Showing posts with label Carolyn Crane. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Carolyn Crane. Show all posts

Saturday, 25 July 2015

Review: Devil's Luck - Carolyn Crane

A standalone novella from the Disillusionists world (32K words)
This new edition contains an epilogue.

THERE’S A THIN LINE BETWEEN LOVE AND DOOM.

No wager is too outrageous for Simon Fitzgerald, the most reckless of the Disillusionists. His dark secrets drive him to take increasingly extreme risks, but he’s never lived so quite so dangerously as when he hooks up with Midcity’s most powerful prognosticator.

Fawna Brady is tormented by the destinies she sees for those around her. To Fawna, knowledge of the future is a cage she’d do anything to escape. She’s stunned to discover a taste of the freedom for which she yearns at the side of Simon, the one person in the world who despises everything she is, everything she stands for.

Simon’s defiant attitude toward destiny captivates Fawna, but will her love destroy him? And will Simon rush headlong into the delicious doom she offers?

Disillusionists Trilogy:
Mind Games
Double Cross
Kitten-Tiger and the Monk (Novella)
Head Rush
Devil's Luck (Novella)

Visit Carolyn Crane's website for more information

Review:
Simon was one of my favourite characters throughout the Disillusionists trilogy so I was really excited to find out that Carolyn Crane had given him his own story. When I first saw he was being paired up with Fawna I wasn't convinced though, the two of them are so different that I wasn't sure what they would really see in each other but I actually think that's what made them work so well.

We already know how reckless Simon is, he is constantly taking risks and putting himself in harm's way but we never really understood why so it was great to get a bit of his back story. I'm not going to go into details but it was surprisingly emotional. Fawna is a character we didn't know much about and to be honest I'd still like to learn more about where she spent her missing years but I found myself really liking her in this story. She tries so hard not to use her gift of seeing the future but it's not easy to resist and it was interesting to see her fighting herself not to check the fate of people she encountered.

Simon and Fawna start as enemies, Simon has a very good reason for not wanting to know the future and Fawna is unable to stop looking at it so they're more natural enemies than lovers. Their differences actually work for them though, they have such a completely different outlook on things and Simon was great at teaching Fawna to live in the present and just enjoy life rather than worry about what fate might be about to throw at her later. Things move fairly quickly between then and as much as I would have loved a longer story with them spending more time getting to know each other I still really enjoyed this novella.

Devil's Luck was a nice addition to the Disillusionists trilogy & I liked it much more than the first novella starring Sophia. There are actually a few other characters who I would love to read stories about so it would be great if Carolyn Crane decided to give us a story about Shelby, Carter or any of the others but it's been such a long time since this was published that I think it's unlikely. I'll definitely be keeping an eye out for her future publications though.

Source: Purchased

Other Reviews:
If you have reviewed this book on your blog please leave a link to your review in the comments & I'll add the link here.

Kindle:

Review: Head Rush - Carolyn Crane

Justine Jones faces her ultimate enemy: herself.

In an attempt to put her unhappy past behind her, Justine Jones throws herself into nursing school and planning her wedding to Otto Sanchez, the man of her dreams. But something is off. Random details aren’t adding up… and is it her imagination, or are her friends and fiancĂ© keeping secrets from her? And what’s with the strange sense of unease, and her odd new headaches?

Justine tries to stay upbeat as Midcity cowers under martial law, sleepwalking cannibals, and a mysterious rash of paranormal copycat violence, but her search for answers leads her into the most dangerous mind game yet.

With the help of unlikely allies, including her paranoid dad and best frenemy Simon, Justine fights her ultimate foe… and unravels the most startling mystery of all.

Disillusionists Trilogy:
Mind Games
Double Cross
Kitten-Tiger and the Monk (Novella)
Head Rush
Devil's Luck (Novella)

Visit Carolyn Crane's website for more information

Review:
Please be aware that although this review will be spoiler free for Head Rush it will contain spoilers for previous books so please don't carry on reading if you're not up to date with the series.

After the horrendous cliffhanger at the end of Double Cross I was incredibly relieved that I didn't have to wait a year for the release of Head Rush and I was able to dive straight into the story to find out what happens next. I just couldn't believe it, after all that time I've spent waiting for Justine to realise that Packard was the one and then Otto goes and has her memory wiped! How could he do that? The complete and utter bastard! I'll admit I was a bit scared when I picked up this book, I really worried that we'd have another whole book of Justine fighting her feelings for Packard and waxing on about how wonderful Otto is. Luckily that isn't quite what happens but you're just going to have to read it for yourself to find out what we get instead.

I've had a bit of a rocky relationship with Justine throughout the series, at first I found her hypochondria quite endearing and I definitely love that she's such a unique character but eventually her inner monologue started to get on my nerves and I spent a fair chunk of both the first two books wanting to shake some sense into her. Luckily she started to improve a lot at the end of Double Cross and I actually found myself liking her all the way through this story. After brutally murdering Avery Otto had Justine's memory revised so that she now believes she watched Packard commit the crime, but even though she saw it with her own two eyes her heart struggles to accept that version of events. Deep down she is certain that Packard could never do something like that and it's left her incredibly confused. Otto has used Justine's vulnerability to talk her into marrying him and with the wedding fast approaching she is going to have to look deep inside herself and try to decide what she really wants from life.

It was really interesting to see the effects the revision had on Justine, she seemed much more vulnerable in this instalment but at the same time she finds an inner strength I wasn't sure she actually had. When she sets her mind to find out the truth she really comes into her own and I found it very easy to root for her. Of course I've loved Packard from the beginning, even when he was being a manipulative bastard, so I was pleased by how much time we got to spend with him in this book. There were some fantastic scenes with him that definitely made me love him more than ever. Shelby is still recovering from a broken heart but I love the friendship between her and Justine. Shelby is always a voice of reason who will tell Justine exactly what she needs to hear and she is always there for her friend which is wonderful to see. Simon has made me laugh throughout the whole series but he outdid himself here, I'm just going to tell you to watch out for the scene when they're shopping for bridesmaid dresses because it was absolutely hilarious!

Overall I thought Head Rush was a great conclusion to the trilogy but I was a little disappointed that a couple of plot threads were left open. A few things were slightly rushed towards the end and I think adding a couple more chapters could have tied it all together perfectly. Either way this is a trilogy I'd be happy to recommend, it's like nothing else I've read and the idea of the Disillusionists is completely unique. I'll definitely be looking out for more from this author in the future and I'd be thrilled if she decided to revisit these characters again in the future.

Source: Purchased

Other Reviews:
If you have reviewed this book on your blog please leave a link to your review in the comments & I'll add the link here.

Paperback / Kindle:

Friday, 24 July 2015

Review: Kitten-Tiger and the Monk - Carolyn Crane

**Originally published in the Wild & Steamy Anthology**

A stand-alone novella from the world of the Disillusionists! (2.5 in chronological order)

Sophia Sidway, Midcity’s most dangerous memory revisionist, seeks out the mysterious Monk in the wasteland beneath the Tangle turnpike. She's hoping for redemption…but it turns out that the Monk is not very pious at all...and there is something very strange about that turnpike.

Disillusionists Trilogy:
Mind Games
Double Cross
Kitten-Tiger and the Monk (Novella)
Head Rush
Devil's Luck (Novella)

Visit Carolyn Crane's website for more information

Review:
Kitten-Tiger and the Monk is a novella set in the world of the Disillusionists, it fits into the series timeline between Double Cross and Head Rush and features memory revisionist Sophia as the main character. The novella was originally included in the Wild & Steamy anthology and is now available as a separate ebook.

It's probably no surprise if I tell you that Sophia has never been one of my favourite characters, especially to anyone who saw her actions at the end of Double Cross. I have to admit I wasn't sure whether to even read this novella but my series OCD insists on reading stories in order and I couldn't quite bring myself to skip it. To be honest I think I could have happily skipped this completely if it hadn't been for the introduction of a new HighCap character, Robert, but as it goes I liked him enough that this novella wasn't a complete waste of time.

Sophia is a powerful memory revisionist but she is ashamed of her actions and wants to change so she goes in search of the Monk, one of the most dangerous members of Packard's team, in the hope that he will disillusion her. Her journey to find the Monk brings her back in contact with her childhood sweetheart, the man she betrayed and abandoned but also the man she never forgot.

I had several issues with this novella, the main one being Sophia's wish to be disillusioned. Surely if she realises her actions have been misguided she should suck it up, apologise and try to make things right with her victims? It's a simple matter of choosing to do the right thing and I lost all respect for her because she wants someone else to make changing her behaviour easy for her. Basically I see it as her yet again taking the easy way out and it made me dislike her even more than I did at the end of Double Cross (which took some doing I can tell you!).

Robert was actually a really sweet guy but considering the way Sophia had treated him in the past I found it pretty hard to believe that he would ever be able to forgive her. I actually ended up feeling sorry for him that he got stuck with such a bitch for a girlfriend! He deserves so much better and I'd much rather have seen him with someone nice like Shelby. The best part of this novella, for me, was seeing someone with the same kind of abilities as Otto but who used them in such a different way. It was an interesting contrast and I'm hoping we get to see more of Robert in the final book, Head Rush.

Source: Purchased

Other Reviews:
If you have reviewed this book on your blog please leave a link to your review in the comments & I'll add the link here.

Kindle:

Review: Double Cross - Carolyn Crane

Some secrets come back to haunt. Others come to kill.

Justine Jones lived her life as a fearful hypochondriac until she was lured into the web of a mysterious mastermind named Packard, who gifts her with extraordinary mental powers - dooming her to fight Midcity's shadowy war on paranormal crime in order to find the peace she so desperately craves.

But now serial killers with unheard-of skills are terrorising the most powerful beings in Midcity, including mastermind Packard and his oldest friend and worst enemy, Otto Sanchez, who has the ability to bend matter itself to his will.

As the body count grows, Justne faces a crisis of conscience as she tests the limits of her new powers and faces an impossible choice between two flawed but brilliant men - one on a journey of redemption, the other descending into a pit of moral depravity.

Disillusionists Trilogy:
Mind Games
Double Cross
Kitten-Tiger and the Monk (Novella)
Head Rush
Devil's Luck (Novella)

Visit Carolyn Crane's website for more information

Review:
After having mixed feelings about Mind Games I was a little nervous about picking up Double Cross but at the same time I was incredibly intrigued by the Disillusionists and I wanted to see how things played out for Justine. I have to admit I came close to DNFing this in the first half, Justine's inner monologue was irritating me by the end of the first book and I was about ready to throw my kindle across the room by the middle of this one. I was just so incredibly frustrated that she hadn't seemed to learn anything from her relationship with Cubby and she was still clinging to Otto because he was what she considered the perfect boyfriend to be. It is so completely obvious to everyone that there is a connection between her and Packard, he's the one she is constantly thinking about, he's the one she sparks off of and he's the one who knows not only what she wants but also what she needs. I get why she finds it hard to trust him, honestly I do, especially after the way he tricked her in the first book, but at the same time I can't help but root for him.

Anyway, I came very close to giving up on this book but I'm so glad that I didn't because the last third of the book was everything I'd hoped it would be and then some. I can't really go into much detail without giving spoilers but I loved seeing Justine finally start to grow up. She starts to realise that everything isn't as black and white as she always thought it was and she actually starts to look at the reasoning behind both Packard and Otto's behaviour. Then you have the twist at the end that absolutely shocked the hell out of me, I never would have seen it coming and I absolutely HAVE to read Head Rush immediately to find out what the hell happens next.

I still think it was the side characters that stole the show in this book though. I adore the scenes with Packard, Shelby is someone I want to be friends with and Simon makes me laugh out loud constantly. The world of the Disillusionists is becoming more detailed, we get to find out more about the different kinds of abilities that HighCaps have and we see more of the history between Packard and Otto. There is a lot of bad blood between them but I don't trust Otto's version of events for a second and I think there is still a lot more to the story that we've yet to uncover. I have so many unanswered questions and I can't wait to get the answers.

Source: Purchased

Other Reviews:
If you have reviewed this book on your blog please leave a link to your review in the comments & I'll add the link here.

Paperback / Kindle:

Thursday, 23 July 2015

Review: Mind Games - Carolyn Crane

Justine knows she's going to die. Any second now.

Justine Jones has a secret. A hardcore hypochondriac, she's convinced a blood vessel is about to burst in her brain. Then, out of the blue, a startlingly handsome man named Packard peers into Justine's soul and invites her to join his private crime-fighting team. It's a once-in-a-lifetime deal. With a little of Packard's hands-on training, Justine can weaponize her neurosis, turning it outward on Midcity's worst criminals, and finally get the freedom from fear she's always craved. End of problem.

Or is it? In Midcity, a dashing police chief is fighting a unique breed of outlaw with more than human powers. And while Justine's first missions, including one against a nymphomaniac husband-killer, are thrilling successes, there is more to Packard than meets the eye. Soon, while battling her attraction to two very different men, Justine is plunging deeper into a world of wizardry, eroticism, and cosmic secrets, With Packard's help, Justine has freed herself from her madness - only to discover a reality more frightening than anyone's worst fears.

Disillusionists Trilogy:
Mind Games
Double Cross
Kitten-Tiger and the Monk (Novella)
Head Rush
Devil's Luck (Novella)

Visit Carolyn Crane's website for more information

Review:
Mind Games is the first book in Carolyn Crane's Disillusionists trilogy and I have to give props to the author for coming up with such a unique concept. The Disillusionists are a great group of anti-heroes, they all have unique abilities and together they have formed a psychic hit squad who take down the bad guys by fundamentally changing them on a psychic level. They can take your fears and insecurities and ramp them up to turn you into a complete basket case and the results are quite surprising. I still think this is a moral grey area and I'm not convinced that the punishment is always enough considering the crimes committed by some of the people they go after but it was an incredibly interesting idea and I really enjoyed seeing the team put it into practice.

Justine is the newest member of the group, a self confessed hypochondriac she is more than a little obsessed with her impending death. She is convinced that she is about to have a brain aneurysm and that fear effects everything about her day to day life, she is always on the edge of terror and she suffers with frequent panic attacks. People she meets are very understanding in the beginning but constant trips to the emergency room quickly start to wear thin and she struggles to build lasting relationships. When Packard offers Justine the chance at a normal life she is sceptical but grabs it with both hands. Packard teaches Justine to channel her fears into other people and for the first time in years she knows what it is like to not be afraid. Unfortunately, there are consequences to using her abilities that Packard didn't bother to explain upfront and she now finds herself in a very difficult position.

I loved how different Justine is to normal UF heroines, she is a completely crazy in a lot of ways and it was actually kind of hilarious watching her fears spiral out of control as an attack came on. I was surprised at how easy it was to relate to her worries but I think we've all had that moment when we're convinced something is going awfully wrong with our bodies, luckily I don't have the same fears as Justine though because that's just a recipe for madness. I enjoyed the interactions between Justine and the rest of the group, the side characters were all really interesting and I'm looking forward to getting to know them better. It was nice to see a positive female friendship between Justine and Shelby but I think my favourite character was Packard. You know from quite early on that he's keeping secrets and I didn't always agree with the choices he made but I loved him anyway and I really liked the chemistry between him and Justine. I'm definitely rooting for them as a couple even though things aren't looking positive right now.

I did have a few issues with the story though, as much as I liked Justine in the beginning I have to admit that she had started to get on my nerves by the end of the book. It wasn't just her neurosis that irritated me but her attitude to men and relationships, I didn't understand her obsession with her ex-boyfriend Cubby (ridiculous name by the way!) and I thought they were a really ill suited couple so her constantly talking about him was overkill. There was also a particular scene with one of their targets that initially seemed to come out of nowhere but was then over with just as quickly, I felt it should have left Justine feeling at least a little traumatised but she seemed to forget all about it within a few pages. Then you have the obligatory love triangle and I wasn't impressed with the introduction of Otto. To be honest he just creeped me out from the moment he stepped onto the page and the interactions between them turned my stomach. I was really disappointed with a particular turn the story took and there was one scene that left me feeling more than a little bit sick.

Although there were parts of the story that didn't work for me I'm still curious enough about the Disillusionists that I want to carry on reading the series so I'm planning on picking up the sequel, Double Cross, as soon as I finish writing this review. I have high hopes for the series and am keeping my fingers crossed that things take a turn for the better in the next book.

Source: Purchased

Other Reviews:
If you have reviewed this book on your blog please leave a link to your review in the comments & I'll add the link here.

Paperback / Kindle:

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