Book Review: Gabriel’s Inferno by Sylvain Reynard

Book Description:

Enigmatic and sexy, Professor Gabriel Emerson is a well respected Dante specialist by day, but by night he devotes himself to an uninhibited life of pleasure. He uses his notorious good looks and sophisticated charm to gratify his every whim, but is secretly tortured by his dark past and consumed by the profound belief that he is beyond all hope of redemption.
When the sweet and innocent Julia Mitchell enrolls as his graduate student, his attraction and mysterious connection to her not only jeopardizes his career, but sends him on a journey in which his past and his present collide.
An intriguing and sinful exploration of seduction, forbidden love and redemption, “Gabriel's Inferno” is a captivating and wildly passionate tale of one man's escape from his own personal hell as he tries to earn the impossible...forgiveness and love.

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Book Review:

This book was pretty strange and I can’t quite decide whether or not I really enjoyed it. It had some good parts to it, was well-written, editing was pretty decent, but I didn’t really like the main characters. Oddly enough though, that doesn’t necessarily mean I can’t enjoy a book. For example, I’ve read the Twilight series oh, about 5 times but I really didn’t like Edward OR Bella. I just loved the story.

A few things bothered me about Gabriel’s Inferno. 

1. It felt like the author was trying to write a “literary novel” (and didn’t quite succeed). References to paintings and works in other languages abounded. I guess this could be just me, maybe I’m not “cultured” or “smart” enough to enjoy this (I don’t think that’s the case as I do enjoy literature and going to museums, etc.)

2. It took waaaaaay too long for us to discover what Julia’s issues involved. She should have told Gabriel much sooner. I got the gist of what had happened earlier, but I felt like the author delayed divulging the information much longer than the story warranted.

3. The relationship was a little bit troubling (professor-student) but the author did a good job with keeping them apart until that was not an issue (but it does set up the conflict for the next book), also pointing out that they had been in contact before, kind of family friends.

4. The way Paul, a fellow student, and Gabriel treat Julia was weird. I realize that’s not really very descriptive and I realize the author was attempting to convey how much these men valued her and would cherish her but it felt kind of creepy. Paul called her “Rabbit” and treated her like a porcelain doll. Gabriel treated her also like a porcelain doll but the cherishing part was a bit overplayed in my opinion. I honestly can’t believe I am saying that, because I ADORE feeling cherished (husband is awesome at making me feel cherished) and am a sentimental sap when it comes to reading romances and seeing the man just take care of his woman. I eat up old-fashioned stuff like that! I say all this to say that if I say it felt overdone, I’m not speaking from a position of feminism. 

I did enjoy the end. Honestly, that’s why I’m even contemplating reading the next book, Gabriel’s Rapture. The author wrapped up the story with Julia’s past and set the stage for the next book.

The chemistry between Gabriel and Julia was well-done, the dialogue was enjoyable for the most part and felt pretty natural (not much worse than reading an adult book that read like a middle-schooler wrote the dialogue).

If you enjoy books that deal with more literary topics, you will probably enjoy this book (for that kind of audience, I would probably give the book 4 stars). For people like me, probably 3 stars. For people who want a quick, uncomplicated story, probably 2 stars. This is a pretty lengthy book (I took 2 days to read it and I’m usually a book-a-day kind of gal). This is a complex book, entertaining at times, but it is not one I would recommend for everyone.

Rating: 3 stars

Sensuality: many kissing/petting scenes, one sex scene. Well done, probably not a book for teens, especially early teens.

Book Review: Grave Memory by Kalayna Price

Book Description

Publication Date: July 3, 2012

When the dead need to talk, Alex Craft is always ready to listen…

As a Grave Witch, Alex solves murders by raising the dead—an ability that comes at a cost, and after her last few cases, that cost is compounding. But her magic isn’t the only thing causing havoc in her life. While she’s always been on friendly terms with Death himself, things have recently become a whole lot more close and personal. Then there’s her sometime partner, agent Falin Andrews, who is under the glamour of the Winter Queen. To top everything off, her best friend has been forever changed by her time spent captive in Faerie.
But the personal takes a backseat to the professional when a string of suicides occur in Nekros City and Alex is hired to investigate. The shades have no memory of the days leading up to their brutal endings, so despite the very public apparent suicides, this is murder. But what kind of magic can overcome the human will to survive? And why do the shades lack the memory of their deaths? Searching for the answer might mean Alex won’t have a life to remember at all… (from amazon.com)

 

Book Review:

I marked the release of this one in my calendar months ago. For some reason (OK, OK, many reasons), this series really sticks to me. I finished the book this morning and I just want to go back to the first two and re-read them. Not that I was lost in this book’s storyline as it relates to the other two books because the author did a fine job of reminding the reader about past occurrences without sounding like a broken record, but because I want to re-experience the introduction of Death and meet Falin again. Surprisingly, I also want to go back to read parts about her dad. Now there’s a mystery I want solved!  The author leaves much unexplained and open for future development.

 

While the case takes up a lot of page time, we do get to visit with her friends and keep up with them as well, the revelry during the Equinox was very interesting and I find myself wondering which court she will choose. I hope the next book develops the fae storyline a little bit more, because there is a LOT the author could explore. The Winter Queen is an awesome character to hate!

We meet a new character, Briar, who is um, an interesting character. I kind of hope we see her again. The author’s development of the ghost characters reminds me a little bit of Karen Chance’s Cassandra Palmer series (one of my all-time favorite series), but it never felt “copied.” I loved it when Roy asked if he could have the broom closet for his office.

Ms. Price threw in some unexpected (yet hoped-for) events and really knocked it out of the park with this one. It will probably be about 9 months before the next one comes out. I can guarantee the release date will be marked on my calendar the moment I see the date.

I highly recommend this book for people who enjoy urban fantasy that’s a little bit different, with a bit of a mystery, a bit of romance and a strong female lead who seems like a real person. Alex messes up, stumbles around, uses her magic, and pays the price for her magic (with her eyesight), no perfect Miss here. She’s grown quite a lot since we first met her in Grave Witch and has taken the reader along for the ride. Do yourself a favor, though and read the first two books in the series before you dive into this one. Grave Memory will be all the richer experience if you do.

Sensuality: some kisses and a sex scene, a little descriptive, probably OK for older teens.

Rating: 5 stars.

Book Review: Bared to You

Book Description

Publication Date: May 24, 2012
"If I were to recommend any book today to readers who enjoyed 50 Shades...this would be the first one I would offer....scorching love scenes."--Dear Author
THE NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER
Gideon Cross came into my life like lightning in the darkness...
He was beautiful and brilliant, jagged and white-hot. I was drawn to him as I'd never been to anything or anyone in my life. I craved his touch like a drug, even knowing it would weaken me. I was flawed and damaged, and he opened those cracks in me so easily...
Gideon knew. He had demons of his own. And we would become the mirrors that reflected each other's most private worlds...and desires.
The bonds of his love transformed me, even as I prayed that the torment of our pasts didn't tear us apart... (from amazon)

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Review
I got an e-mail a few weeks ago which read something along the lines of “If you enjoyed 50 Shades of Grey, you should read Bared to You.” Sadly, it had not been released yet, but I eagerly counted the days. I read some early reviews of it and they were overwhelmingly positive, which increased my anticipation even more! Finally, I had the book on my Kindle Fire (release day) and sat down to read, completely ignoring the assignment for my summer class that was due in less than a week and devoured the book. I couldn’t put it down and finished it the day I started it. It grabs ahold of you like a baby with a piece of candy and refuses to let you go.
Gideon and Eva were both damaged characters. I enjoyed that they weren’t perfect but not so damaged I couldn’t relate to them, even though they both had some moments you wanted to smack them upside the head. 
The book was well-written, interesting story, Eva and Gideon had chemistry that almost made you forget to breathe and steamy sex scenes. Eva’s model best friend was a great character, as was her boss and his boyfriend. My one main gripe about the book was really about Eva’s financial responsibility. Her stepdad was rich, her biological dad was a police officer. At the beginning of the book, she says something about not being able to pay for her student loans so she let her real dad take care of them (we’ll forget also for a moment we find out later she has a nest egg she refuses to touch that started at 5 million and has been growing under the watchful care of her step dad but she can’t use the interest or the investment returns and her middle class dad has to pay for it?) Then later she buys a very expensive ring? Not acceptable to me. I get that it’s fiction and she has many people in her life that are wealthy, but that just seemed wrong. OK, I’ll stop griping about that now .
I didn’t even finish reading the book before I recommended it to my mother-in-law and sister-in-law. Mother-in-law LOVED it, haven’t heard from sister-in-law. If you enjoyed 50 shades (and even if you didn’t like 50 Shades but you like steamy books every now and again), you should give this a read. Not for younger readers (I won’t let my teenage daughter read it yet).
Sensuality: several descriptive sex scenes
Rating: 4 stars

Book Review: Forgotten Father

 

Book Description

Publication Date: November 19, 2011

When Delanie Carlyle wakes in the hospital after a car accident, she discovers she cannot remember the past month of her life…and to her dismay, she’s newly pregnant. With no husband or lover in her life, she must take care of her child alone and then an elderly friend dies and she must deal with the complications presented by a large, unexpected inheritance.
Eighteen months later, Mitchell Riese meets again the woman who has stolen half his inheritance. Delanie knew who Mitchell was when she fell into conversation with the dark, handsome tycoon at a cocktail party celebrating the re-opening of his grandfather’s historic resort. She has supervised the restoration of the massive turn-of-the-century hotel and, in the process, has earned the fond affection of the irascible, elderly Donovan Riese.
Mischievously, Delanie parries Mitchell’s attempts to learn her name. But somewhere between the casual conversation and the sparkling champagne, she falls instantaneously, head-overin love with Donovan Riese’s sexy grandson. After a night of glorious passion, she wakes and slips away from his bed, still awash in the glow of finally having found her soul mate.
At breakfast later that morning, Delanie waits with teasing expectancy when Donovan introduces her to his grandson, Mitchell. When the man she thought was her hero viciously attacks her for supposedly taking advantage of his grandfather, Delanie runs away, only to crash her car in her distress and wake up...having forgotten with whom she made a baby. (from amazon)

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Review

 

I enjoy reading independent authors because discovering a really good new author is such a great surprise. When I read independent authors, sometimes I find grammatical mistakes, spelling errors, word choice problems. All of those are very fixable and if I really like the story, the characters, the chemistry, I’ll shoot the author an e-mail and tell him/her about it so they can fix it. I won’t do that with this book.

 

Forgotten Father by Carol Rose has an interesting premise, but I disliked this book intensely, mostly because the hero is a misogynistic asshole. I read the book on my iPhone and there were so many times I wanted to throw my phone up against the wall when I read Mitchell talk about how all women are money-grubbing whores. The author had the good sense to not actually use that word in the text, but it’s strongly suggested on more than one occasion. I’m getting mad again just writing about it. He had no redeeming qualities whatsoever and did not deserve the heroine at all.

 

Delanie wasn’t the best heroine either. She was just OK. I recognize the author was attempting to make her a multi-faceted character, but she came off as a bit like a person who has multiple personality disorder might be portrayed. It seemed incongruous that she was a smooth-talking situation smoother and then not be able to verbally defend herself. The resolution was too-pat and too fast. I realize people can have aha! moments and change, but given the depth of Mitchell’s hatred of women, it was not well-done at all.  

I should also add that one of my least favorite storylines is The Misunderstanding.If you really like that type of story, you might like the book, but characters who don’t communicate well and continually misinterpret each other’s actions irritates me at best and angers me at worst. If you couldn’t tell, this one angered me . I do not recommend this book and I’m not sure I’d read another of her books, at least for a while, hopefully I’ll forget this book soon.

Sensuality: a few sex scenes, not terribly graphic, decently written

Rating: 1 star