What I'm Reading October 6th, 2016

I'm a slow reader. Like, hear-the-words-in-my-head slow. So I don't make enough progress to blog this particular topic weekly like I should.

But this week, I do have a new addition, Barbara Nickless' fantastic new mystery Blood on the Tracks (buy it HERE) from Thomas and Mercer, the crime imprint of Amazon. This is Book One of the Sydney Rose Parnell Series, and tells the story of a former Marine with PTSD who works as a railroad cop, trying to solve a brutal murder by a hobo. I'm about a quarter of the way through, and this one is a TOUGH book to put down at the end of the day. If I'm not careful, I'll find myself still reading at midnight, having to get up four hours later for work! I'll let you in on a little secret--Barb and I have been friends for a good fourteen years or so, and everything of hers I've read, I've enjoyed, but this is a step up even for her. Gritty, tense, and real. A strong female lead with realistic flaws, and a gripping story.

I'm also still reading the Alien Artifacts anthology from Zombies Need Brains, and it certainly lives up to the standards they set with their previous anthos. Wonderful stories of humans finding alien artifacts throughout the universe and how those affect the people finding them. Again, it's hard to build a themed anthology that's interesting, since the reader already knows at least some of what's going to happen, but ZNB's editors pick diverse stories that keep you reading.

And I finished Christine Feehan's Shadow Rider. Great story! I love Christine's writing, and her characters are both over-the-top and believable, something that's really tough to do. I struggled a little with the role of the female lead in this story, though, as she entered into a relationship with a male who dominates her completely. She's not QUITE submissive, but close, and seems to enjoy being told what to do, both romantically and otherwise. My suspicion, though, is that Francesca is going take on a bigger role in the family's shadow riding business as these books go along, meaning her character arc will bring out her feistier side, and make her a more active participant in her own life. Don't get me wrong -- I loved the book, and I have faith Christine will bring Francesca along nicely.

That's it for today. Read on!