We’ve changed things up with the IWSG Book Club, featuring books from members.

The books for October were books from our most senior members on the IWSG sign-up list.

About the Book

The ship of legends…
The future is set for Lt. Commander Aden Pendar, son of a Hyrathian Duke. Poised to secure his own command and marriage to the queen’s daughter, he’ll stop at nothing to achieve his goals.
But when the Alliance denies Hyrath’s claim on the planet of Kavil and declares war on their world, Aden finds his plans in disarray. Entrenched in battle and told he won’t make captain, Aden’s world begins to collapse. How will he salvage his career and future during Hyrath’s darkest hour?
One chance remains–the Dragon. Lost many years prior, the legendary ship’s unique weapon is Hyrath’s only hope. Can Aden find the Dragon, save his people, and prove he’s capable of commanding his own ship?

Check it out on Goodreads.

My Review

I loved that dragons were as common as pigeons on the MC’s home planet. And they’re cute!

But there are punctuation issues: sometimes dialogue has no quotation marks to show that it’s dialogue, loads of inner monologue would have read easier in italics – especially as some of it seems to be conversation without quotation marks, etc.

It’s your basic space story about saving planets, fighting space battles, betrayal and love. It has all the beloved tropes of the space stories I grew up with (Star Trek, Star Wars, Star Gate, Battle Star Gallactica – and Avatar).

The legend around the ship, Dragon, is quite awesome. The reality, though, its origins are quite tragic.

I’m not a big fan of the MC, Aden. He’s so self-involved that he dismisses the feelings of others. And he’s so determined to marry the princess with her perfect blonde hair despite her having many suitors, that I want to shake him. I actually had trouble reading the book because of him.

“Hyranthians are nothing but a bunch of Ceteroll-drugged hypocrites who would rather exploit than understand.” This quote explains Aden’s home world perfectly.

What bugged me was that Aden was okay with an alien creature being enslaved but horrified by one of his own facing the same fate. And he cares more about completing his mission than protecting life.

I DNFed at the end of chapter 10 when this happened.

DNF

About the Book

Already Home
A Maguire’s Corner novel
Book 1 in the Maguire’s Corner series

Coffee shop owner Maggie Maguire doesn’t trust the new police chief her father hired to protect Maguire’s Corner. He’s a stranger, cold, bossy and annoyingly handsome. But, Maggie’s witnessed a serious crime and now someone’s trying to kill her. The man that aggravates her most might be the only one that can help her.

Police Chief Jack Munro likes his new job and his new town, and unfortunately, he also likes the stubborn but beautiful town sweetheart. His self-imposed hands-off Maggie policy is about to be put to the ultimate test when he must keep her close to protect her while he tracks down a ruthless killer.

Determined to ignore Jack’s charms, Maggie attempts to help him unravel the mystery but when their lives hang in the balance she must decide how much she’s willing to risk to save the man she suddenly can’t resist.

This book’s original title was Maguire’s Corner. The name was changed to Already Home when it was published a second time. This is its third venture out into the market. 

Check it out on Goodreads.

My Review

Let’s start with the cover: great abs, bad graphics. Romance novels can have great covers, too. Check out the top 100 in the Amazon store (or just my recent romance novel reviews). The abs on the cover scream steamy romance.

Next: the title “Already Home” suggests tender romance.

And then: why tell everyone between copyright and dedication that this is the third time the book has been published? “This is its third venture out into the market.” It’s also in the blurb. Why? If there are major changes, it’s a new edition.

Also: the blurb (if all the extraneous stuff is removed) reads good, and it is clearly romantic suspense.

Red flags. Why? Nothing matches. Honestly, I wouldn’t have bought this book if it hadn’t been a book club book.

Okay, I really love reading romance books. Any subgenre. Any century (though this one has fewer consent issues in the books than the previous century). Published in any way (trad or indie, paperback or ebook). So I have certain expectations where it comes to romance novels.

The cover, title and blurb aren’t the be-all and end-all, but they are important. Once I’ve bought a book, I don’t necessarily remember the blurb. But I do have the cover and title to remind me what the book is about before I start reading. This cover and blurb told me it would be a steamy tender romance. Cool.

But a couple of pages into the first chapter, the heroine is chasing a murderer (or at least a would-be murderer) in her car – putting herself needlessly in danger. From the mention of chasing taillights, I assume it’s at night. In a small town (gathered from the place’s name, not description). With the police on their way. And then the perp bumps her car when he starts chasing her.

Urgh!

I stopped reading right there. I understand the build-up for a feisty heroine, but this one has no survival instinct or common sense. I got an immediate dislike for the heroine. Which is bad. So this is a DNF for me.

DNF

Have you read these books? What do you think? Have you read anything by these authors before? What are your thoughts on book clubs?

*FYI, my reviews are my honest opinion and if something bothers me, I tell it straight. How else will anything change? My opinions are based on being a voracious reader and book buyer, not an attack on the author.*