Yak by Lois Cloarec Hart

Yak
by Lois Cloarec Hart
Pages: 69
Date: August 30 2013
Publisher: Ylva Publishing
Series: None

Review
Rating: 3.5
Read: November 3 2016

This is my first stand alone story by this author that I've read (as in sold separately not as in all others are part of series, no all others are stand alone's in that sense as well), though still a short story - just not stuffed inside a collection.

A woman, Leni, of roughly 23 goes to work at a dinner on the night shift. She's not the most intelligent woman on earth, but that’s okay, not everyone was born to be a genius. She also apparently looks like a stick (going by her own thoughts).

While at the dinner, she lunches with her coworkers – all but one who she wasn’t introduced to earlier when she was lead around. Another cook. Sitting by herself reading a big fat book. Apparently everyone there is afraid of her, though no one seems willing to let Leni in on the secret about Yak – about why everyone is afraid of her.

Quite a neat story. Solid. For those coming along behind me, those who haven’t read the story – there’s this epilogue section. I’d strongly encourage readers to immediately stop when the words ‘Aislin’s begun to take yoga classes recently.’ That’s early enough so that your eyes can afford to slip a sentence or two, but no more. And seriously, try to stop there. There isn’t really much beyond that, maybe a paragraph. But do not read that last paragraph. I did. Cost the story 0.25 stars.

Why? Well, I liked the people in the story – mostly Leni and Yak (Aislin). Last paragraph is mostly conjecture, but it wasn’t what I wanted to think about. So . . . don’t read that paragraph.

So, something as simple as one paragraph, one word, can cost 0.25 stars.

Rating: 3.50

November 3 2016

Wicked Things edited by Jae and Astrid Ohletz

Wicked Things
edited by Jae and Astrid Ohletz
Pages: 388
Date: October 23 2014
Publisher: Ylva Publishing
Series: None

Review
Rating: Overall: 3.3357
Read: October 28 to November 3 2016

Another set of short stories from Ylva with a Halloween theme.

Spiritquest, LLC by Andi Marquette
Denver, Ghost (from 1920s), Ghost hunters

Ghost hunters investigate the Halstead House in Denver - sightings had been made of a young woman named Lily who had died in the 1920s at the age of 26. The Ghost hunters include Allie, Mike, Mandy, and Sky (a newcomer). The story is from the point of view of Allie. A joke is made that they should rename themselves 'Spiritqueer' since all of them are queer.

This is a very interesting story, quite detailed, quite thrilling/exciting. I wasn't sure if this was going to be a romance or an erotica or what, so I was kind of hunting in the beginning for who the potential pairing might be. If you, the reader of this review, wish to know beforehand - look behind the spoiler - think of it as either 'no one' or 'the ghost' - since there is a century long romance there..

I loved this story - I loved the atmosphere, the relatively gentle nature of everything - considering the the subject matter; the romance angle, everything. Which is somewhat surprising to me because of the author. See - I failed myself a long time ago. I had this rule that I was never going to allow 1 story to dictate whether or not I like or hate an author (or, more exactly, whether I try anything else by them). And I failed myself.

For you see, I had read something by Andi Marquette before. A book that was, in general, liked by readers (4.01 overall rating), and strongly liked by friends (4.05 overall rating). While I myself had seen it as kind of meh, and was something I was only able to give, tentatively, a 3 rating to. So I never again attempted a story by Marquette. I'd see things that might interest me, notice the author, and cringe away. It's actually the combo of me giving a 3 rating, and the part where I was in the minority for that rating. But there was this story here in this collection, see, so . . . I read it. And loved it. This is why I have this rule to not base decisions (good or bad) on one work.

Rating: 5.0

October 29 2016

A Certain Moon by Elaine Burnes
Writer, Artist (Illustrator), Writing convention/conference; small town; shifters

Two women meet at a writing conference. One is a writer, the other is an illustrator. Oddly, they learn that both live in the same small town. They become friends, and then after a long while, become more. One night - the night told in this story, one invites the other back to her place. It's Halloween, so each ring of the bell causes everyone in the cottage (the dog, cat and hamster, and the woman) to spring forward.

Well, this didn't go the direction I excepted. And I felt as if the story ended one paragraph too soon. We, the reader (and the people in the story) learn of one of their secrets but the other remained hidden. And since I got/guess their secret wrong, I can't just assume my guess for the other one if correct, so . . . annoying.

And no, I'm not going to put my wrong guess, my undiscovered guess, nor the correct 'solution' to this paranormal short story, for that is something to be revealed slowly over the course of the story, not to be told in a review. Well, the solution, not my guess. Though I'm sure some might come to similar conclusions.

Rating: 3.8

November 2 2016

Walking After Midnight by Lois Cloarec Hart
Halloween party, Vampire

A wallflower type woman around 28 (I believe) named Gem St. Claire is talked into going to a holiday party. She wants nothing to do with it but can't get out of it. It's like the day before so she has to make do with whatever she can make herself so she ends up in a tux an cape and pretends to be a vampire.

Part of the 'talking into going' is the part where Kate, someone Gem has lusted after since high school, will be there. And is, apparently, single. The friend of Gem's tells her that she needs to ask her out already (with positive or negative results to the asking out) or move on from her lust for Kate. She's basically put her life on hold because of these feelings. At least her romantic life.

Things go about as expected (don't ask what I mean, that would be spoiler-y, there's like a ton of directions 'expected' could have gone) and Gem finds herself wandering a graveyard on the way home - darting from the party early. Runs into a woman in that graveyard. A woman dressed somewhat similarly to Gem (tux, cumberbund, cape). A woman named Cleo.

Some advice given. The night continues. A reunion of sorts occur. More time passes. Another Halloween roles around. Life, such as it is, continues.

I'm being purposely vague. Lovely story.

Rating: 5.0

November 2 2016

Moon Dance by Bridget Essex
Camping, Werewolf, Shifter

Essex sure is obsessed with wolves.

So, a couple are perfect for each other - they've been together for awhile. One night, around Halloween, one of the pair darts off on a run through the woods (they had been camping). When she finally gets back, she's flustered, and immediately backs up. Forces a return trip home, packs up there was well, severs all contacts, and disappears.

It's a year later, and the other member of that coupling (former coupling), is at that same park again. For more camping (by the way - I'm fairly certain the word 'camping' was used several times - yet the campers apparently 'camp' inside of cabins. Confusing).

The woman, naturally, is sad. Stuff happens (including graphic sex - between two women). The end.

Not the best wolf story I've read by Essex.

Rating: 3.6

October 28 2016

The Road Home by May Dawney
Halloween, bar, student, small town, bad weather, ghost story, age-20s

Have you ever seen that Steven Spielberg directed 'Duel' tv film (well it was intended for tv, I think, might have gotten a theater release)? This story is nothing like that (I should do this with all my reviews (you know the 'Hobbit'? this is nothing like that - hehe). At least in the sense that the weather was down right nice in that film. And the 'events' that unfolded were much longer than the events that unfolded here. In the sense of two cars chasing each other in a life and death like struggle? Yeah, similar. Though it's pouring rain in this story, and not everyone involved in the struggle might realize . . . things.

Depending on whether or not someone has to be 21 to serve alcohol, this story involves two young women around the age of 20 or 21 who end up near each other in an unexpected way. Which leads to a pulse-pounding encounter. Actually, more than one encounter.

Quite thrilling. Exciting. Good story.

Rating: 4.95

November 2 2016

Hit and Run by Q. Kelly
Age-40s, single mother, kid, two straight women, Mental illness

Abused woman wants to thank the hero/heroine who saved her from abusive husband. Five years ago. She thinks about this constantly. Figures it'll never happen now. It has been 5 years after all. Though she knows she'd recognize them if they bumped into each other. Because they are bonded. Or something. That's Maxie's point of view.

There's also a Penny's point of view as well. Penny, it would appear, was in a plane crash when she was 7. 150 people on board, including her parents. Number of survivors? One. And Penny isn't a ghost. Apparently this is still on her mind, constantly, many years later - I assume since that's what the focus is on when we turn to Penny's POV. Penny did not survive unscratched - no, bone fractures, shattered, etc. Penny has a six year old son. And is 40. She had a fling with a man. So - both of the main characters are straight? hmms.

Penny is very sad that she killed that man. Five years ago.

This is a super depressing story. I want out. Please help free me from this story. This story has the level of story detail and telling that I'd expect if Detective Sergeant Joe Friday were telling me this story. Just the facts, Joe. Just the facts. I'm soo bored. Pleeease help me! I'm trapped in a story! Noooooo.... soooooo bored.

Ah - that made me sit up - 'I got to know the back roads of Northern Virginia pretty well.' - I used to drive the back roads of Northern Virginia. Hilly, curvy, random dips, random rises, thin roads. Deep ravines. I know those roads (or I knew them - most of that is gone now, smoothed out, replaced by those 'super expressways'; but they used to be that way).

Okay, seriously? Really? Late at night (one, what is she doing driving around late at night? No explanation?), barely awake, swerving around, thunk, stop on the side of the road (and I know the sides of those roads - there were no sides - just deep drops, so really, she stopped in the road). She gets out. She looks around. Nothing. She gets in car. Leaves. And she feels super guilty about this . . . why? mmph.

Soo bored.

Heh. Both of these straight women seem overly lusty towards the dead man's sister. heh.

That was the most disgusting thing I've ever witnessed in a story. Just disgusting. EWWWW!!! - So, Maxie and Alice eat a meal together at a restaurant. Alice being that dead man's sister. Maxi's fork is messed up. She waves it at a waiter. Gets a clean fork. Alice reaches over, steals the fork, and drops it on the floor. Then pulls her own fork out from her food, licks it, then hands it to Maxi 'use this' (presumably Alice will now eat her spaghetti with her fingers). How incredibly gross. SOOO GROSS!!!! Also, eww - Maxie is turned on by this act. Eww.

Good god this is a disgustingly gross story. Maxie kept the fork. And now she's describing how she is in a hotel with Alice, not the disgusting part, no that would be the part wherein she's taking the time to describe the fact that she's in the bathroom. On the toilet. Trying to force a drop of urine out. Um, why the fuck am I being told this? WHYYYYYY!!!!! (I appear to have become brain damaged at some point, obviously, what with all the caps and screaming).

Rating: negative a trillion stars

November 2 2016

A Lesson in Magic by Cori Kane
Witch, Halloween Party, Lesbian attracted to man

The tags above are basically enough.

Rating: 2.7

November 2 2016

Strega by R.G. Emanuelle
Witch

A woman runs away from her husband. Who she never wanted. Who had 'taken everything' from her family, then dragged her off as well. She runs across 'devil worshippers' and is very frightened.

I'm confused by the comments on witches in the last story and in this one. Last story had the man in it make some comment like 'oh, how politically correct' (not that term, but similar - conveying that the woman who made a vaguely 'oh, witch, that's okay' comment was just being . . . PC.

And then in this one where the woman is deathly afraid of the witch. I just don't get it. Seriously, I don't. What's up with that? I think I've read way too many things, contemporary and fantasy, for me to a) immediately scream in horror if someone uses the 'w' word; b) understand the concept of someone - today, in modern times, being all 'eww, witch'. *shrugs* I've been corrupted, obviously.

Rating: 2

November 2 2016

Object Permanence by Steph Gottschalk
Ghost story

A sad story. From the POV of a ghost. Watching the world as it moves, as time passes. Sad.

Rating: 4.25

November 2 2016

Taylor-Made by Catherine Lane
Magic, Vanity, Hollywood, Paralegal, Changing Fortunes

Incredibly vain story.

Paralegal with 'body issues' spots a jacket. Steals it. Wears it. Is magical jacket. She becomes thin and beautiful. Adds a trophy girlfriend (well, she's powerful in her own right, but I never got the sense the main character cared about her beyond her looks). Everyone of any importance is gorgeous (or male).

Not sure I particularly like the message here.

Especially since 'everybody' knows that true power - true 'showing' of power is to have people respect and be charmed by you, to want to be near you and rub against you, to believe you hold great wisdom and power . . . while looking like a toad. Or something like that.

Rating: 2.75

November 2 2016

Ghost Lights by Erzbet Bishop
Ghost stkry, River of Moistness

Another 'dragged to a ghost tour story because friend wanted specific at on the tour' story. Another 'person leaves tour, goes down tbe moistness river' story. Less interesting/satisfying than the other story like this. The other was a romance. This is just fucking.

Rating: 3.3

November 3 2016

A Winter Story by S.M. Harding
Ghost/grief story.

half Scottish/ half Ute. Woman went to NY. Found art success and a woman. Lost woman to drugs and art success. Then that other woman died. MC goes back to New Mexico. Tries to contact her dead lover.

interacts with a raven.

Gets super depressing story shoved into her on too of her own.

Interacts with a raven.

Contemplates killing herself.

Rating: 3.3

November 3 2016

That Day by Orhea the Dreamer
Werewolves, Texas

Old fashioned version of werewolves. Hmm, that's misleading. A story set in Texas that uses the older version of werewolves. The kind that morphs into a beast - half human, half monster. As opposed to the more modern version of werewolves that involves humans transforming into full blown wolves - or at least creatures that walk on all fours, are furry, and look like extra large wolves.

Interesting to see this other version of werewolves. Story was kind of irritatingly told though - in a 'my name is, or was . . .' way. Entire story is a flash back story. And written that way.

And I rather disliked the dynamic between the two women in the story. The one who uses and abuses the other, and forces a collar onto her. And the other, the main character, who loves her abuser. mmphs.

Rating: 2.75

November 3 2016

Fresh Blood by Eve Francis
Chicago, Police, nurse, Vampire, Suspense, Crime

hmm. Okay. So a police officer is out on night shift, with her partner. They are staking out a store that may or may not be robbed. Then two people roar up on motorcycles, shots are fired, people are injured, killed. Sucked on.

Oh, did I not mention that yet? The female officer is a vampire. And while she had made a promise to her girlfriend, Violet, fresh blood is fresh blood. And so. hmms.

This is interesting in a way. Really shows that vampires (at least in this story universe) aren't just people wearing plastic fangs but basically human. No, separate from humans. Different. Like someone who likes x, makes a promise to not consume x, but can't stop themselves from doing so because x (let's make x = 'beef') isn't really anything that they internally have an issue with consuming. But their human partner does (here change human to vegetarian). And so - the conflict that arises because the meat eater (vampire) consumed meat (fresh blood).

Interspecies relationship between Violet the human and Allie a vampire.

And then the vampire and human mated. And because I'd had all these reminders that these are in fact different creatures, different species . . . it was like reading about a monkey humping a human. And so . . . ewww. Thanks for making vampires and humans seem so different and then have them hump. This is . . . disturbing. Not hot. Not hot at all. At all. I might be ill.

Rating: 3.3*
*I'm sure I'd have rated this higher if this didn't end up reading like bestiality. And I became ill.

November 1 2016

Overall
Spiritquest, LLC by Andi Marquette - 5.0
A Certain Moon by Elaine Burnes - 3.8
Walking After Midnight by Lois Cloarec Hart - 5.0
Moon Dance by Bridget Essex - 3.6
The Road Home by May Dawney - 4.95
Hit and Run by Q. Kelly - negative a trillion stars
A Lesson in Magic by Cori Kane - 2.7
Strega by R.G. Emanuelle - 2
Object Permanence by Steph Gottschalk - 4.25
Taylor-Made by Catherine Lane - 2.75
Ghost Lights by Erzbet Bishop - 3.3
A Winter Story by S.M. Harding - 3.3
That Day by Orhea the Dreamer - 2.75
Fresh Blood by Eve Francis - 3.3

Overall Rating: 3.3357

A Street Cat Named Bob by James Bowen

A Street Cat Named Bob
by James Bowen
Pages: 289
Date: March 15 2012
Publisher: Hodder
Series: Bob The Cat (1)

Review
Rating: 4.75
Read: November 1 to 2 2016

Several YouTube videos are mentioned in the book. I haven't seen them before now.



A book about a man who spent about a decade messing up his life with drugs and the like, who turned a corner and started down a better path. Somewhat helped when he found a ginger cat named Bob ('somewhat' helped because he was somewhat already down the path - he had a place live, had switched from heroin to methadone (as given by a drug doctor as a step down to normal), and later took a step back further from heroin when he took the next weening drug step (that one I do not know the name of, something like sufadate . . heh, no. Well begins with 's').

Neat cat, neat book. The guy made mistakes along the way, but admitted to them (like when he was told to go to the 'head office' because he was caught 'breaking the rules' but instead he fearfully took a month dodging 'the head office' before going in; whereupon he realized he had been an idiot).

Not sure if I read a later draft of the story than some of the reviewers. Many mention things like 'obviously from the streets' when referencing the writing - and how bad it is. Didn't notice anything myself (well, I did just noticed I ended the previous sentence with 'is', but that's me not him). So I'm not sure if there are writing issues or if they've been cleared up.

Rating: 4.85

November 2 2016

Wildling Rider by Helena Maeve

Wildling Rider
by Helena Maeve
Pages: Unknown
Date: November 9 2016
Publisher: Less than Three
Series: None

Review
Rating: 3.25
Read: November 1 2016

*I received this book from NetGalley and Less than Three in return for a fair review.*

Four reasons why I wanted to read this story. 1) Read this author before in a short story collection and liked what I saw (to the score of 4.65); 2) was curious about seeing this author in longer form; 3) had been interested in reading some form of biker story for a while now, and the ones I’d circled in the past seemed to have too much of a ‘male jackass’ vibe drifting off the pages; 4) it’s a lesbian story set in Scotland with bikers, werewolves and a mystery, what more could I ask for?

Oh, I don’t know, maybe a character who I wouldn’t want to strangle with my bare hands might have been nice. From beginning to end, Abigail – the main character (and only POV), annoyed the hell out of me. Judgmental, nosey, bitchy, stubborn, a little too close to the ‘airhead’ her ex called her at one point (though she, the ex, had also included things that implied bubbly – Abigail was far from bubbly/happy go lucky/pleasant to be around. Far.) The little too close has to do with observable intelligence levels. Which isn’t exactly horrible in and of itself for a character – I mean for a character to be somewhat dim – might even make an interesting book. Here it just annoyed me.

I need to interject one thing here though, somewhat out of order – you know that ‘too stupid to live’ concept that pops up in fiction? TSTL? I do not believe I’ve ever seen a character described that way who wasn’t female, but let’s not dwell on that – point being that the character is, as the words suggest – way too stupid to live, yet they do. Well, to be fair to this character here – Abigail – while there were a few moments that edged in that direction, she never tipped that way completely. No, she kept getting injured, hurt, etc., mostly through the fault of others and not because of her own stupidity. Either she was with someone who would normally be able to protect her, but couldn't, or she got hurt after that someone abandoned them (like, what the heck was up with her ex-girlfriend basically charging off and abandoning her in the woods? Right, sorry, getting ahead of myself there). Just mean to point out that my ‘lacking in certain level of intelligence’ (a phrase I never used until now) doesn’t mean that she’s ‘too stupid to live’ stereotype character.

Story started off similarly to that other story I’ve read by Maeve – as in right in the middle of the story. I think I used the word ‘story’ too much in the previous sentence, you’d think I could have come up with a different word, at some point, other than story. Hehe. *shakes self* Right, sorry. Point – previous story I had read was in Less than Dead and started off with a man battling hoards of zombies while listening to classical music (and telling his man-servant to change the song every once in a while). Never did learn exactly what was going on, but you don’t really need to in a zombie story. That didn’t really work this time around, unfortunately. Started off annoyed that I didn’t know what was going on, and didn’t get much better (the annoyance, I figured out what was going on – most of it – before the end of the story).

Right, so, this is set in Scotland. A woman is poking her nose into ‘things’ and asking questions people do not wish to answer (interject here – near the beginning Abigail says something like ‘—my good old RP accent was, for the first time in my life, a source of derision.’ RP accent? What the bloody hell is an RP accent? It’s not a posh accent, because she made fun of/mocked Georgia for having that. So. RP. “Received Pronunciation, often abbreviated to RP, is an accent of spoken English. Unlike other UK accents, it’s identified not so much with a particular region as with a particular social group, although it has connections with the accent of Southern England. RP is associated with educated speakers and formal speech”. So says Google. And, what? Seriously? The first time in her life a source of derision? Guess my vague impression that I had picked up along the way that ‘experts’ are derided in England at the moment was just that, an impression, a wrong one at that (ah, but does an expert specifically have an RP accent? Just because there is that ‘associated with educated speakers and formal speech’ part? *shrugs. No idea. Shesh this is a long aside. I do not even remember what paragraph I am in now.)

*pretends previous paragraph doesn’t exist*

Right, so, book is set in Scotland. A woman from London famous for making videos of fashion is poking her nose in a small village in Scotland. Apparently she heard that a woman went missing. So she took a train five hours up (I think) to look around. She admits that people go missing all the time in London. But – she just knows no one cares about this ‘Candice Sharpe’ person, and therefore she needs to go up there and look around. Except she actually knew another woman who had gone missing. And that’s the real reason she’s up there. Except that person went missing before she was born. See, confusing.

Well, there is this woman named Abigail and she’s poking around this Scottish village with her ex-girlfriend who is both a biker and a werewolf (the local biker gang are werewolves; or – the local werewolves ride motorcycles). The story is set in that type of universe. One with bikers. Also, werewolves. And vampires. And witches. And people who have been born again (not that way). Though only werewolves and those who have been reincarnated actually pop up in this specific story here.

My review is confused because I’m quite off my game at the moment. The fact that the book itself is also confusing is just a coincidence.

Characters –
Abigail - 30 something woman from London who is poking around in Scotland for a missing woman. Speaks with an RP accent. Has been described by one ex-girlfriend as being a bubbly airhead.

Kayla - Abigail’s biker ex-girlfriend who is also a werewolf and lives in the same town Abigail is wandering around in softly calling out the name ‘Candice’ to see if Candice turns up.

Candice Sharpe - a woman who has gone missing who Abigail thinks no one cares about. Is described as both a junkie and a groupie (groupie of the werewolf bikers).

Georgia - a woman Kayla claims is Candice’s friend. Though Abigail scoffs at the idea. Since Georgia is just so gosh darn posh. Too posh to be friends with trash like Candice. Or something like that (did I mention yet that Abigail is judgemental?).

Jensen - head of the Wildlings – the biker motorcycle club that Abigail’s ex-girlfriend, Kayla, is a member of.

Nettie Jensen - Jensen’s long dead mother. Knew Swedish.

Plot - English woman wanders Scotland looking for a missing Scottish woman who she doesn’t know, nor had ever heard of before that woman went missing. The town is very tight lipped and strongly suggestive to Abigail that she should make a hasty departure. Backed up by gunfire. That English woman has some connections with the people found in the town that would not normally be expected, definitely not expected if this wasn’t a fantasy. Motorcycles are ridden. Driven. On roads. On paths. Over rocks. Whereupon they flip through the air and land on riders. Much stuff occurs.

Overall - interesting story. Wish I hadn’t been somewhat confused in the beginning. And/or that I didn’t come to basically dislike 99.9% of the people involved.

Rating: 3.25

November 1 2016

Death by Cocktail Straw by Missouri Vaun

Death by Cocktail Straw
by Missouri Vaun
Pages: 39
Date: November 1 2016
Publisher: Bold Strokes Books
Series: The Adventures of Nash Wiley (1)

Review
Rating: 3.75
Read: November 1 2016

It's late enough that I'll probably write incoherently. Plus I'm on my phone which has a cracked screen.

I can't figure out if 'neat enough' is an actual phrase that works. No matter. Neat enough snippet of a story. Can't say that nothing happened since there were car accidents, sex, a night at a club, and a trip to the ER (unrelated to the traffic accident). Even so, I'm left wanting. Mostly because I felt a connection between the main character and a side character early on. But a bunch of other stuff, like other people, got in the way - making the interactions that did happen seem slightly off (in a 'hurry up, I want to get to the real story', way). Don't be like me - that is the story.

If I learned one thing from reading this story it's to be aware of what's in front of you. For that might be all you get (well, moral for the reader, the character seems destined for something quite nice).

Right. Problem with typing on my phone. I've no real idea what I've written. And my screen is too bad to read.

The story is something like a day in the life of a butch woman (though told over a week; I think I am messing up description). A slice of life, if you will. Wjth bits of humor mixed around.

And mixed with sadness. For a car, mostly.

November 1 2016