Review: Engrossing Christmas-y stories
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 01 3, 2014
All three of these are sci-fi/fantasy stories set near Christmas-time. They're all different flavors from each other. I enjoyed each story for different reasons and I felt like I should have given myself a break in between each one because it was hard to jump right in to a completely different story after finishing one.Upon A Midnight by C.L. Wilson, 5 starsThis one is more of a supernatural/urban fantasy style. Contemporary, except with angels and other supernatural powers. The story is totally engrossing and very emotionally gripping. I was crying within the first five pages and almost didn't stop until the end. C.L. Wilson has this way of writing that overflows both your heart and mind. The characters are so caring and compassionate, but need each other to be complete. Some of the themes felt very religious in nature (part and parcel with the Christmas and the angels theme), but other parts completely turned expected religious norms on their heads. I could go on for ages saying what I enjoyed about this story, but I'd end up giving away too much. For this story alone, the book is worth your purchase.Let It Snow by Erica Ridley, 4 starsThis was more of a silly book. The characters don't exactly take themselves seriously. It was fun to read, but coming right off a heavy story like Upon A Midnight, it felt like whiplash. I should have given myself a day before I started this one. Lance is a treasure hunter who decides he's going to get this treasure from an enspelled castle to pay off the bounty on his head. Marigold has been trapped in the castle for the last 600 years. It was quite a puzzle over how to break the spell. I had bunches of guesses as I read and still didn't get it right so A+ on the riddle. Lance and Marigold were fun characters and I liked how they got along and cared about each other.Snowman by Elissa Wilds, 4 starsAn alien race who founded the human race now at odds with itself over the destruction of humanity. One of the rebels protecting the humans saves a woman from his own kind. He finds her to have strong recessive genes of his people and that's why she's always been an outcast on earth. Love and sex ensue. This book was the shortest of the three and really constrained since they spent all their time in a cabin during a snowstorm. I enjoyed it but felt like I barely got a taste of the characters and the world building.I received a complementary ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.