There was nothing worth noting or point out in this book.

The reason why I’m giving it two stars is because one 1. The writing wasn’t bad and two because I don’t think it’s bad enough for one star. The fault of this book is that it’s noting special. Maybe if you’ve NEVER read anything in this genre then this will be an amazing read for you. But if you have skip it there is nothing to see here folks.