Relatively Strange by Marilyn Messik

Relatively Strange is the fascinating tale of Stella, who uses the term "Strange" to categorize her extraordinary abilities. Stella, who lives in 1960's England, is telekinetic, pyrokinetic, can levitate, read minds and do quite a few other impossible things. Much of this story is about how Stella navigates a normal life while being something other than normal herself. There are encounters with others like herself, as well as a nefarious group of "medical" people who have no morals or ethics whatsoever. I found the historical background of Stella's family to be interesting. A post-WWII, post-Holocaust Jewish family trying very hard to continue to be perceived as normal despite their daughter's differences. This was a subtle reminder that. Not too far in the past, any "otherness" was an offense, punishable by death. And yet, they accept her, for the most part, as different, but not wrong or bad. It was, in fact, the great compassion of many of the wildly fascinating characters in this book that kept my attention. It was a great deal of fun to read. I would recommend it to all readers. ARC provided by NetGalley

A review of Angeli by Jody Wallace

Angeli, by Jody Wallace is an interesting story. The premise being that some aliens have come to rescue Earth, or Terra, from another species that seek to suck the souls or kill humans. These aliens, called Angeli, have determined that the easiest way to get humans to accept them is by masquerading as angels sent from God, the Christian god specifically. The story begins with Gregori, the head Angeli, as he is fighting some daemons on Terra after the "apocalypse" has already come. He meets Adelita, a 20-something law student trying to fulfill her bucket list before she dies. The beginning of this story is extremely confusing. It took a good 30 pages before I could make sense of what was going on the story. However odd it may have seemed, the story definitely held my attention. There was a definite romantic note to the story, once Adelita, a religious Catholic, understands that Gregori is not an angel, but a humanoid from another planet. There is a bit of a subplot involving the intentions of Ship, the sentient computer that is the vessel the aliens travel on around the galaxy. In one humorous scene, Adelita makes a pro and con list labeled "Hal or Not Hal", a fine nod to classic alien movies (2001, specifically). It seems that from Adelita's perspective, Ship's motives are not as pure as Gregori and his team would like to think. In all, this was a fun book to read, although a bit light on the specifics, details and facts. The action was well done, and overall, I would recommend this book to sci-if fans. ARC provided by NetGalley

A Review of Lingering Echoes by Erica Kiefer

When I started Lingering Echoes, it seemed like a fine story: young girl harboring a guilty past, a broody young man with a dark past if his own. Teen angst, but not overdone. Unfortunately, at about 3/4 of the way through, the author shows stunningly bad judgement by making all of the "bad guys" non-white, pointing it out over and over, and even going so far as to name one of the characters "ethnic guy". Borderline (or maybe crossing the border) racist at best. All of the good guys are white, as well, and the story behind Damian's past is absurd. It seemed such a sharp detour from where it started, that I was actually confused. Also, did Damian really have to rescue Allie in the potential rape scene? Couldn't the author have figured out how to have Allie rescue herself from that ridiculously absurd situation? Too bad, it started out pretty good, but ended up a hot mess.

A review of The Wife, The Maid and the Mistress by Ariel Lawhon

The Wife, The Maid and The Mistress is the imagined story behind the real life mystery surrounding the disappearance of Judge Joseph Crater in 1930. It is a mystery that still fascinates, and Ariel Lawhon has created a fascinating story around the actual events. We are given bits and pieces of the story told by Maria Simon, the Crater's maid, and wife of Jude Simon, head detective on the Crater case. We also learn of events from the perspective of Stella Crater, Joseph's wife, and Sally Lou Ritz, his mistress. Much of the story circles around the profound corruption in politics that existed in 1930, including the infamous Tammany Hall political machine and Owney Madden, a bootlegger and ruthless mobster who appears to be responsible for most of the violent deaths of various characters and real historical figures (Madden was also a real person). What is fascinating here is how Lawhon weaves together much true information with fictional, and it appears seamless in the story. It is a visceral tale of corruption, greed, violence, and most appallingly, the near powerlessness of the women who are sucked into the machinations of the men who seem to control all. Note, however, the word "near". These women show ingenuity, perseverance and grit, while attempting to navigate their lives through the mistakes they have made and for which they must subsequently pay. In all, a throughly fun read.

A Review of Heart of Stone by Christine Warren

Heart of Stone is a somewhat new take on Urban Fantasy, if only in the sense that it involves gargoyles rather than werewolves, vampires or fairies. The plot itself is pretty standard: new magic user unaware of her abilities, bug strong Guardian (what gargoyles who fight demons are called) who wants to protect her but also rebels against his feelings for her. This book was pretty well-done, if not entirely original. Of course, it could be argued that very little new writing is original. But the author did a fine job of making the story interesting. The heroine was very strong, if a bit predictable, and the sex was hot and steamy, and not overdone. I would recommend this book for a fun read.