Review

Mercenary Instinct (The Mandrake Company #1) By: Ruby Lionsdrake

Mercenary Instinct

Mercenary Instinct (The Mandrake Company #1) By: Ruby Lionsdrake

Plot:

Skulking around in the ruins on a planet swarming with treasure hunters, slavers, and bounty hunters isn’t good for one’s health. But Ankari Markovich needs a few archaeological samples for her latest business venture, a venture that might prove lucrative enough to move her family off the impoverished planet where she grew up. Unfortunately, she has no sooner collected her samples than she’s captured by a band of brawny mercenaries. The captain might be handsome, but he’s intent on turning her over to some finance lord who has, for reasons unknown, put a bounty on her head, a ridiculously large one at that. If she can’t figure out a way to escape before she’s delivered to the lord’s home world, she could be forced into a life of indentured servitude—or worse. Captain Viktor Mandrake doesn’t usually take on piddling bounty hunting gigs, but when his intelligence officer informs him of a criminal on a nearby planet, he decides it wouldn’t hurt to take a shuttle down to collect the woman. But Ankari Markovich is trouble from the start, nearly eluding his elite forces, then fighting and tricking his people left and right. He finds himself admiring her spirit, but according to her warrant, she’s a criminal. The safest thing is to keep her in the brig and ignore her until she can be handed off to the man who wants her. But the situation grows more complicated when other bounty hunters show up, wanting to claim Ankari for themselves. Thanks to this woman, Viktor’s ship is in danger, his crew members are going missing, and he’s fighting enemies he never asked for in a jungle in the middle of a hurricane. He’s either going to strangle Ankari… or fall in love. Either scenario could get him killed.
Review:

I was not expecting to like this so much. It was really good and a fun read. I liked the characters and thought the world was interesting. I could see some Star Wars and Indiana Jones influence, which I of course loved, and I loved how strong the female lead was.

By the end of the book the couple was together, but nothing final, so there might be more about them in the future. The man was a bit monotone, but it was believable with his background. I did like the fact that he didn’t expect his crew to follow him in questionable decisions.

I’m looking forward to reading more about The Mandrake Company and I’ve already got the next book queued up.

4.5/5

Ip Man 3 (2015)

Ip Man 3

Ip Man 3 (2015)

Director:

Wilson Yip

Starring:

Donnie Yen

Lynn Hung

Jin Zhang

Mike Tyson

Plot:

When a band of brutal gangsters led by a crooked property developer make a play to take over the city, Master Ip is forced to take a stand.

Review:

It’s been a while since I watched the first Ip Man movies and all I really remember is that I liked them and that Donnie Yen was awesome.

Man I really hope they utilize him correctly in Rogue One. Please don’t screw that up.

Anyway, the last few fight scenes in this movie were great, the first ones were good as well just didn’t quiet do it for me. Maybe because Master Ip is supposed to be getting old but his punches didn’t have that much power, seemingly.

Didn’t like the story in this movie, it was way too emotional. I get that this is supposed to be about a real man’s life, but I could have done without the weepy story line. I don’t like crying when I watch an action movie.

I need to watch the other movies before I give any kind of order of preference, but more than likely this will be my least favorite.

3.5/5

The Passenger By: Lisa Lutz

the-passenger-lisa-lutz

The Passenger By: Lisa Lutz

Plot:

From the author of the New York Times bestselling Spellman Files series, Lisa Lutz’s latest blistering thriller is about a woman who creates and sheds new identities as she crisscrosses the country to escape her past: you’ll want to buckle up for the ride!

In case you were wondering, I didn’t do it. I didn’t have anything to do with Frank’s death. I don’t have an alibi, so you’ll have to take my word for it…

Forty-eight hours after leaving her husband’s body at the base of the stairs, Tanya Dubois cashes in her credit cards, dyes her hair brown, demands a new name from a shadowy voice over the phone, and flees town. It’s not the first time. She meets Blue, a female bartender who recognizes the hunted look in a fugitive’s eyes and offers her a place to stay. With dwindling choices, Tanya-now-Amelia accepts. An uneasy―and dangerous―alliance is born.

It’s almost impossible to live off the grid today, but Amelia-now-Debra and Blue have the courage, the ingenuity, and the desperation, to try. Hopscotching from city to city, Debra especially is chased by a very dark secret…can she outrun her past? With heart-stopping escapes and devious deceptions, The Passenger is an amazing psychological thriller about defining yourself while you pursue your path to survival. One thing is certain: the ride will leave you breathless.

Review:

I really loved the first few books in the Spellman Files, enough that Lisa Lutz almost became a must buy for me. However, I read her book Head you Lose and honestly didn’t like it too much. After reading the last Spellman Files book and The Passenger I think I know why Lutz isn’t a must buy for me. Her characters are very loose and fast with their morals.

The main character, that has several names, is a victim and at first I felt sorry for her. Something had clearly gone wrong for her and it was bad and not her fault, but the more I got to know the character the more I didn’t care. She was just so stupid. Part of that was because she was a teenager when event first happened, and other things I’m not going to go too into, but the book happened like ten years later. How had she not gotten any smarter?

At one point the main character has someone hold her up and she thinks of them as a thief, at no point in her journey does she really acknowledge all the bad she’s done. She is constantly defending her actions and even talks about the guilt she feels, but it doesn’t change anything for her. She still keeps doing the wrong things. It’s annoying.

I was disappointed by the story and I thought the ending was anti-climactic. Also reading the book blurb now I realize it’s misleading and I assumed a lot from it. Oh well.

2/5

Heart of Steel (The Iron Seas #2) By: Meljean Brook

Heart-of-Steel

Heart of Steel (The Iron Seas #2) By: Meljean Brook

Plot:

The Iron Duke introduced the gritty, alluring adventure of the Iron Seas. Now, Meljean Brook returns to the world where nanotech fuses with Victorian sensibilities—and steam. As the mercenary captain of Lady Corsair, Yasmeen has learned to keep her heart as cold as steel, her only loyalty bound to her ship and her crew. So when a man who once tried to seize her airship returns from the dead, Yasmeen will be damned if she gives him another opportunity to take control. Treasure hunter Archimedes Fox isn’t interested in Lady Corsair—he wants her coldhearted captain and the valuable da Vinci sketch she stole from him. To reclaim it, Archimedes is determined to seduce the stubborn woman who once tossed him to a ravenous pack of zombies, but she’s no easy conquest. When da Vinci’s sketch attracts a dangerous amount of attention, Yasmeen and Archimedes journey to Horde-occupied Morocco—and straight into their enemy’s hands. But as they fight to save themselves and a city on the brink of rebellion, the greatest peril Yasmeen faces is from the man who seeks to melt her icy heart.

Review:

Wow, those were some steamy sex scenes. Normally I end up skipping around those but holy cow, nice. They weren’t in your face too much, but they were hot.

Anyway, I read The Iron Duke, the first book in this series in 2012, loved it and then I don’t know what happened. This book has been on my kindle since then and I just didn’t read it. Not sure why because I ended up loving it.

Yasmeen was awesome as a heroine, she was so hard and filled with purpose. She knew what to do and did it, never backing down. I loved her. Archimedes was just as awesome because he recognized her strength and while he still wanted to protect her he didn’t try and take away any of her power. He accepted her for who she was and loved her because of it. I wish there were more books with couples like this cause they were incredible.

As much as I would love to jump into the next book in this series, I just bought a new phone and buying a kindle book for $7.99 is too much, so I’m having to wait on the library.

5/5

A Confusion of Princes By: Garth Nix

a-confusion-of-princes

A Confusion of Princes By: Garth Nix

Plot:

A grand adventure that spans galaxies and lifetimes, A Confusion of Princes is a page-turning thriller, a tender romance, and a powerful exploration of what it means to be human. includes exclusive bonus Garth Nix short story ‘Master Haddad’s Holiday’. I have died three times, and three times been reborn, though I am not yet twenty in the old earth years by which it is still the fashion to measure time. This is the story of my three deaths, and my life between. My name is Khemri. Taken from his parents as a child and equipped with biological and technological improvements, Khemri is now an enhanced human being, trained and prepared for the glory of becoming a Prince of the Empire. Not to mention the ultimate glory: should he die, and be deemed worthy, he will be reborn…Which is just as well, because no sooner has Prince Khemri graduated to full Princehood than he learns the terrible truth behind the Empire: there are ten million princes, and all of them want each other dead.

Review:

It took a while for me to get into this book, mainly because it had a teenage boy as the protagonist. I’m trying to steer clear of books with teenage boys as leads because I seriously cannot relate to them at all, but this was by Garth Nix, I had to read it.

The space setting was really cool and there was a LOT of tech and politics and stuff going on. The world was interesting, though, a bit more hopeless than I like.

Khemri was everything that I hope my children aren’t. Thankfully he grew as a character and that’s what made this book worthwhile. If he’d stayed how he was or only slightly changed it wouldn’t have been worth it, but he did.

Not my favorite Nix book, but it wasn’t bad, it’s also a standalone which feels rare now a days.

3/5