Hand of Miriam (Bayla and the Golem, #1) by Eva Gordon – Audiobook Review

Tags

5 stars, angels, audiobook, Book Review, demons, Doro Jillings, Eva Gordon, fantasy, golem, Jewish myth, Jewish tradition, paranormal, romance, Steampunk

About Hand of Miriam by Eva Gordon

On an archaeological expedition, Bayla Gideon, is widowed by a supernatural force and branded with the Hand of Miriam or “knowing eye”. Threatened by evil, she awakens the golem – a mythical man of clay who protected the Jewish community more than three centuries ago.

The golem, Gesher, is surprised. Freedom – by a beautiful, enchanting woman. His desire is to return to the celestial spheres and regain his status as an avenging angel. Yet Bayla challenges his mind, body, and soul. Would he risk his return to the heavens for her?

Besides dealing with the otherkind, mad inventors, and an unrelenting matchmaking aunt, Bayla is equally determined to resist her steamy attraction to the striking fallen angel. Thrust into a malevolent war, which includes facing Jack the Ripper, they must resist the magnetic pull toward each other while protecting the world from encroaching evil.

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Review of Hand of Miriam
Story 5 stars
Narration 4 stars

Hand of Miriam is the interesting tale of a woman suddenly thrust into the supernatural world who wakes a golem to protect her from the dangers of that world.

Bayla is the woman who can suddenly see werewolves, vampires and all sorts of otherworldly creatures.  In addition, through touch, she can see into a person’s heart and know if they are lying or are guilty of evil.  The police appreciate her help in tracking down perpetrators, but eventually, Bayla must fall back to a safe place.

In her country manor, she finds and wakes the golem Gesher.  When she immediately grants him freedom, his wish to return to the heavens seems within reach.

I loved both of these characters, Bayla and Gesher.  Each has their own past and motivations that may or may not coincide with the growing attraction between them.  While I cheered for Gesher to get his wings back, I also wanted the romance for a HEA for all!

There are many things that will come between them, force them together and then separate them once again.  A predictable villain with a villainous device provides most of the conflict, along with a new take on the origin of Jack the Ripper

According to Hand of Miriam, angels are Jewish, which surprised me.  I rather think they have their own rituals which may or may not resemble the rituals of Earth’s religions.  Still, I enjoyed the Jewish myth and tradition embedded into the story.

Narrator Doro Jillings rushed the pacing, but eventually I adapted to her pleasant voice and storytelling.

Hand of Miriam is a little bit steampunk and a little bit paranormal.  It is a lot historical.  Mostly it is adventure and romance.

Through Story Origin, the author provided a copy of this audiobook in exchange for my honest review.

 

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Skyline Series Bundle by Kennedy King – Review

Tags

3.5 stars, Book Review, bundle, dragons, Kennedy King, military scifi, scifi

About Skyline: The Dragon Commander by Kennedy King

It’s 2350. Cold Fusion, AI nanotech cops, and the SkyLine between a dying Earth and a developing Mars are parts of life.

It’s a turbulent time to be a Major General, even one resigned to desk work. But the calm can only last so long. When tragedy strikes Precinct 117 in Shanghai, Chris Drogan and his unit are forced to gear up again. What waits for them in the heart of a robot with a beta personality matrix will change the planets on both ends of the SkyLine, mankind, and Major General Christopher Drogan forever.

About Skyline: The Captain, The Billionaire Boat, and the Dragon Crusader by Kennedy King

Dawn Redding. An Admiral of the World Crisis Committee, she stands on the threshold of the life she gave everything for. She only needs to bring in the galaxy’s first outerworld outlaw.

The astral road to him, the SkyLine, launches Dawn and the crew of the Arcadia from Mars to Neptune, and past the edge. Companions in loathing and love, they fight to level the cosmic scales. Through it all watches Alice, inside the Billionaire Boat, the Arcadia. More closely than anyone, she watches Dawn.

About Skyline: The Dogs of War by Kennedy King

With the destruction of the planet Mukurus comes the dawn of new struggles for the Worlds Crisis Committee. In the chaos, the Worlds Crisis Committee turns to the Dogs of War. This elite task force tackles two missions to keep the Milky Way from tearing itself apart. Open new trade routes. Find the Dragons and uproot them from the galaxy. The mission sounds simple to the Dogs’ Captain, Demitri “Demi” Alexander, until he sees the crew in action. He alone can reconcile the differences between siblings from the mines of Saturn’s Rings, the niece of a high-ranking WCC executive, and an M-Particle research specialist.

For better or worse, the Dogs of War cross every planet in the SkyLine. They delve deep in the Chrysum wells of Neptune and the floating city of Jupiter alike, in search of the Dragons and hope to defeat them.

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Review of Skyline

The Dragon Commander is a short enticing introduction to this interesting series where the stuff of fantasy becomes scifi aliens.  Dragons in space.  Not long enough to work up much of a plot, but just the right length to make the reader sympathize with the hero Drogan and his co-conspirator Machaeus. I was hooked as I finished part 1.

Rather than continue to follow Drogan, in The Captain, The Billionaire Boat, and the Dragon Crusader, all new characters are introduced.  While, they do cross paths with Drogan, the Dragon Commander’s part became secondary, which was disappointing to me.  Dawn Redding is the new heroine in this story of the hunt for the outlaw Dragon.  As hinted at in part 1, there is much more at stake than the adversarial relationship between Humans and Dragons.  Not clear is the intended end-game Macheaus envisions.  Drogan plays the uncomfortable roll of go-between/spy/marauder.

In The Dogs of War, yet another cast of characters is involved.  Drogan and Dawn continue to play roles while Mr. Powerful Marcus Brass sends his Pawns to root out Dragons while expanding the Skyline.  In book 3, there is another ‘D’ character: Captain Alexander Demitrius – Demi.  Brass becomes the autocrat you don’t trust.  Demi and his motley Dogs of War become their heroic bests in their attempts to defend humanity from the Dragons.  But all the while, Macheus still has his agenda.  And, if you are human, you won’t like it.  Most likely.

Skyline needs: 1) more editing.  I don’t usually comment on editing, but I was distracted enough by odd sentences, that I do bring it up this time.  2) A core set of characters.  Drogan is the singular fascinating character and books 2 and 3 would have been better if his role had been greater and more central. 3) A focus.  I say this because you think that the focus is the saving of humanity, but then Machaeus throws a major shift into the works.  Trying to avoid spoilers I will say I felt like the author sympathized with Machaeus.  If so, make him a bigger part of the story.  4) More explanation of the Skyline.  I found myself drifting without a spacesuit every time the book talked about the outside deck of a ship. 5) Less sex.  It was all pretty much gratuitous and did not lead to any happily ever afters.

Despite my critiques, I found the overall story line fascinating.  The bundle is billed as ‘the epic first half of the SkyLine Series book set’.  I would not call it epic, but I think it has the potential to be so.  Who says Dragons did not originate from another galaxy?  Maybe that is why we don’t see them on Earth these days.  The futuristic Skyline technology is an interesting space travel method, though it does seem limited.  Perhaps, the second half of the series will have humanity advancing even more.  And Machaeus, whose reach across the stars gives him a god-like persona, has the potential and inclination to re-shape the galaxy as we know it.  Will he?  Should he?

Skyline bundles three books in the series loosely tied together by the ongoing Humans Vs. Dragons plot that begins in book 1 and ends with in book 3 with some unresolved issues.  Yes, a cliffhanger.

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Holiday Steampunk by Melanie Karsak and Anne Renwick – Two Reviews

Tags

5 stars, Anne Renwick, Book Review, botany, Charles Dickens, librarian, Melanie Karsak, romance, Steampunk

About Hauntings and Humbug by Melanie Karsak

It’s Christmas Eve in Victorian London, and Ebony Scrooge is hard at work tinkering weapons of mass destruction and avoiding all things Christmas. When the spirit of her deceased partner, Jacqueline Marley, warns Ebony that she will be visited by three ghosts, Ebony writes the visitation off as a dream. But on this Christmas Eve, the spirits of Christmas Past, Present, and Future must try to pull off a miracle, restoring Ebony’s heart before it’s too late.Hauntings and Humbug is a retelling of Charles Dickens’s A Christmas Carol, set in New York Times bestselling author Melanie’s Karsak’s steampunk universe.

The e-book of Hauntings and Humbug is part of the Wicked Winters Limited Holiday Collection.  As of this writing, the collection is free!

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Review of Hauntings and Humbug
5 Stars

Melanie Karsak has put her own twist on one of my all time favorite stories: Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol.  The original story’s paranormal and time-travel elements are tweaked with steam, automatons and considerable charm in Hauntings and Bumbug.

This time the main characters are female and though the old grouch is not exactly evident, Ebony Scrooge is not a happy woman.  Enter the spirits.  We all know the story.  So, no surprises here.  But as someone who has read the original over and over again, I truly appreciated Ms. Karsak’s thoughtful deference to the classic tale while introducing the feminine perception.

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About A Snowflake at Midnight by Anne Renwick

A rare manuscript. A midnight promise. A man who would steal them both away.

Pressured by looming deadlines and an annoying patron, Evie Brown, academic librarian, struggles to find joy this Christmas holiday. Worse, her sick father is ready to abandon treatments and surrender to fate — a decision she refuses to accept. Delving into a medieval manuscript, she searches for answers in the distant past.

For the woman who has stolen his heart, only a perfect proposal will do. Ash Lockwood, botanist, has transformed the rooftop greenhouse into a tropical fairyland. But when Evie begs him to help her harvest mistletoe at midnight, they venture down a different garden path – unaware that danger circles close.

When their plans implode and a murderer threatens their lives, only invention and teamwork will save them.

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Review of A Snowflake at Midnight
5 Stars

We start with a librarian.  That gets my attentions.  Add a botanist (gardener).  Yep, I like the sound of that.  Then add a cold, snowy holiday setting, a warm, lush greenhouse, a little danger and a lot of romance.  What a lovely story that is perfect for this time of year.

Like other books in Anne Renwick’s steampunk stories, the elements of science, technology and the Queen’s agent Mr. Black are all present in A Snowflake at Midnight.  An intelligent woman competing with men in academia along with a man who appreciates her intelligence are also common traits in the steampunk stories.  This is one of my favorite series!

I love this addition to Renwick’s Elemental Steampunk Tales!

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