Saturday, 31 October 2015

Stacking the Shelves #108


Stacking the Shelves is a meme hosted by Tynga’s Reviews
Stacking The Shelves is all about sharing the books you are adding to your shelves, may it be physical or virtual. This means you can include books you buy in physical store or online, books you borrow from friends or the library, review books, gifts and of course ebooks! Click on the link under the book to find its page on Goodreads or Smashwords. 

Please note that I always leave a message on your STS/SP if you visit me, but if you use DISQUS or a similar third party I will not be able to leave a comment on your page. And sometimes, I have problems leaving messages on blogs hosted by Wordpress so you might get a double message sometimes! Blame them, not me!
     
Happy Halloween to those who celebrate it! I don't go in for it in a big way but I like the excuse to have a full day and night of scary films and junk food! Nobody bothers much about it where I live and some years nobody bothers knocking on the doors. With some of the people that live in my area, frankly you don't open the doors at night! I have been joined on my blog today by my furry pumpkin Dave who will be your host for the day. Say hello Dave!


So I had a slow start to the week with the reading side of things but finished strong the last couple of nights by catching up with the Monster Haven series by RL Naquin, which I LOVE! In fact one of my book buys this week is an anthology of stories and poems by that author which includes three Monster Haven short stories that I read and loved, two new ones and other stuff related to old writings and a new upcoming series. Very nice! I grabbed a nice pile of horror downloads since it was Halloween, and some more paperbacks from last week that I didn't put on the stack, like the rest of the Dirk Patton zombie series. Lots of nice books to show off as usual!

DOWNLOADS:











BOUGHT PAPERBACKS:









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Friday, 30 October 2015

Book Review: The Harvesting by Melanie Karsak (The Harvesting #1)


"The world, it seemed, had gone silent. It was something we knew but did not talk about. We were alone."

While Layla Petrovich returns home to rural Hamletville after a desperate call from her psychic grandmother, she never could have anticipated the horror of what Grandma Petrovich has foreseen. The residents of Hamletville will need Layla's cool head, fast blade and itchy trigger finger to survive the undead apocalypse that's upon them. But even that may not be enough. With mankind silenced, it soon becomes apparent that we were never alone. As the beings living on the fringe seek power, Layla must find a way to protect the ones she loves or all humanity may be lost.

It's all fun and games until someone ends up undead!

My Review:
Layla's grandmother calls her back to her hometown, where she has been making preparations for a zombie apocalypse that hasn't happened yet. Layla knows all about ancient weapons and her grandmother's gifts, so agrees to go and help, even if it means having to see Ian, who cheated on her and married his pregnant mistress. Then the zombies come one morning and town is in chaos as everyone tries to survive with Layla leading the fightback. But the zombie outbreak is just the beginning of this town's problems...

I had seen mixed reviews of this online so I wasn't sure what to expect but I was pleased to enjoy it. I liked the zombie parts-there was plenty of action, tension and death to enjoy which kept me quite happy. It was interesting to be in a small town and to watch how they cope with the outbreak and then plan to protect themselves from the outside world. Layla and some of the others living there are pretty capable and you think that the town has a chance of surviving, despite a few setbacks. You always need to have a few disasters or near misses to keep the tension up and have you worrying about the characters you like. I mean, who doesn't love a good old zombie attack!

The book then takes the most unexpected twist when the people make contact with the outside world and the offer of a safe haven on an island appears. Do they trust these strangers and escape the fear of more zombie attacks and the town being overrun or running out of supplies? Or should they stick it out and stay together in their fortified town? The direction that the story takes here is a HUGE plot twist which should never have worked but I loved it! Erk, it's so hard to say anything without giving a spoiler! And I want to talk about it because it is so cool a twist! The action switches to a new challenge for our survivors, which is full of danger, intrigue and trauma. The characters are well developed so that you actually give a damn about them and there are a lot that I liked.

Layla is a good character, trying to deal with the humiliation of seeing Ian every day, while forming a friendship with his brother Jamie. Now I'm the first one to scream about how much I hate love triangles but this is not my pet peeve of every hot guy in the country loves the new girl at school sort of thing. Layla and Jamie already knew each other and had a connection which gets stronger as the outbreak begins, so thankfully they had the basis for a relationship. Layla and Ian have a shared romantic history and differing views on current morality, ie him being a slimeball, but it was logical that she would be a bit conflicted facing him after all these years. It didn't bother me the way that it all unfolded, which makes a change.

I wish I could say more about the second half of the book but I'm determined not to put any major plot spoilers in this review. So if you like the sound of zombies with death, disaster and romance, you'll just need to read it for yourself! 
star rating photo: 5 Star Rating 5stars.jpg
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The Apple Cider Vinegar Health Experiment #3 End of Week One!

I have recently been reading about the health benefits of taking regular doses of ACV and it made fascinating reading. So my dad and I decided to get some and have an experiment, noting any benefits and side effects. I'm doing my analysis in the form of a blog diary so others interested can follow my progress.

Ok as a quick recap, I started using this last Thursday afternoon. I chose to start by taking a teaspoon of the 'Mother Virus' as we jokingly call her, diluted in 200mls of water, 3 times a day. The taste is acidic but I got round that by adding Ribena to the glass which vastly improves the flavour I'm glad to say! I've now stepped up to two teaspoons a day to see how it goes. I am drinking it through a straw to avoid any acid erosion to the teeth and using a medicated mouthwash afterwards just to be on the safe side.

***WEEK ONE UPDATE***
I have now been taking ACV for one full week and I'm really surprised at the results so far, especially as I'm not yet on the full dose of it! I'm going to share the good vand bad effects that my dad and I have experienced so far.

GOOD EFFECTS (DAD):
-my dad has had no acid reflux attacks since my last update
-improved pain relief in arthritic fingers

GOOD EFFECTS (CHUCKLES):
-reduced bloating
-sleeping a bit better especially the last two nights
-extra visits to the loo so reduced water retension
-reduced cravings to eat at night
-lost 7 pounds in weight!!! YES!!!!

ILL EFFECTS (BOTH OF US):
-none so far

I can't tell you how happy I am especially that unexpected weight loss. That's probably linked to the reduced water retension but I'm pretty happy! I'm at my lowest weight in 6 years though I still have some work to do to get fit. But I'm on the way and I'm pretty pleased with the ACV experiment so far! Another update next week! 
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Book Review: Rotten Bodies by Steven Jenkins


We all fear death’s dark spectre, but in a zombie apocalypse, dying is a privilege reserved for the lucky few. There are worse things than a bullet to the brain—much worse.

The dead are walking, and they’re hungry. Steven Jenkins, bestselling author of Fourteen Days and Burn The Dead, shares six zombie tales that are rotten for all the right reasons.

Meet Dave, a husband and father with a dirty secret, who quickly discovers that lies aren’t only dangerous…they’re deadly. Athlete Sarah once ran for glory, but when she finds herself alone on a country road with an injured knee, second place is as good as last. Working in a cremation facility, Rob likes to peek secretly at the faces of his inventory before they’re turned to ash. When it comes to workplace health and sanity, however, some rules are better left unbroken. Howard, shovelling coal in the darkness of a Welsh coalmine, knows something’s amiss when his colleagues begin to disappear. But it’s when the lights come on that things get truly scary.

Six different takes on the undead, from the grotesque to the downright terrifying. But reader beware: as the groans get louder and the twitching starts, you’ll be dying to reach the final page. 

My Review:
I picked this book up free and I'm glad I did because there are some good stories in it.

1) I am dead
A man recently turned into a zombie ponders his new senses and decides to target fat people. I laughed at the very last line of the story which I thought was a great ending!

2) Room 503
Dave is in a hotel room with his mistress Jenni when the apocalypse comes. She won't leave the hotel and Dave doesn't want to leave her but needs to get home to check on his wife and kid. This book flirts with the morality of Dave's position as well as being a pretty good zombie story. Dave isn't the smartest guy in the world so it makes his dumb actions quite exciting to read. I liked this one.

3) Run
Sarah is a fitness instructor with a dodgy knee who is being chased by a determined zombie. Sarah is concerned that her knee will give out before she reaches help. This one was ok to read but not as good as the other two so far.

4) Burning Ambition
This was expanded into a novel called Burn the Dead: Quarantine. This short story can be read without spoiling the novel and I really recommend the novel! Rob is the man who burns the zombies at the morgue and gets a shock when one of them is familiar. Great story!

5) The Pit
What do you do when you are stuck down a coal mine that is full of zombies and missing co-workers? One man is determined to escape to the surface. I liked this one as well-good tension and zombie action.

6) Simon Dunn: Former Zombie
Simon is musing over everyone that he ate before he was cured and finally got a job. Distrusted by his co-workers, he is upset by their prejudice. I loved the concept that if a zombie eats enough people, it kills the virus and he is human again. I would like to see a longer version of this as it has great potential.

I very much enjoyed this zombie selection and will certainly be keeping my eye out for more books by this author. I like the way he puts a story together, his characters are interesting and the zombie action is exciting. This is an author in the genre who is worth following.
star rating photo: Four Star Rating 4stars.png
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Thursday, 29 October 2015

Book Review: Voyage of the Dead by David P Forsyth (Sovereign Spirit Saga #1)


Voyage of the Dead is the first book of the Sovereign Spirit Saga detailing the adventures of several groups of survivors of the Zombie Apocalypse. Most of them are aboard a ship that is well equipped to survive the end of civilization, while others struggle to survive in a world suddenly overrun by undead cannibals. This is a science fiction adventure set within a horror genre, full of blood, guts, violence and the human emotions that fuel our survival instincts.

My Review:
Scott is the guy you want to be friends with if the zombie apocalypse comes. Having won the lottery, he bought himself a huge cruise ship and fitted it out with every gadget you could ever want including guns, supplies, communications, small boats, helicopter and mini submarine. Scott indicates in the book he he bought all those boy toys that any guy could imagine. So he has just treated his friends and family to a cruise on what sounds like the most amazing ship ever, when the apocalypse begins. Like I said, you want to be his friend and be on the ship, safe offshore as all hell breaks loose.

The other MC is Carl, a normal guy with no gadgets who is at the airport when hell breaks loose and has to rely on himself to escape and find somewhere safe to hole up. I liked the complete contrast between our two heroes. One is equipped for every possible mission while the other, frankly, is flying by the seat of his pants and trying to come up with a plan to stay alive. It is also a clever way to remove the need for boring parts where the ship might be sailing for hours with nothing happening. This way, we leave Scott when the action ends, follow Carl in danger, and back to Scott for his next adventure. Clever and entertaining.

The action is pretty much non-stop, which I love in my zombie books. There are rescue missions made by those on the boat, trying to save their families who are trapped on land. There are the adventures of Carl and others stuck on land who need to get creative to stay alive. There action scenes are tense, well described and you can easily see in your head what the author is describing to you. I engaged fully with the characters and plot and had a fun time with this book.

A few things have been mentioned by other reviewers that I want to comment on. Yes it is rather convenient that Scott has everything he needs for every situation, but to be honest, that doesn't bother me as long as the action created by his toys is exciting. And it was. I noticed that a lot of people don't seem to like Scott but I did. I saw him as a guy determined to keep everyone on the boat safe and to do that, he had to ensure the military did not get his ship. I get that and I liked his stubborness.

I do agree about the role of women in the book, especially George having sex with a female survivor who was so grateful to be rescued that she offers sex and turned fatal attraction when he bleats about loving his wife. They of course have to have the woman like a slut and then turning psycho so George is the victim. This incident put me off George, who I had liked. You are away from your wife a short period of time to rescue the grandkids and you just have sex with a strange woman? Didn't like that bit at all. It just felt as if it was decided that there needed to be sex somewhere in the book and it was just shoved there.

However, overall I really enjoyed the book and there was plenty action for the zombie fan to enjoy. I read this as a free e-book then bought the paperbacks for this and book two, which I hope to read soon. I also hope it doesn't take me a whole year to review the next one, like this book...! 
star rating photo: 5 Star Rating 5stars.jpg
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Book Review: The Becoming by Jessica Meigs


The Michaluk Virus is loose. In the heart of Atlanta, Georgia, the Michaluk Virus has escaped the CDC, and its effects are widespread and devastating. Most of the population of the southeastern United States have become homicidal cannibals. As society rapidly crumbles under the hordes of infected, three people-Ethan Bennett, a Memphis police officer; Cade Alton, his best friend and former IDF sharpshooter; and Brandt Evans, a lieutenant in the US Marines-band together against the oncoming crush of death and terror sweeping across the world. As Cade, Brandt, and Ethan hole up in a safe house in Tupelo, others begin to join them in their bid for survival. When the infected attack and they're forced to flee, one departs to Memphis in search of answers while the others escape south to Biloxi, where they encounter more danger than they bargained for. And in Memphis, the answers that one man finds are the last answers he wanted, answers that herald a horrific possibility that there may be more to this virus than first suspected.

My Review:
I liked the look of the cover and the blurb sounded interesting. I had really high hopes for this one but it just didn't live up to my expectations.

Our MCs are Cade, a former Israeli army officer, who lives with husband Andrew and visiting niece Josie. She has a large and somewhat illegal gun collection. Next door is her cop best friend Ethan and wife Anna, a doctor. The outbreak begins with a riot downtown and Andrew kills Josie, leaving Cade and Ethan to deal with that and the fact that Anna is missing in the burning hospital.

The Mcs annoyed me on quite a few levels. Cade did not act like she had military training, and you would've thought that she would have been more take charge. Getting herself and Ethan trapped in the house when they only had two zombies to deal with and a ton of weapons between them was pretty frustrating. So of course the hospital was on fire by the time they got there to find Anna. Ethan takes Lisa's word for it that Anna must be dead, making no attempt to check. He's a COP! He would've wanted evidence that his wife was dead before fleeing the area! As for taking Lisa with them, well people are dumb in zombie books. Despite witnessing Josie rise after being bitten/eaten by Andrew, they can't seem to put that together with Lisa having the bite and what was going on at the hospital. I get fed up with dumb characters I really do! Watching Lisa die and turn STILL doesn't register with the idiots. Grrr.

The author seems obsessed with Ethan's eyes. Every time he is mentioned, talked about or looked at, we get reminded of his wonderful green eyes. Even when we are being told about Lisa's festering wound, his green eyes are mentioned just in case we had forgotten! What this was meant to add to the plot I really don't know but it was very quickly getting on my nerves. What also drove me mad is that when Lisa attacks in the car, Cade decides to keep driving despite someone trying to eat her. Stop the car FFS and DEAL with it instead of trying to drive on! Ethan didn't really seem to be doing anything much to help either. Then they stand at the roadside and ponder phoning the police to report the crime. What is WRONG with these people??? What a pair of clowns!

The final straw for me was the meeting with Brandt, who shared my opinion of how dumb the pair are, especially when they wonder if the dead might be connected to the virus and the riots. I wanted to shoot the pair of them. Ethan decides to go all Alpha Asshat and start staking out his territory like a complete muppet. He starts accusing Brandt of killing his mother, acting like the big I Am, refusing to help two other survivors in need...I HATED him. And then he goes in a mood and decides to go back and look for his wife??? A bit late in the day to realise you didn't look very hard for her matey!

I'm sorry but these morons can't possibly be military with the distinct lack of common sense and no tactical awareness. Journeys to and from their transport should be nice and simple but they turn it into a shambles. Nursery kids could have completed their escapes better than these idiots. I got sick of this and stopped halfway through the book. Enough was enough!
star rating photo: 1 star orange-1star.jpg
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Wednesday, 28 October 2015

Book Review: To Walk the Night by ES Moore (Kat Redding #1)


Even a vampire has to face her inner demons…

Kat Redding is the very thing she hunts: a vampire, thirsting for blood, capable of killing any creature unlucky enough to get in her path. The difference is, Kat kills her own kind in order to protect human Purebloods. She’s good at what she does. Good enough to earn the nickname Lady Death—and the enmity of every bloodthirsty being around. But now a vampire Count is intent on merging his House with a werewolf cult to create a force of terrifying power.

Kat can’t allow that to happen. Even if it means taking on a den of weres and a vampire more ruthless than any she’s encountered before. She has the weapons, the skill, and a few allies. But that may not be enough to eliminate the Count before her own dark nature rises to the surface—and costs her whatever is left of her humanity…

My Review:
Kat was a vampire hunter with her brother until they were captured. Kat was turned but her brother fared much worse. After killing her captors and escaping, Kat goes out to hunt the monsters in revenge, helped by the human she rescued called Ethan who provides her with every gadget she needs to do her job. Now a werewolf worshipping cult have uncovered her identity and and want her to destroy a Vampire House who are trying to enslave them.

There was a lot to like about this book. It was a dark and gritty urban fantasy where the author concentrated on plot and character development instead of bringing in dumb insta-luv rubbish, so well done for that. I liked Kat-she is a tortured soul and is having trouble dealing with what happened to her, becoming the monster she was trained to kill, and only feeling alive when she is killing vampires. Usually this type of character with all the added angst might put me off a book, but although sometimes it was a little overdone, I got why she was like that and cut her some slack. I do hope in later books that she does develop a little more personality but for this book I was happy enough with her. And boy is she kickass!

I really liked Ethan. I think he was vastly underused in this book and if we saw more of their normal relationship, it would give Kat a few more human touches and make her nicer. Instead Ethan is mostly confined to popping up like Q in the James Bond films with a new gadget to give her. I want to see much more of him and I was intrigued by his big secret which is going to cause lots of trouble for both of them in future books.

I was also interested in various members of the cult. Jonathan has a troubled history but he was an honest character who was prepared to deal with one monster to kill many others and save his people. I liked how his friendship with Kat started to take effect despite lack of trust, though their communication skills over the planned attack lead to problems. If you are going to work together, you must share all relevant facts! However that is a minor plot niggle.

I liked the violent action scenes and the fact that the monsters were proper monsters that will kill you. I liked the fact that some of the monsters were harder to kill, which added a new dimension to the later fight scenes. The author was skilled at ramping up the tension and keeping things interesting.

So yes I did like the book. I just felt it lacked that extra little something to really make it rock and I think the addition of a little snarky humour and more interactions with Ethan might have been what I was looking for. However, decent start to the series and I'll probably give the next book in the series a try.


star rating photo: Three Star Rating 3stars.png
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Tuesday, 27 October 2015

Book Review: Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel (Thomas Cromwell #1)


England in the 1520s is a heartbeat from disaster. If the king dies without a male heir, the country could be destroyed by civil war. Henry VIII wants to annul his marriage of twenty years and marry Anne Boleyn. The pope and most of Europe opposes him. Into this impasse steps Thomas Cromwell: a wholly original man, a charmer and a bully, both idealist and opportunist, astute in reading people, and implacable in his ambition. But Henry is volatile: one day tender, one day murderous. Cromwell helps him break the opposition, but what will be the price of his triumph?

My Review:
I have had this book sitting on my shelf for a long time, waiting for the perfect rainy day to get stuck into it. I love Tudor books and thought Cromwell was a fascinating character so I was so excited by the idea of this series.

So what the heck happened??? It has been a long time since a book I wanted to read had disappointed so badly. I just find myself at a loss as to where to start in this review.

This is a book with a lot of fans and a lot of prizes and I'm hardly an expert on the English language or anything, but for me I found this to be very poorly written. The style of it was bizarre and I didn't like it at all. Cromwell speaks in an almost robotic manner, in single words rather than sentences with no flicker of emotion in his speech. It made him sound weird, and if he displays no emotion or interest then how can I warm to him or feel engaged in his story? He seemed to be going through the motions in everything he said and did, and I just found myself not that interested in him. It doesn't help that we spend a lot of time in his head as he thinks random thoughts that don't relate to the plot or add anything to it, making it seem a bit confused and pointless. Now when you have this reaction to Cromwell in a novel about Cromwell, well you have a problem!

A lot of people have mentioned their irritation at the contant use of the word 'he' instead of names. It drives me mad when two or more characters are talking and you have no idea who is saying what, and it happens a lot in this book. It is frustrating to the level of wanting to punch the book. The author must make it clear who is talking because otherwise, what is the point in writing a book? I just don't get why she chose to do it this way and confuse so many readers who just wanted to enjoy her book! There is also a lot of tell and not enough show for my liking.

That's as much as I can say about the book because I didn't get very far with it. I would read a few paragraphs, sigh, put it down, pick it up, try a page, put it down. I just could not engage with it in any way and lacked the motivation to force myself to try any more. I wanted to like this but the style it was written in was so off-putting that I won't be tackling anything else by the author. 
star rating photo: 1 star orange-1star.jpg
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New Release: Whiteout by Nikki Jefford (Aurora Sky #5)


Life on the run is no winter picnic, especially when Aurora’s partner sees himself as the sheriff, not the outlaw.

It’s a cat and mouse game across the Last Frontier with agents and vampires out for blood while Fane searches desperately to find Aurora before rogue vampires do.

The hunters have become the hunted. And the road to freedom has never felt more uncertain.
 
WHERE CAN I BUY THIS BOOK?
 
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Whiteout-Aurora-Sky-Vampire-Hunter-ebook/dp/B0167BIWN2/ 
 
http://www.amazon.com/Whiteout-Aurora-Sky-Vampire-Hunter-ebook/dp/B0167BIWN2/ 
 
https://store.kobobooks.com/en-us/ebook/whiteout-aurora-sky-vampire-hunter-vol-5 
 
http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/whiteout-nikki-jefford/1122860679?ean=2940150901469 
 
https://play.google.com/store/books/details/Nikki_Jefford_Whiteout_Aurora_Sky_Vampire_Hunter_V?id=cHaoCgAAQBAJ 
 
Reading Order:
#1 Aurora Sky (FREE)
#2 Northern Bites
#2.5 Stakeout 
#2.6 Evil Red (FREE)
#3 Bad Blood
#4 Hunting Season
#4.5 Night of the Living Dante (FREE)
#5 Whiteout
 

 


 Nikki Jefford loves fictional bad boys and heroines who kick butt. She writes fast-paced paranormal romance novels for mature young adults and older. Books, motion pictures, TV series, hiking, writing and motorcycle riding are her favorite escapes.
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Book Review: Burn the Dead: Quarantine by Steven Jenkins (Zombie Saga #1)


Steven Jenkins' BURN THE DEAD uniquely takes the modern day pop culture zombie phenomenon and spins a fresh, exciting, chilling tale unlike any other of its kind, sure to impress readers from the most hardcore zombie enthusiasts to the casual horror/thriller fan hungry for a suspenseful and totally engaging ride. It focuses on an everyday man who burns zombies for a living. His life is turned upside down when he finds his own wife infected, and his four-year old son trapped inside a quarantined area.

My Review:
Rob is a normal man who loves his wife Anna and young son Sammy, who he doesn't see enough of. You see, Rob is the man at the morgue who burns the zombies when they are captured and restrained. He doesn't mind the work, but it means late finishes and early starts as a mini outbreak can occur at any time. But one day, Rob is shattered to see that Anna is one of the zombies. Where is Sammy? Is he alive? He can't help Anna now but he can save his son-if he is brave enough to break into the quarantine zone that his neighbourhood is and brave the zombie hordes...

I really enjoyed this book. Finally we have a hero in a zombie book that I like and can relate to! Rob could be the guy next door to you. He likes his job, hates his boss, works too hard for too little money and loves his family. He's a good normal guy who is faced with trying to find his son in a cordoned off area teaming with zombies. HE doesn't have a stack of weapons in his car. He's not the superfit guy with tactical awareness and a great plan. He's just a guy who gets tired and make mistakes and won't give up until he finds Sammy. The other characters in the book are fascinating. Janet's story was really well written and had me on the edge of my seat as I waited to see what happened. I also liked the plot with Rob's neighbour but I'm saying no more as I don't want to spoil it.

The plot is very good. It's hard to be original in a zombie outbreak novel but I think the author did bring something different to it. It is not a full on end of the world outbreak. Society in this book has obviously survived zombie outbreaks in the past and has learned to deal with them. When an outbreak occurs, quarantine is set up and then cleaning teams are sent in to catch and restrain the zombies who are then sent to the morgue to be burned by Rob. However something has gone wrong and the cleaners have been attacked by the zombies as Rob discovers when he gets into the quarantine area.

Rob encounters zombies an a cleaner who tells him what has been going wrong, as well as his neighbours both alive and undead. The author manages to transport you there, to the safe streets around your home that have become a war zone and I found myself thinking about an outbreak in my local area and how I would get to my house. There are a lot of tense moments in the book as Rob encounters a lot of danger and grief. I thought it was all really well written and there were a few surprising twists as well.

I can't say there was anything I didn't like about it. Plot and characters were excellent, writing style was good, and it kept me wanting to turn the pages and rooting for Rob. I read an e-copy and went out and bought the paperback straight after. I'm really looking forward to the rest of the series and I recommend this to all zombie fans. 
star rating photo: 5 Star Rating 5stars.jpg
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Monday, 26 October 2015

The Apple Cider Vinegar Health Experiment #2

I have recently been reading about the health benefits of taking regular doses of ACV and it made fascinating reading. So my dad and I decided to get some and have an experiment, noting any benefits and side effects. I'm doing my analysis in the form of a blog diary so others interested can follow my progress.

Ok as a quick recap, I started using this on Thursday. I chose to start by taking a teaspoon of the 'Mother Virus' as we jokingly call her, diluted in 200mls of water, 3 times a day. I've been taking this reduced dose just to get my system used to it before I step up to the recommended dose of 3 tablespoons per day. 

The taste is acidic but I got round that by adding Ribena to the glass which vastly improves the flavour I'm glad to say! I'm now stepping up to two teaspoons a day to see how it goes. I am drinking it through a straw to avoid any acid erosion to the teeth and using a medicated mouthwash afterwards just to be on the safe side.

GOOD EFFECTS:
-already I feel less bloated, and it is having a great effect on water retension in the body. I'm certainly getting rid of more fluid.
-my dad recovered very quickly from an acid reflux episode last night. Usually an attack of that has him up all night feeling ill and drinking litres of water but he had recovered in 20 minutes with one litre of water which was a great improvement!

ILL EFFECTS:
-none so far! 

 I'm happy with how things are going so far. Being on a low dose to begin with means it will take longer to see the health benefits but I'd rather start slow!
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Sunday, 25 October 2015

Chuckles TV Catch Up #9

This is my new feature for the summer/autumn! I have sooo many great sounding TV shows that I want to watch but because of all my reading, I haven't had time to catch up with any of them! So this summer I'm doing a Chuckles TV catch up where I hope to get a look at some TV, decide what I like and don't like and tell you all my thoughts on everything. Now, my TV watching is very much mood related so I can't predict what I'll want to watch...

This Week: Madam Secretary starring Tea Leoni, Tim Daly, Keith Carradine, Patina Miller, Geoffrey Arend and Erich Bergen. 

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt3501074/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1 
Filmography links and data courtesy of IMDb.

Now I admit that I am NOT a fan of Tea Leoni. I really didn't like her in Deep Impact and I wanted her to get eaten in Jurassic Park 3. The only reason I decided to watch this is because I love political dramas like Scandal and The West Wing. So I decided to give this one a go and I really enjoyed it! I actually thought Tea took the part well and I liked her character. She has a dry sense of humour, doesn't play by the rules and hates people fussing about her image. The plots were interesting and tense, and I plan to grab this box set when it reduces in price online. 
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Spooky Booky Month Update #3


Welcome to my Spooky Booky month update! This month I am only reading books with a spooky, gory or monster theme. Hopefully I might even get a chance to watch a few similar themed films if time allows! Here is my progress for the last week! It's not greatly impressive because I just didn't seem to get myself motivated this week.

 ABANDONED:

 Jeff Liboiron-Fenix Rising
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/26522342-fenix-rising

Craig Halloran-Zombie Day Care
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17227920-zombie-day-care 

 Luke Shephard-The Last Hope
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25931638-the-last-hope

 Keith Soares-The Oasis of Filth
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23296002-the-oasis-of-filth

 Kathryn Meyer Griffith-Dinosaur Lake
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3429805-dinosaur-lake
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Saturday, 24 October 2015

Stacking the Shelves #107


Stacking the Shelves is a meme hosted by Tynga’s Reviews
Stacking The Shelves is all about sharing the books you are adding to your shelves, may it be physical or virtual. This means you can include books you buy in physical store or online, books you borrow from friends or the library, review books, gifts and of course ebooks! Click on the link under the book to find its page on Goodreads or Smashwords. 

Please note that I always leave a message on your STS/SP if you visit me, but if you use DISQUS or a similar third party I will not be able to leave a comment on your page. And sometimes, I have problems leaving messages on blogs hosted by Wordpress so you might get a double message sometimes! Blame them, not me!
    
Another week goes by and I didn't get as much reading done as I would have liked. I've been pretty tired and ended up slumped in front of the TV, watching Classic Coronation Street and my brand new shiny copy of Jurassic World! I totally love that film and I was watching it last night. Love the flying nutters having a peckathon on the guests, love Blue, love the T-Rex and IR is the psycho of all dinosaurs! I'm already looking forward to the sequel. Hurry UP!!! 
 
I got another handful of books from Amazon and it really is time to stop now! I'm never going to reduce the darn tbr pile if I keep buying! My excuse is to buy the Apple Cider Vinegar, I had to buy books to get the free delivery price...ahem. I HAD to buy Fall of Austin, as I has already bought books one and three in the series which shows I'm a bit stupid but hey! Zombie trilogy! I bought the next three books in the Voodoo Plague series with a book voucher so will get the rest of the series on next week's haul. I can't wait to get stuck into Monsterland which has been described as The Goonies meets Jurassic Park! Excited...
 
I'm also doing a health experiment, dosing myself with Apple Cider Vinegar 3 times a day to see if I can get any of the health benefits from it that people online rave about! I'm doing a series of posts with all the details so you can check out my first post here:
 
DOWNLOADS: 
 
 
 
BOUGHT PAPERBACKS: 
 
 
 
 
 
 

ADULT COLOURING BOOKS:
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
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