Book Review: By The God’s Ears by Christopher Fly

     With the Old King sick his son, Prince Henri, has had free reign to sow his wild oats. His appetites for young girls was well known, taking farmer's daughters and claiming he would make them his wife. Instead, he would use them then ship them off somewhere else in the kingdom. When the Prince sees Emmeline her father, Gilles, prays to his God, the Golden Child, to save his little girl. Meanwhile, her mother, Murielle, intends to use her dead father's affiliate with the old king to make him stop his son. However, the Gods are not at rest and are looking to stop the war Prince Henri is intent on starting once he becomes King. Will they survive?

    I received a copy of this audiobook from the author in exchange for an honest review. I haven't run across any books that have their religion's gods portrayed in quite the way these were. I won't give it away what I mean because it isn't revealed until over halfway through the book. The gods do take a very hands-on approach in this story, although most before this story hadn't seen the gods in a long time. 

    Yes, I don't like religion, but I have stressed before that I don't like monotheism. Polytheism, be it a real religion or one from someone's imagination, is completely fine. Although there have been a lot of religion books recently. In this case, I'm not complaining. The gods added something which otherwise would have been missing. Even if they were largely annoyances until the end of the book. 

    I will say that this book is a bit confusing towards the end. I have no idea which, if any, of the family members survived. Maybe they all did. I don't want to give things away, but I will say that answer when it comes to one specific one confuses me. 

    All in all it was a good book that will pound the title of the book into you. I can honestly not even tell you the amount of times "By the God's Ears" is said. It's a lot. Although, by the time you figure out what the gods are it makes a bit more sense. 

    My absolute favorite part about this book is that there is a lot of random French words in it. I love learning new French words. The narrator does a great job of pronouncing words and you can always tell who is who as he's speaking. 

    This book is available on Amazon for $3.99 by clicking here. 

Book Review: Bad Blood by Tobin Elliott

     Everything changed with the booger was born. Before then it had just been she, Mommy, and Daddy. They were happy. But, when Alex was born everything changed. Daddy left and he's not coming back and Mommy only ever smiles if it has to do with that stupid baby who can't even stand up on her own. It's not fair. When her sitter brings over a new book Talia quickly finds there is a way to make them all pay for things changing. 

    I received a copy of this book from the author in exchange for an honest review. I honestly can't write too much about the book here since it was a DNF. I normally wouldn't even wrote a review for a DNF, but the author requested I do and why it was a DNF. The book was well-written, but it has child torture in it and that is a hard pass for me. When a 2 year old's arms break at the elbows I am done. I stopped reading at that moment (30% into the book) and sent him a message that I wouldn't be touching that series again. However, to let me know if he writes anything later on that doesn't include children getting hurt. Especially since I have a 2 year old little girl right now. 

    If child torture doesn't bother you the book is available on Amazon for $2.94 by clicking here. 

Book Review: What Meets the Eye by Alex Kenna

     Kate was a Detective at the top of her game with an excellent solve rate, an attorney husband, and a beautiful little girl. That is until a car chase ended with the driver ramming her car in the blockade. Her back was broken and the pills became an easy escape from the pain. Soon her husband's nagging lead to him filing for both divorce and custody. She only gets her little girl on the weekends. Sometimes. Still, Kate is determined to be better and get her life back on track. Without her ex. She is a PI now and a grieving father has asked her to look into his daughter's suicide. The truth could have more than one head rolling. 

    I received a copy of this book from the author in exchange for an honest review. I haven't read a lot of PI books in the past. Well, at least not ones that aren't primarily smut. I don't avoid them or even dislike them, they just aren't something I get a lot of requests for. Still, when I received this one I was excited, if only to break up my other continuous genres. 

    The characters in this book are relatable and the plot feels like something that could realistically happen. While this book is the first in a series featuring the main character this book can absolutely be read as a standalone. Probably because it is the first book. Still, the main point to this book is resolved at the end with some character threads hanging that I am sure will continue on as the series does. 

    This book has characters to love and those we love to hate. Like her ex. I hope she gets everything she wants moving forward. She has already leapt the biggest hurdle. 

    This book is available on Amazon for $13.99 by clicking here. 

Book Review: In Winters Garden by Mark Hurst

     Bernard McMaster's has lived a long and prosperous life as a horror author. His books were best-sellers in the 80s and eventually became movies allowing him to live a life of luxury. However, a fall from a later in the twilight of years lands him in a cushy retirement home for rehab. It will be a short stint and then he will be back to rattling around his mansion, alone. While he is closer to his daughter, Rosie, at this place, this is where the positives end. There is something odd about Winter's Garden and his unique expertise may be the only thing that will save his life. 

    I received a copy of this eBook from the author in exchange for an honest review. I love all things horror so was thrilled to receive this book. While we initially had some issues with my receiving it we figured something out. In most books the main character is someone between the ages of 20 and 40. However, in this book our main character is an old man. 

    The author does a wonderful job of keeping you guessing if the creatures in the book are real or imagined. This is definitely one of those times where you should trust nothing and no one. Not even yourself. That being said it is an easy story to be drawn into, wondering what will happen next. Will Bernard leave Winter's Garden alive? Is anyone actually trying to kill him? Or is everything just a carefully crafted delusion of an old man with a history of mental breaks?

    I have no complaints on this story and look forward to more works from this author in the future. The scenes are well-written and you are able to see the peacocks as they strut across the perfectly manicured grass in front of the old Victorian style mansion. Why anyone would want peacocks wandering around is beyond me, although they are pretty. 

    This book is available on Kindle Unlimited or buy it on Amazon for $0.99 by clicking here.