One Nation, Under Gods - Peter Manseau

I wanted to get an outside view of the history of different religions in America. After some research, I kept an eye on this book until it went on sale.

This book dedicates each chapter to a different religion and how it appeared and thrived (or not) in America. Some of the religions included are Buddhist, spiritualism (hippies), Latter Day Saints and others.

I found this book to be incredibly interesting. I never realized how important it was to the Puritans to maintain their idea of a "city on a hill." They actively tried to keep religions from gaining ground in America, even to the point of restricting what tombstones could look like. This debate still crops up occasionally.

This was a good book, but it's not going to be for everyone. There were times when I wasn't sure I could muster the motivation to read it, but it wasn't the book's fault. The writing was good, and it was well organized. I'm staying on the fence overall, because I'm struggling to write this review. When I like a book, I know what I want to say. With this one, I can only say I learned some interesting things. Also, looking this book up is something of a nightmare without full details. For some reason, a lot of people wanted to name their book, One Nation, Under God or a variation of it.

Red Dragon - Thomas Harris

This book is related to The Silence of the Lambs. Unless you've been living under a rock, you are aware of at least something about Hannibal Lecter. I haven't seen the movie, but I'm familiar with at least a bit about the plot.

In this book, Hannibal plays a minor role. While he's part of the origin story for our hero, Will Graham, his contribution to the overall story isn't near as much as I thought it would be. A killer initially dubbed "The Tooth Fairy" is killing families. Will is the best at what he does, but it comes with a price. His mental health takes a backburner when he tracks, and his family drifts away.

The book gives various points of view. The killer's is probably the most interesting. The connection he had to a real painting was a bit unsettling. I looked up the art, and it's not something I want staying in my brain. There's nothing overtly wrong with it. It's just...unsettling.

The writing was above average, but I'm not normally a fan of the horror stories. I don't know if this is labeled as horror, but I would definitely be aware that you're getting some unnatural scenes out of this book. I did find the end to be unexpected, and I liked the story overall, but I am definitely steering clear of The Silence of the Lambs. BUT! If you're into this genre, it's definitely a good one. I'm giving it a Good Book! review because it was a good book. I also couldn't read it at night, so I'll stop here.

Kill Shot (Mitch Rapp #2) - Vince Flynn

This is one of the last Half Price Books I have left. I didn't know anything about the author, and I chose it from the clearance area for $2.

Mitch is taking out people on his hit list when he's set up. Now he's on the run from everyone, including his own handler. He doesn't know who to trust, and he's injured.

This book started and ended well. The problem was the middle. Everyone just kept talking back and forth about what to do next. Mitch was trying to convince his girlfriend he wasn't an unprincipled assassin, and the CIA was trying to decide what to do about Mitch.

I really did enjoy the ending. The middle was such a drag, I kept finding other things to do besides read this book. I would even pick up my nonfiction Kindle book instead of this one. And it's pretty dry!

There are 25 books in this series, but I'm not going anywhere near any more of them. They're just not for me.

Assignment Golden Girl (Sam Durell #32) - Edward S. Aarons

On my final bookstore stop in San Diego, I finally found an old, crusty paperback! Actually, I found two, but when I finally figured out how much they wanted for it, I decided to put the other one back. Paying $11 for an old paperback is crazy. 

Since I had to choose one of the paperbacks, I asked for help picking. This one sounded amazing with the train and the princess. I thought it was going to be cheesy. I was wrong.

Sam is tasked with bringing the prince of Pakuru back to the UN so the leader can ask for assistance from the world. His country is in turmoil with a civil war. Sam has some issues, since the princess is also wanting the "stool." His plane has been destroyed, and the only way out of the country is an old train.

My favorite character was Harvey, the man who repaired the train. The plot was interesting and unique. What really surprised me was how good this book was. It's James Bond-esque, and part of a pretty extensive series. But I've never heard of Sam Durell, and I feel like that's a huge shame. Sam isn't super suave, and he's incredibly no-nonsense. This was well written, and I really liked it.

The real tragedy here is that it's not easy to track these books down. I did a bit of digging, and I couldn't find any of them available, and I didn't see any on Kindle. Going down my rabbit hole, I was also able to find something called the "Black Gat" series. This is a series of noir books written by different authors. They started releasing them in 2015, and one of them is written by Edward S. Aarons.

Anyway, I'd love to track down more of these books. I also plan on looking more into the Black Gat series. It looked like a great way to get exposure to authors I've never read before. Not that I don't have enough to read, but sometimes you just can't help yourself! Good Book!

The Ivy Tree - Mary Stewart

I have four books by this author on my bookshelf. I need to read through them again one day, but they usually have the gothic feel that I like.

Mary Grey is approached by a man who starts yelling at her for leaving eight years ago. Mary tells him she doesn't know what he's talking about. He's finally convinced, and she meets Con, the cousin of the missing woman. Later, Con's sister finds Mary and eventually she's part of a plot to convince an old man his granddaughter has returned. It's part of a bigger scheme to ensure his property ends up with Con, and she'll get part of it to head out and live her life. An unexpected neighbor upsets Mary's plans.

The book felt slow for a very long time. The end was pretty good and almost made up for the rest of the boring parts. I think the thing that really bogged it down was the descriptions. They'd go on for over a page at a time, and a lot of things were described. In great detail.

Overall, I'm on the fence on this book. The plot twist in there was really good, but the overabundance of poetic descriptions was a bit trying. I doubt I'd ever read this again, but I don't regret reading it.

Bloodborne (Volumes 4-6) - Ales Kot, Illustrated by Piotr Kowalski

I realize with the first set of these that I did a separate review for each volume. This time, I'm going to group them together.

Volume 4 is The Veil, Torn Asunder. If it relates to the other two, I couldn't tell. But for certain, The Lady of the Lanterns and The Bleak Dominion are linked. I really don't want to say anything about the plots to these, I hate to spoil things, but I will say that I really enjoyed all three stories.

The artwork was excellent as well. I recognized many of the monsters from the game, and I really love the style of Bloodborne. Especially the clothing for the hunters and their weapons. There's just always been something about Yharnam that appealed to me.

There isn't much more to say. These are all good, and some of the art took my breath away. At times, there's a vile beauty that I saw in those panels. If you're like me, and you love Bloodborne, I think you'll like this. I waited and got it during a sale, but it's definitely worth adding to your collection. Good Set!

Ravenscroft - Dorothy Eden

This paperback is one of the books I found in San Diego. It had a classic look that made me think it might be one of the older gothic romances I love. Usually, they have a woman running from a house/castle on the cover, and while this woman was stationary, it had that vibe.

Bella's father is dead, and she's on the way to London with her sister when they meet Aunt Aggie. The older woman offers to help them out, but she doesn't quite have the sweet intentions she's showing the girls. Guy helps the two women escape, but it looks like it's going to cost his career. To try and avert the downfall, he decides to marry one of the sisters. He initially chooses the gentle, timid Lally, but Bella ends up with the ring on her finger.

The plot of this one was pretty good. It did remind me of the older gothics, so it was nice to finally find one that wasn't a Zebra. Those are super easy to pick out. I think the plot itself was a good tradeoff for dealing with Bella. Her husband called her a shrew, and he's not wrong. That woman would argue and be childish for no reason. She knew Guy didn't love her when they married, but she's determined to "change" him. Don't try to change people. If he grew to love Bella, it needed to be his choice, not because she's throwing herself at him and screeching like a harpy. But, like I said, the plot made up for a lot.

When I was looking for the cover, I saw an alternate that I wish was on my copy. I'm not sure what it's portraying in the book, but it would've been cooler than the cover I have. The book squeaks by with a Good Book! review but not by much. Is it the best gothic ever? Of course not, but it was a nice read, and I enjoyed it.

 

Alternate cover