Ahoy there mateys! This be the first book in the Yarnsworld series.  I wanted to read them based off the purely beautiful covers.  The writing is this is hard to quantify but I was engrossed in the tale.  I loved the Knacks and learning about life in the villages.  I enjoyed the character of Lonan who is an outcast with weird dreams.  The dreams involve Adahy, the Magpie King who is trying to live up to his destined role.  The book jumps between the two narratives and is interspersed with folklore from the work.  I am not sure I understood exactly what happened when those storylines converge and didn't love the ending.  I am not sure who would like this book.  I am sure that I will pick up the next book of the series. Arrrr!

Ahoy there mateys! I continue to love the work by this author.  This was extra weird and still so good.  In this book, Rhea is forced to become engaged to Lord Crevan.  She arrives at his creepy manor only to find the six other wives!  Rhea is given tasks to complete with the threat “Come back before dawn, or else I’ll marry you.”  Apparently this is a retelling of Bluebeard which I have not read.  I loved the humor, the hedgehog, and the heroine.  Recommended. Arrr!

Ahoy there mateys! This is a mini-mini review.  I have been thinking about this on-and-off ever since I read it earlier this year.  I loved this but I feel I need to read it again before I can (maybe) do this justice. Arrrr!

Ahoy there mateys! This is a very short story recommended by Matey Nicole. (Aye, again! Good taste).  This deals with a robot who owns a tea shop that she has been running for hundreds of years.  Okay not fantasy but it is cozy so I am including it here.  Why and how the robot runs the shop it bittersweet but I loved how the robot and the human, Clara, become friends.  And the ending is super hopeful.  It is sweet.  I just wish it would have been longer. Arrr!

Ahoy there mateys! This book is all over the blogosphere.  Rightly so.  This cozy story of an orc named Viv hanging up her sword for a new venture opening a coffee shop is lovely.  I don't even like coffee but would totally go to the shop for the pastries.  This has found family, friendship, a wild cat, and such hopefulness even if some bad things happen in the book.  I couldn't sleep one night and was irritated.  I read this book in one sitting and was finally able to get some sleep and was smiling as I drifted off.  It felt like I got a nice internal hug.  I hope the author writes some more in this vein.  Arrr!

Ahoy there mateys! This has dragons, is a reference to Jane Austen, and is novel length.  This was super silly and fun.  This follows poor cousin Elinor who lives with her relations including spoiled cousin Penelope.  Elinor is a drudge who gets fed up one day and decides to run away.  A ruckus ensues.  I loved the dragons.  I loved the romance.  I loved when spells go wrong (like with the aunt) and shenanigans ensue.  I will be reading the next in the series when it comes out.  I will likely also reread this too. Arrrr!

Ahoy there mateys! I have enjoyed this author's work in the past so I picked this up when it was on sale.  Cassandra Harwood was the first woman magician in 19th century Angland.  Everything was going right.  Lovely fiancé.  Fulfilling work.  Future full of promise.  But all goes wrong when she loses her magic and subsequently her fiancé.  Then an evil-elf lord starts making life difficult.  This book is fluffy and has a tad more romance than me usual read.  I loved that in Angland the men are the magicians and the women are the politicians.  I enjoyed the romance and magic.  I rather loved the hopeful ending.  The novella feels light overall but was enjoyable.  I would read the four other books in the series if the prices for the novellas dropped some. Arrr!

Ahoy there mateys!  Though the First Mate and I have very different reading tastes, occasionally we do recommend books to each other. We read and talked about the book and I enjoyed his viewpoint so I ordered asked him to write a review.  So you get one from me and a bonus additional review from me crew.  Please note that I write like I talk and the First Mate writes like he thinks.  Hope you enjoy!

From the Captain:

The First Mate recommended this to me.  I listened to it on audiobook and it was a fantastic thriller.  I actually loved this and had no idea where the plot was going or how the book was going to end.  It was fun and satisfying.  It follows Natalie, a has-been magician who is barely making ends meet.  She is trying to write an article about card cheats but in tracking down her subject, she is drawn into a scheme that could make her fortune.  Things don't quite work out.  I loved that I was kept guessing.  I loved rooting for Natalie.  I loved all the details about close magic and card tricks.  I cannot get too much into the plot because it is better to go in blind.  I highly recommend this.  Arrr!

From the First Mate:

Bluff is kinda a book about close stage magic. Kinda. It’s also kinda about card sharks. It’s also kinda a book about living on the edge of poverty and the desire to make the right choices. And it’s a book about consequences. Unexpected, life-changing consequences.

We find our protagonist, stage magician Natalie Webb, at a low point in her life. Formerly a stage magic prodigy, Natalie has been performing at company retreats to make ends meet. Things are not going well. We gradually learn how Natalie got started in magic, what choices she made over the years that got her to this point, and the direction that she feels is best to take her into a better future. The bad choices of the past, however, often lead to bad choices in the future.

Natalie finds herself in a series of ever escalating scenarios where she has to question who she can trust and what decision might have the least amount of fallout. Always a likable protagonist, it’s very easy to sympathize with what Natalie is dealing and many of the choices she makes. Not all of the choices are defensible (Kardos see to that), and Natalie rarely has enough information to make informed decisions.

Bluff is a very effective thriller. The plot moves swiftly and the tension continues to ratchet up. I can honestly say that I had no idea how the situation was ultimately going to be resolved. Where it ended up was, to me, extremely surprising and satisfying.

Highly recommended to fans of small time crime thrillers and fans of card tricks being used outside of a magic setting. Avoid if squeamish as there are a few grisly elements towards the end.

Ahoy there mateys! I really, really enjoyed the first book in The Red Abbey Chronicles by this Finnish author.  This is technically a prequel and has some serious themes likely slavery, rape, coercion, etc.  I am not sure I would call it YA but the series is marketed that way.  The villain is a bit two-dimensional but the woman in this story are not.  They are diverse and interesting and also in so much pain.  This book has seven points-of-view but as the book goes on, each new character gets less page time.  It takes place over 40 years.  This is not a happy story though it ends with hope.  I would not read this book first because knowing where the women end up helps get through the sadness.  I am planning on reading the third book. Arrrr!

Ahoy there mateys! I wanted short books with magic and I enjoyed this author's alien book so I tried these.  Basically every book has a young kid ending up in Mr. Elives' magic shop and taking home an artifact that brings an adventure.  The first book deals with a ring that turns Russell into a monster, the second with Jeremy having to raise a dragon's egg, the third with Jennifer and a talking toad, the fourth with Charlie getting a talking skull, and the fifth with Juliet getting a magic locket.  I liked the first two, loved three and four, and didn't really like five at all.  The toad book had excellent magic dealing with kissing in a silly way.  And the skull book had some seriously funny things dealing with Shakespeare that kids might not get but I sure did.  These are short and fun and I really think middle school kids would love these. Arrrr!