The Alchemist's Gift (Parthenope Trilogy 2) by Martin Rua

On a trip to Prague to visit an exhibition of precious objects of alchemy, Lorenzo Aragona finds himself caught in the dark murder of an old antiquarian, also fond of mysteries. He is suddenly catapulted into a hidden and disturbing world, run by a mysterious brotherhood that will force him to return to Naples.

Helped by the Masons in the deciphering of a series of puzzles, but under the blackmail of shady figures who are threatening to kill him and those he holds dearest, Lorenzo finds himself in front of a real alchemic puzzle, which brings him back to studying the experiments of the famous Prince of Sansevero, who lived in Naples in 1700.

The recovered traces, however, lead him away from his city, to France, looking for a stunning cathedral, containing nine mysterious mirrors. But what is this cathedral and what powerful secret is it hiding?

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
My Review:     (Thanks to NetGalley) 

I didn't realise this was the second book in a series when I started, the first (in English) is the Alchemist's Code (though Goodreads won't tell you that, all the links go the Italian book versions). After reading the blurb for book 1, I realised I had actually tried to read it not long ago and had given up because it annoyed me! lol. Good thing I didn't realise because book 2 wasn't anywhere near as bad, in fact it was alright. 

Very reminiscent of the Da Vinci Code genre, it was fun running around the place but I found it very fast paced (for a reason) and combine that with bits of foreign language and a foreign city (to me) it left me with a bit of a headache trying to follow along. It didn't help that the two ancient alchemists Prince Sansevero and Count Saint-Germain that the mystery was based on had multiple names each. The bad guy I have to say was really obvious right from the start, but they may be either because I am extremely cynical, read to much, or the book followed the evil cliche pattern a bit too closely.

There is a third book in Italian (I think, there are a bunch of different versions and a prequel I think, Martin Rua's website is confusing) but I don't think I'll bother if it gets released in English unless I can get it for free from NetGalley again. 

Trials of Magic (The Hundred Halls 1) by Thomas K. Carpenter

There are exactly one hundred halls of magic to choose from. Ever since our parents were killed I knew exactly which hall was for me. 

Aurelia "Aurie" Silverthorne is one of the best and brightest to ever apply to the Hundred Halls, the only magical university in the world. To be accepted, she must pass grueling trials that claim the lives of aspirants every year. 

But more than her desire to practice magic is at stake. 


Aurie's little sister has been courting powerful forces in hopes of protecting herself from the beings that killed their parents, but alliances come with complications. As things spiral out of control, and dangerous foes arise at every turn, Aurie knows the only way to protect her sister is to pass the trials—even if it means making a terrible sacrifice.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
My Review:     (Thanks to NetGalley) 

I enjoyed this book. It wasn't anything new or groundbreaking but it was well written and had an enjoyable story line. Things were explained well and an obvious sequel was set up. 

My biggest problem is probably with the blurb. This wasn't a book about Aurie, the chapters alternated between her and her sister Pythia "Pi" and we got to see both of their (different) experiences that ended up helping them make the whole story.  The 'trials' make up perhaps the first quarter of the book and then the rest is about their first year in their respective halls.

The bad guys were everywhere though not always obvious, and I was confused about Pi's patron and who did what considering what we learnt at the end (no spoilers, but people weren't who we thought they were at some earlier points). I'm such a cynical person that I'm still expecting the 'good' mentor to turn out bad in the next book, lol!  

I want to learn more about the fae (Radoslav in particular), more about Hemistad and the Hunger and more about Invictus and how such a powerful mage was killed. Also the girls both owe debts to Radoslav and Hemistad and I want to see how that plays out. 

So all in all, this wasn't anything startling, but it was a good solid read where the bad guys got their comeuppance, the evil guys are still out there plotting evil, and the good guys (or girls in this case) ended up where they should be after facing the necessary challenges. The story was wrapped up nicely with a bunch of loose ends just screaming for a sequel (or two). (Without spoilers: parents, artifacts, impregnable towers, cabals, mysterious deaths, huge amounts of power, mysterious people, why so many students ended up in Arcanium even though it was their last choice, etc, etc)

The DNF List - Updated

So I get the majority of my books from NetGalley (the main reason why I have this blog) and because it's free I end up requesting a lot of books that I normally wouldn't try if I had to buy. This ends up leaving me with quite a few DNF or did-not-finish books. And because I DNF I don't see the point of taking the time to make an individual review. 

Then I got to thinking, what if I made a post featuring the a list of the books I DNF along with a brief reason as to why (where I can remember), in the hopes of saving someone else out there the time and effort (and money) that they might have otherwise wasted. (I will also update.)

So here you go, a list of some of the worst books I have recently tried to read.....

As of 19/March/2018
Anderson, Quinn - Cam Boy (Murmur Inc 3) : If you want me to read (and enjoy) a book, then don't spend the entire second chapter making me hate one of the main characters!

As of 18/01/2018
Dodge, Lola - Deadly Sweet : I didn't like the writing and after a couple of chapters I found myself hating the MC Anise. She was supposedly 17-18 years old and given her life experiences I would have expected her to act older and more responsible, instead I kept thinking she was 13-14. 
Eads, Sean - Seventeen Stitches : A collection of short stories. Boring, frustrating, unnecessarily confusing and pretentious. 

As of 28/October/2017
Dranoff, Beth - Mark of the Moon (Mark of the Moon 1) : If you're going to spend the first couple of chapters confusing me by 'being mysterious' then I'm going to give up and put you in the DNF pile. 

As of 13/September/2017
McPherson, S. - At Water's Edge : Couldn't even get past the first chapter. The writing was wishy-washy and bad and the main character came across as a weak, pathetic, self-hating girl and if she doesn't like herself why should I? 

As of 12/August/2017 
Butcher, Jim (editor) - Urban Enemies : I think I underestimated how entwined these short stories were going to be with their original source material. It wasn't helped that at the start of each story there was a preface explaining the original books and how this story fit in. Yes that was helpful, but as I hadn't read 90% of the original stories it just highlighted what I was missing out on. It also highlighted the fact that these were bad guys in a broader story line and reinforced the idea that we should therefore hate them, which meant, for me, that I couldn't be on 'their side' and enjoy them as characters.
Westerson, Jeri - Booke of the Hidden : I don't know why I didn't like this book, all I know is I got about two chapters in and couldn't be bothered anymore. Something intangible just rubbed me the wrong way.

As of 6/July/2017
Lang, Eli - Half : This was a short story that was dragged kicking and screaming into the length of a novel for no good reason. Gave up 1/3 of the way through, skipped to the 'end' and NOTHING had changed/happened.

As of 31/May/2017
Merrow, J.L. - Wake Up Call (Porthkennack 1) : I'm all for expressing accents for authenticity, but the dialogue in this book was just painful to try and read.

As of 23/May/2017
Lynn, Kassandra - A Second Chance at Life : I loved the idea of the premise but not much changed in the first couple of chapters. I don't want to read a book about the heroine getting pushed down again and again and again while the bad guy gets away with shit, only for things to be resolved in the epilogue. Characters = DNF.
Springer, Elyse - Whiteout : Just couldn't get into the story. First couple of chapters were just way too slow to stay interested. 

As of 8/May/2017
Richards, Penny - Though This Be Madness (Lilly Long Mysteries 2) : Wrong type of era for my liking, I like Victorian mysteries where as this was set in America in 1881. This was a really annoying time to be a woman and I can't be bothered reading about a female main character who has to constantly fight to stay even with her male counterpart.

As of 22/April/2017
Cox, Matthew S. - Daughter of Ash (The Awakened 4) : Thought I could read this one without reading previous books in series. You can't. The main characters' story is a standalone, but there is no world building/world explanation. 
Lincoln, K. Bird - Dream Eater : 57 pages into a book 186 pages long, and I still had no idea what the hell was going on. Just lots of vagueness, which made me confused, bored and annoyed.

As of 16/March/2017
Blocke, C.A. - Sound Proof : really bad writing and stupid unlikable characters.
Heffernan, Laura - America's Next Reality Star : I hate reality shows, but I love puzzle shows and I was hoping this would be a hetero version of Jordan Castillo Price's ''Magic Mansion''. Unfortunately the first couple of chapters were nothing but a typical soap opera story line (lost job, home, bf, etc) done really badly. I couldn't even stick it out long enough for the actually 'show' to start (chapter six!). 

As of 20/Feb/2017
Harrington, Anna - If The Duke Demands : There are sooooo many historical romances out there, the story really has to be something different and or very well written to catch my attention. This book was neither. You can tell by the blurb exactly what is going to happen, and I checked the end to see that I was right. Did not hold my interest and I'm not going to waste my time.

As of 25/Jan/2017
Cast, P.C. - Moon Chosen: Tales of a New World 1 : In the first three chapters we are introduced to three different main characters, each with their own 'worlds' and nothing is explained. Throwing a reader in the deep end sometimes works, but not in this case. Just a confusing mess.
Middaugh, Elle - Elemental Secrets (The Essential Elements 1) : Main character is not just a special snowflake, she is the specialist snowflake of the lot.... and she didn't even know it! (though everyone else did for some reason) Typical teenage 'different factions fighting to prove who is the best' with the only thing being original is the fact that by the time I quit (about 1/3rd way through) the main character was already flirting with THREE different guys. That's not an angst teen love triangle, that's a whore. A special snowflake whore, lol.
Ravenwood, Alayna - Eternal Night (The Fates of Betrayal 1) : Confusing. The first couple of chapters jumped between characters who were supposedly in different worlds/realities. Then they all joined up at a school? Sub-plots galore with no explanations in sight.

As of 28/Nov/2016
Blake, Kendare - Three Dark Crowns : Drowning in characters and plot was thin, confusing and full of holes. 
Bryson, Kathy - Giovanni Goes To Med School : Boring. Simply boring.
Connor, David & Mulder, E.F. - Two Hearts : Bad writing, main character not explained/written very well and no sign of plot 1/3 of the way in. 
Domain, D. Alyce - Dominic's Nemesis : Completely confusing and utterly boring.
Hawke, A.M. - The Cyborg He Brought Home : Don't start a book as if its going to be a full length novel, i.e. introduce/mention unique world building ideas, that are then not expanded on because its a short story!
Henry, Raye - Changes : Bad quality writing.
Hirsch, Joseph - The Bastard's Grimoire : Couldn't get past the first page, writing was too convoluted.
Koch, Daniel W. - The Sorceress and the Moving Mirror : Boring and no world-building/explaining.
Levinton, J.M. - Magical Ties : Didn't like the characters or the writing style.
Loebel, Vicky - Keys to the Coven : The blurb on Goodreads has more information than the first three chapters of the actual book.
Lynn, H.D. - The Corner Store Witch : Very poorly done novella. Seemed more like it had previously been a free internet serial and this book was simply a couple of chapters taken out of it and presented. 
McKinney, T.S. - Touchdown : Too much BDSM and manipulated/forced sexual activity.
White, Alex - Every Mountain Made Low : Idea and writing to painful and pointless to bother. 

Branded by Flames (Dragon Soul 1) by Sean Michael

Meet the Beteferoce brothers. Five dragon shifters, each with a strong elemental power. And each with a fierce desire to find his soul mate… 

For years, dragon-shifter-slash-firefighter Jake has been searching for his mate, but he's beginning to tire of the search. Maybe soul mates are only for the lucky few. 

Then he meets Shae. 

A former navy welder, Shae is handsome, talented, into power play and rough sex, and covered in dragon tattoos. All of this suits the shape-shifting dragon just fine—until he finds out that Shae literally has Jake's family crest already tattooed on him. A coincidence? Or something more… 

Jake must convince Shae to trust him as a man and as a Dom before the heat between them burns out of control. Becoming a dragon's mate is not without danger, and Shae will need Jake's guidance—and love—if he's going to make it through alive. 

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
My Review:     (Thanks to NetGalley) 

I was on the fence when I requested this book. On one hand I've enjoyed Sean Michael's books before and I love dragon shifters. On the other hand I'm not a fan of BDSM.

MAJOR SPOILERS!!!!

Well..... this book wasn't a story, it was sex/porn. The two guys meet, they have sex. Sex, sex, sex followed by more sex. They go away to a 'remote' cabin so that Jake can reveal his dragon to Shae and the first question Shae asks is if he has a penis in that form. (Now this leads nowhere which is good because bestiality is a big no-no for me. I don't care if you're a shifter with the mind of a human, animal parts mixing sexually with human parts is an automatic DNF-and-burn-the-book.) Anyway, dragon nature revealed, they have more sex. They go back home, realise they can't live their normal lives because they need sex so much, so plan to take an extended leave of absence from their lives so they can have sex 24/7 at the remote cabin.

THAT WAS THE WHOLE BOOK.

There was no get-to-know-you; there was no mystery to solve (apart from the missing plot); apart from one brief shift there was basically no mention of dragon abilities (unless you count Jake's amazingly large cock and incredible animal like stamina); no special ability over fire/strong elemental power; and certainly no 'danger' unless you can die from lack of cock. Though considering how we are repeatedly reminded that Shae is a size queen and a pain slut with sex toys in every room of his house, that might actually be a possibility.

I really wanted to like this book, because as I said I love dragon shifters and I thought I could just skip the BDSM parts. I'm not a prude and I don't mind a bit of sex, however if you are going to skip/skim the sex parts of this story you are going to be left with maybe 10 pages out of 199. And that makes it porn, not a story.

Concealed (Beholder 2) Christina Bauer

As a Grand Mistress Necromancer, Elea’s a witch who commands the ultimate power over spirit and bone. It’s magic that she’ll need in order to stop the Vicomte Gaspard from killing her Sisters by draining their magic along with their life force. 


To find and free her fellow witches, Elea must venture into some of the most dangerous places in the realm. What starts off as a rescue quest could easily turn into a suicide mission. And with the handsome warlock Rowan along to help, Elea may be risking more than her life. Her growing feelings for Rowan might put her heart on the line, too.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
My Review:     (Thanks to NetGalley) 

While this book can be read as a stand-a-lone I really felt like I was missing out on part of the experience by not reading the first book (Cursed). 

There was only 6 main characters and the 2 evil ones (the Tsar and the Vicomte) were both obviously introduced and fleshed out in the first book. They seemed more like evil cardboard cutouts in this book...... And they were still probably the most interesting characters. The whole Rowan and Elea relationship was ruined by the ending. No spoilers, but I read the end first and pissed myself off so much that I hated Rowan from the start and though Elea was TSTL for falling for him. She's a necromancer - someone who is suppose to be emotionless, so I also felt like it was her own stupid fault. Phillipe was almost interesting but the author seemed to have decided he was better for nothing more than sleeping with any woman who would move. Amelia was a naive twit and how she ended up in the end (getting the perfect life basically) made me want to smack her. 

Because I didn't read Elea's 'learning' story (book one), seeing her use her powers in this book made me feel like she was a bit of a Mary-Sue and the ending just seemed to confirm this. I don't know how the author is going to continue the story into the next two books but considering the third book is going to be called Cherished and the fourth Crowned, I'm intrigued enough that I would read them if I got them from netgalley. 

My advice? Read Cursed first to get the full experience and don't read the end of Concealed before the start, you will spend the entire book hating most of the characters! lol. 

The Painted Crown (Unbreakable Soldiers 2) by Megan Derr

Prince Istari has spent his life reviled: his parents wish he had never been born, the royal court of Belemere avoids him for fear of angering the king, and everyone else is kept away by his notorious reputation as a deadly sharpshooter. Now a hostage of peace in Tallideth, he is subjected to their hatred as well—even that of Regent Vellem, who once considered him a comrade in arms.

Unexpected solace comes in the form of Lord Teverem, a sad, quiet lord who assumed the title when his brother was killed in the explosion for which Istari's father is to blame. He is kind and sweet and a sorely needed bright spot in Istari's life—until Istari meets his family and learns of a dangerous family secret with unexpected ties to Istari's past, a secret that could drag Tallideth and Belemere right back into war…

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
My Review:     (Thanks to NetGalley) 

I love Megan Derr and I've always been quite vocal about it, however I feel like this book was a bit of a let down, especially as I read it straight after re-reading The Engineered Throne which was amazing. 

There was lots of running around but not much story and we weren't given much chance to connect to any of the characters other than Prince Istari. I would have loved to have seen some of the story from Lord Teverem's point of view, after all it was his life that was getting thrown around.

The ending was a bit queer though. Without giving spoilers away, the premise at the start was to marry Istari and Teverem so to protect someone. Then there was issues with the marriage being legal. When that was solved no one was concerned about it, as if the legal protection issue no longer had a point, but it did. Add in a couple of minor editing errors (names changing, etc) and I just didn't enjoy this as much as I normally do.

Still it was a Megan Derr story and I will continue to devour those as fast as a I can, because for every couple of 'okay' books she comes out with, she always seems to produce an amazing one. And those are the ones I live for.

Oracle of Philadelphia (Earthbound Angels 1) by Elizabeth Corrigan

Carrie works at a diner in South Philadelphia, dispensing advice to humans and angels wise enough to seek her counsel. But there are some problems that even the best advice can’t solve.

Her latest supplicant, Sebastian, is unique among those who have sought her aid. He sold his soul to a demon in exchange for his sister’s life, but his heart remains pure.

Carrie has lived for millennia with the knowledge that her immortality is due to the suffering of others, and she cannot bear to see another good man damned when it is within her power to prevent it.


In order to renegotiate his contract, Carrie must travel into the depths of hell and parley with the demons that control its pathways. As the cost of her journey rises, Carrie must determine how much she is willing to sacrifice to save one good soul.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
My Review:     (Thanks to NetGalley) 

SPOILERS!!!!
I started out with such high hopes for this book. It was something different, something unusual. You had an eight thousand year old, immortal diner owner who could see a persons innermost thoughts and feelings (but not the future). She has a demon as a best friend and while she constantly interacts with angels and demons she can't do anything to help the mortals that sell them their souls. 

Until..... She gets an unusual man/boy who is so inherently good that she just has to throw away eight millennium of experience to try and save one soul. And that's when it starts getting predictable, boring and stupid. 

We get the unrequited love (not just for her but for everyone else it seems, because while Angels can fall in love they can't fall out of love, leaving a lot of miserable Angels - stupid).

We get the seven(ish) trials they get harder and harder and cause her to give up several important bits of herself. And then we get the 'ultimate sacrifice' which was overturned ridiculously easily with a stupid solution that will only delay the problem but not resolve it.

This book started out great, a potential five star read and then dwindled down to perhaps a 3 if I'm generous and remember my feelings at the start. 

Unmasking Miss Appleby (Baleful Godmother 1) by Emily Larkin

She's not who she seems...

On her 25th birthday, Charlotte Appleby receives a most unusual gift from the Faerie godmother she never knew she had: the ability to change shape. 

Penniless and orphaned, she sets off for London to make her fortune as a man. But a position as secretary to Lord Cosgrove proves unexpectedly challenging. Someone is trying to destroy Cosgrove and his life is increasingly in jeopardy.


As Charlotte plunges into London’s backstreets and brothels at Cosgrove’s side, hunting his persecutor, she finds herself fighting for her life—and falling in love… 

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
My Review:     (Thanks to NetGalley) 

While I enjoyed the idea, the whole story was based on the premise of deception which I personally hate in my books. 

Charlotte was so innocent is was almost nauseating. By the end of the book I wanted to strip the word 'pego' from the english language and burn it.

Otherwise it was a very typical historical romance with a tiny bit of 'magic' thrown in to make it original. However I was pissed of at the end when Charlotte promised to never use her magic again (even when Cosgrove said she could). What the hell?! You have an amazing gift and you are just going to throw it away? Stupid.