Archive for the ‘3 Whip Review’ Category

The Amethyst Eye

by Julia Talbot

Publisher: Torquere Books
ISBN: 978-1-61040-157-9

Jared might be physically blind, but he has the amethyst eye his granny gave him, and there are things he can see perfectly well. When a mysterious stranger starts following him around the city, Jared knows that changes are coming, and he might just be looking forward to the excitement. Dante is more than willing to give Jared what he needs. It’s been a long time since anyone has seen Dante for what he really is, and he knows it might be Jared, not the eye, who has all the magic he wants.

The Amethyst Eye by Julia Talbot

Book Review by Jasmine

3/4/5 Whips in the Backseat

The Amethyst Eye by Julia Talbot is a book that needed multiple ratings in my opinion. Why you ask? Well because elements were great while others were lacking. The characters: Engaging, well developed emotionally. I felt for them and the attraction between them was fast and furious.  Another thing to like – the scenes between Jared and Dante are Hot Hot HOT! So on that front there was not a thing missing – 5/5

World building? Believability? 3/5 – Again you ask why? Well the magic and the blood sucker and the lack of explanation for any of those things. What does it mean to be a vampire in this world? Are they just flying below the radar? Jared isn’t interested enough to ask? What happens when you walk hand in hand into the sunset? I was left with a lot of questions that did not match up with the happy reader feeling I got from the emotions between characters at their immediate attraction in The Amethyst eye.

So in the end – the average is 4/5 whips in the Backseat

Love Eternal

by Wayne Mansfield
Torquere Press

Evan is a man lost in the modern world. He has a job, a house, and a best friend. He also has a hole in his soul that he hadn’t even realized was there until one night he meets a mysterious stranger, lurking in the shadows of a tree-lined lane where men meet for sex.

There is something striking and a little terrifying about this stranger. Evan’s initial intrigue is soon compounded when he discovers that they have met before. A long time ago. And that they used to be lovers. When the memory is awakened in Evan, his ordinary life is transformed. The hole in his soul is filled. But Evan can’t know how completely his life is about to change once more.

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Love Eternal by Wayne Mansfield

Review by Missy

3.5 Whips in the Backseat

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This was an interesting mix of old school charm and vulgarity.  Love Eternal has the feel of the classic writing style that charmed me, very old world.  Wayne Mansfield had me thoroughly engaged as the story moved on.  Our main character Evan has a somewhat reclusive life.  He works a 9-5 and hates Mondays.  All in all a self-contained and seemingly quiet man who likes to take walks, and stroll through an illicit lane where men meet.   And where he is reunited with his immortal lover.

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Sebastian is a vampire, weighting 1,500 for the reincarnation of his love.  I get it, though that much patience and waiting is quite a feat.  Yet the story keeps the reader at a distance.  In part it is the style of writing, in part it is the fact that we are never invited into Sebastian’s world.  There is no discussion of him as a vampire, how that effects his relations ship with Evan.  At the end he lets slip that to survive he has to kill people which is then blown by a bit more.  So how am I supposed to feel about Sebastian?  He is confessing to be a killer.  He tells us he is dead and reanimated by a virus.  I was having flashes of Resident Evil in my mind.

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The stylized writing is not what threw me out of the story however.  It was the out of character and pretty vulgar language used during the intimate scenes that leaves me with my rating.  The beginning of the story is stylized and eloquent not that the style will appeal  to all readers – So I STRONGLY recommend reading the excerpt to get a feel for the tone.   When Sebatian and Evan get together the story goes for a bit of a loop.  To me as a reader the use of the term bowels is less then sexy.  Some of the other lines during the intimate moments also turned me off in word choice and the incongruity of tone after a well paced opening.  I find myself unable to recommend the title, or not recommend it.

Please share your thoughts on the title if you have read it.  Perhaps I was sensitive about the vocabulary and others were not

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Thanks for reading.

Missy

Glad Hands

By: Angelia Sparrow, Naomi Brooks

Synopsis from Ellora’s Cave

Chuck rolls his rig across the no-longer-United States, from Montana to Arkansas. He expects a fast run with no complications. What he doesn’t expect is Seven, a pretty blue-eyed drifter who turns not only his head but makes his blood boil.

His gayness tattooed into his very skin, Seven needs Chuck’s help to escape the very limited life Heartland forces upon him. And when the even more repressive Confederated States take an interest, Chuck and Seven are in for the ride of their lives.

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Glad Hands by: Angelia Sparrow, Naomi Brooks

Review by Missy

3/5 Whips in the Backseat

There are a lot of things I liked about this book and that attracted me to the story when I read the synopsis and excerpt.  We find ourselves with a truck driver in an America divided.  I mean by more then our politics and party lines that might be dividing us currently.  We are talking Iron Curtain type boarders here.  So in a country come undone there is left this scary place where you have to worry about breaking laws you did not know existed or facing prejudices made legal like those against Homosexuality that this book’s characters face.

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It is this conflict and tension that caused me to say, me, me, I want that one to review please!  Sadly the paragraph I just wrote leads you to believe there is more depth to the story then actually develops.  We have an interesting world.  Chuck, one of our main characters has to almost go into “Enemy Territory” with his truck – and quite frankly the amount of detail about the truck and the rig and the hitch and the coupling and the gear shift really detracted from the depth of the world, dramatic moments, and the experience of being there with the characters.  In a very interesting locale the focus of the description was the same as we see today Big Rig truck.

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I think my car runs by magic, should I understand it better?  Likely.  Do I care?  If I did I would read the manual front to back and then maybe take an automotive class.  I put in gas, get the oil changed, and turn the key.  I drive an automatic and I have relied on the kindness of strangers in the past when it came to things like checking my oil.  After reading this book I feel there is a good possibility I could use it as a manual to operate an 18wheeler all on my own.  But those parts were on par with reading my car manual too.

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So back to the story, putting aside the technical detail I want to address the Romance.  Our two heros Chuck and Seven are an interesting match.  Seven stranded in a part of the country where they try to cure homosexuality with shock therapy is the kind of fascinating, broken character that makes an alternative near future like this interesting and accessible.  Chuck comes from a more liberal area of the country and the scenes with them together have the potential to really get to the guts of the matter.  Unfortunately the story has one of the biggest No-No’s that a Romance can have.  The main characters are always APART!

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It takes our boys forever to meet – at which point my eyes are glazed.  Then they get separated.  During the separation my eyes glaze again.  Then there is the great build up- a kinda universal question.  After a great big adventure, does the relationship last?  They even mention it at the end of the movie Speed.  I get two people being together while the adrenaline is pumping, but what happens AFTER?  I need to believe the HEA or the Romance does not really work for me and if that element is lacking the story tends to end on a hollow note.

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For a quick read, some action, adventure, a little pulse pounding reading, this was an okay tale.  I warn you though, if you are looking for more of a romance and connection between heroes, Glad Hands just does not seem to have enough face time between Chuck and Seven to fit that bill.