So, we are already in the second half of the year and I hope everyone is enjoying their reading. I had a bit of a 👍 and a 👎 kind of week, in that one of my two books was brilliant and the other, well, 👎👎👎👎👎!!!

Here is the first…

Yes, I have been enjoying The Riyria Chronicles by Michael J Sullivan so much that I had to read the third book in the series: The Death of Dulgath.

This is the blurb…

“Three times they tried to kill her. Then a professional was hired. So was Riyria.
When the last member of the oldest noble family in Avryn is targeted for assassination, Riyria is hired to foil the plot. Three years have passed since the war-weary mercenary Hadrian and the cynical ex-assassin Royce joined forces to start life as rogues-for-hire. Things have gone well enough until they’re asked to help prevent a murder. Now they must venture into an ancient corner of the world to save a mysterious woman who knows more about Royce than is safe and cares less about herself than is sane.

From the best-selling author of The Riyria Revelations comes the third installment of The Riyria Chronicles. Although part of a series, it’s designed to thrill both new readers looking for fun, fast-paced fantasy and Riyria veterans wishing to reunite with old friends.”

For me, this was the best book in the series so far and worth the full five stars on Goodreads. Here is my response from that site:

The Death of Dulgath by Michael J. Sullivan
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I think this must be my favourite of the series so far, and I will definitely carry on reading. These books are a brilliant mix of terrific characters, an ingenious plot, dark humour and a little magic “something” that makes them gripping and unputdownable! Out two heroes become embroiled in a dark mystery with some new and interesting characters. Does everything turn out OK? Well, you would have to read these books yourself to find out!

Now, I can’t wait to read the next book!

View all my reviews

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After that I thought that I would take a short break from the series and try something new…

My chosen book was The Cold Call Killer by Emmy Ellis, #01 DI Bethany Smith. Let’s have the blurb…

““Hello?”
“Good afternoon. I’m calling from Bishway Solutions, and I’d like to offer you a free trial for justice served—”
“Haven’t you got anything better to do than phone people up, bugging them to—”
“Haven’t you got anything better to do than having an affair?”
“Who the hell is this?”
“You need to watch your back.”

The line goes dead.

Detective Bethany Smith is called out to 21 Bladen Avenue, the home of Jason and Georgia Holt.

It’s one of the worst murder scenes she’s ever seen.

In the middle of the living room, Jason lies motionless in front of the fireplace. He’s been opened up like a can of tuna. His innards have been removed. His face is pulp.

Jason’s wife found him. No one should ever have to see their spouse like that.

Days later, in another home across the city, a young woman answers the “How does it feel to have killed someone while you’re in the process of removing their baby?”

It’s the last call she’ll take.

An exhilarating crime thriller with a shocking ending you won’t see coming.”

I thought that seemed interesting and readers had rated it as 4.16 stars on Goodreads, so I downloaded it to my iPad’s Kindle app. Now I am going to write my response here as I don’t want to put it on Goodreads:

”To be quite honest, this is one of the worst crime books that I have ever read. Judging by online reviews and ratings, I am in a minority, but I can see that there are some people who agree with me. The writing is clunky and basic, the main characters are not well described, and the plot is illogical and over the top. The murders are gruesome and almost ridiculous. So much is piled on and on that I, as the poor reader, felt overwhelmed. There is no mystery in the book because we know who the murderer is from the beginning.

Why did I waste my precious reading time with this? I have no idea!”

No, I won’t be reading more books in the series!

For my next read I have chosen a book recommended by a Facebook fantasy readers group. I hope this one is worth my time. I will let you know in next week’s post.

Happy Reading to you all!

Love and best wishes,

Anne

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