Book Review: The Feast of the Drowned (Doctor Who: New Series Adventures #8)

The Feast of the Drowned by Stephen Cole
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

rating: 4.5 stars, rounded up ★★★★★
format: audiobook
genre: science fiction

disclaimer: For some reason, I repeatedly typed the title out as "The Feast of the Damned" which is why the url is like that. Sorry!

summary:

If you ever wanted an episode of Doctor Who, but every character is played by David Tennant, this audiobook is for you! The Feast of the Drowned is a short adventure about the Tenth Doctor and his companion Rose, who investigate a sunken Naval ship that Rose's friend's brother was on when disaster struck. After the sinking, ghostly apparitions of the victims begin appearing to their families, begging for help before "the feast."

pros:

• The audiobook is narrated by David Tennant, who reads the story with all of his enthusiasm and David Tennant-isms. It's funny listening to him jump from his native Scottish accent, to the Doctor's British accent, to a minor character's American accent, and back again. I think it would be impossible to be bored during anything read by him. I'm sure I would have gotten much better grades in school had my textbooks been narrated by him.

• I liked the spooky, mysterious story. It was a bit gorier than an episode of Doctor Who, though not in an overwhelming, horror way.

• There was a strong cast of new supporting characters.

cons:

• There wasn't much I could find wrong with this, except for my normal amount of annoyance at Mickey. It seemed like he was just sorta there, and that they plot could have been carried easily enough without him.
  
  

Sorry, Mickey.

overall thoughts:

This was a short, fun listen! I did pay $4.99 for it on iTunes, and while it was worth it, the price for such a short audiobook does not have me in too big of a rush to buy the rest of the books in the series, but I'm sure I will continue to listen to these in the future.

review cross-posted: Skyler St. Clair on Goodreads & Skyler's Bookshelf Reading Blog

applicable challenges:

Pick Your Poison Reading Challenge - Borrowing (a book with a character from a different book - The Doctor)
SFF Virtual Badge Collection - The Monster Badge

Book Review: Norse Mythology

Norse Mythology by Neil Gaiman
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

rating: 5 stars ★★★★★
format: audiobook
genre: fantasy, mythology, short stories

REVIEW COMING SOON

Review cross-posted: Skyler St. Clair on Goodreads & Skyler's Bookshelf Reading Blog

Applicable challenges:
Books in Wonderland Fantasy Reading Challenge - January (a fantasy book inspired by mythology)

Color Coded Reading Challenge - Black

Pick Your Poison Reading Challenge - Occupations (a book written by a college professor - professor of the arts at Bard College)

SFF Virtual Badge Collection - The Big Battle Badge 

Book Review: What Type of Witch Are You?

What Type of Witch Are You?: A Handbook of Over Thirty Types of Witchcraft for New Witches by Julie Wilder
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

rating: 4 stars ★★★★☆
format: ebook (Kindle Unlimited)
genre: no genre listed on Goodreads - I guess it's considered self-help or reference?

So, I've been feeling a bit more witchy than usual recently. ✨ I've been into crystals, spirit guides, smoke cleansing, and meditation for many years, but never called myself a "witch". I will admit I had a different view on witchcraft before reading this book-the picture in my head was a lot more dramatic than most witchcraft actually is. I learned that a lot of the things I had been doing for years was considered magic.

This book is an informative and easy read. There many more types of witches than I knew about, and the author is very adamant about not boxing yourself into a category. The book is written in a way that is open and accepting of everybody's differences. It's very "you do you". You chose what types of magic you want to practice and what you identify as. It's a great introduction for newbies such as myself and it got me excited to learn and experiment more.

🔮 pros:

• The author has a very open-minded view of things. While I was reading I felt as if I was being spoken to by a friend.

• The book does a good job of explaining cultural appropriation and teaching how to avoid it.

• A very easy read. I have trouble focusing and everything is broken up and organized in a way that helped me process everything, even at 4 am before I went to bed.
  
  

🔮 cons:

• The ebook contained a lot of links for the "White Witch Academy" but not a single one of them worked. It seems like the site might not exist anymore.
  
  

🔮 overall thoughts:

I felt warm and comforted while reading this. It's a great intro into witchcraft, though I wish the links worked because some of them were freebie offers.

Review cross-posted: Skyler St. Clair on Goodreads & Skyler's Bookshelf Reading Blog

Applicable challenges:
Pick Your Poison Reading Challenge - Shapes and Colors (a book with a shape on the cover that reminds you of a Rorschach test)

Book Review: Baby Got Bite

Baby Got Bite by Maz Maddox
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

rating: 4 stars ★★★★☆
format: ebook
genre: fantasy (paranormal), m/m romance

summary: This is a lovely bite-sized story about a vampire who has been hiding in his coffin after a bad break up in the nineties (admit it, we've all been there). He hates Halloween but agrees to go to a Halloween party that an attractive Starbucks barista invites him to. Somehow, I still can't escape "The Siren" while at home, trying to enjoy not making froofy drinks all day. It turns out, the barista is not all that the vampire, who goes by the alias "Vincent" after the Pulp Fiction character, thought he would be. Vincent finds it hard to fit in due to his 90's catch phrases and lack of current pop culture knowledge. He leaves the party and finds a man named Ben smoking outside. He's dressed like a character from "Clerks" and is sweet and accepting of Vincent and his quirks. They go back to Ben's place and, well... I'm sure you can guess the rest.

pros:

• BODY POSITIVITY! I was absolutely thrilled when Ben was described as being a little on the "softer" side, no six pack and head-to-toe model physique that it a very common trope in m/m romances. Yet, Vincent sees him as sexy, irresistible man. Every time I read more of Vincent's thoughts about Ben, the smile on my face grew wider.

• This story had me giggling from beginning to end. Vincent and his banana costume and his social awkwardness could have been uncomfortable to read, but it was written in a way that made Vincent very endearing. I felt for him as he struggled to fit in with the hipster crowd. The humor was clever and not too over the top. My favorite line embodies the overall feeling of the story: "I leaned over, my banana suit squeaking sexily as I did." In addition, there was the protagonist's casual references to murdering people and drinking their blood.

• I loved both Ben and Vincent. They had great chemistry and I want more of them!

cons:

• It ended a little too early for my liking. Right when things were about to get exciting, that was it. Cliffhanger. I was looking forward to the resolution that never came.
  
  

overall thoughts: This was a fun (and free, from the author's website) read from beginning to end. I would recommend it to anyone who likes humor, great characters, and a touch of steamy romance.

Review cross-posted: Skyler St. Clair on Goodreads & Skyler's Bookshelf Reading Blog

Applicable challenges:
Pick Your Poison Reading Challenge - Favorites (a book with your favorite color on the cover) - purple

SFF Virtual Badge Collection - The Uncovered Diamond Badge

Book Review: Brina: A Pagan Picture Book

Brina: A Pagan Picture Book by Andrea Stein
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

rating: 4.5 stars, rounded up for the enjoyment factor
format: ebook (Kindle Unlimited), which was a bit difficult (it would be nice to see the art larger and I wasn’t able to zoom in on the pictures)
genre: children's

I read this adorable book while looking on in the Kindle Unlimited shop for books on Wicca. I was surprised to find a children’s book on the topic, but certainly not disappointed! It’s cute and creative with enchanting illustrations that gave the story a whimsical, yet still grounded feel to it. I loved the sweet, encouraging relationship the mother had with the daughter. Bonus: POC representation that little girls can look up to!

Review cross-posted: Skyler St. Clair on Goodreads & Skyler's Bookshelf Reading Blog

Applicable challenges:
Pick Your Poison - Picture This (an illustrated book)

Pick Your Poison Reading Challenge 2021

 

This is where I will be posting my entries for the 2021 Pick Your Poison Reading Challenge by GregoryRoad. I'm going for Fortnightly (26 books - can choose one Wildcard).

year participating: 1st
rules/limitations: none
hashtags: #PickYourPoisonReadingChallenge

• Who's in Charge? -
• Make 'em Laugh -
• Where You Sleep at Night -
• Ways to Die -
• Occupations - a book written by a college professor -  Norse Mythology by Neil Gaiman (professor of the arts at Bard College) ✦ review
• Generations -
• Plaids -
• Those Bodies - a children's book about body parts - Eyes That Kiss in the Corners by Joanna Ho
• Bringing the World into Your Home -
• The Tools of Writing -
• That Creepy Feeling -
• Favorites - a book with your favorite color on the cover - Baby Got Bite by Maz Maddox
• Crossing Boundaries -
• Things We Don't Talk About -
• Reflections -
• Swashbuckling -
• Shapes and Colors
• a book with a shape on the cover that reminds you of a Rorschach test - What Type of Witch are You? by Julie Wilder
• a book with a shapeshifting character - Mythos by Stephen Fry
• Picture This - an illustrated book - Brina: A Pagan Picture Book by Andrea Stein
• Shh... -
• Challenges -
• Drinking Game -
• It's All Relative -
• Weather -
• TBR Burners -
• Borrowing - a book with a character from a different book (The Doctor) - The Feast of the Drowned (Doctor Who New Series Adventures #8) by Stephen Cole
• Putting 2020 Behind Us -
• Wildcards -

books completed: 5/26
date completed: