Black Storm - Thomas C. Hinkle

When I was at the used book store, I came across this book by accident. I was in the children's section looking for a copy of The Outsiders when I saw this unloved paperback on the shelf. I liked the cover, and the story sounded interesting.

Black Storm is a beautiful horse that won't let anyone ride him. He's terrified of anyone with spurs, and only Joe Bain is able to ride him. The horse has wonderful instincts and is smart. One night, Joe is attacked, and Black Storm is stolen.

I didn't read this book correctly. I did notice that the horse went through a lot on the back cover, but I wasn't prepared to read the author's note and discover the horse was real. After I got about 1/3 of the way through, I was starting to get uncomfortable. I was almost in tears when I decided I couldn't go any farther. 

From there, I skimmed to the part where Joe and Black Storm were reunited. Then, I skipped to the end and was almost going to have to throw the book across the room. But! It was safe at that point, and the paperback is intact. It wouldn't have been so bad if the author wasn't so good at his job. The details about Black Storm's injuries and scars from previous beatings were thorough.

Yeah, if you love horses and don't like reading about them being injured, sad and lonely, I wouldn't recommend this book. One of the things that bothers me most is the book is meant for children. My kids would never have forgiven me if I read this book to them. And I'd have to comfort them while they cried for 1/2 the book. Major pass for me.

Call of the Heart - Barbara Cartland

Still trying to decrease my TBR pile. My paperbacks were in a good place, but then I was at the used book store, and I ended up with five more. In my defense, I got all five for $11!

In this BC, Lalitha is basically Cinderella. She has the evil "stepmother" and stepsister. She has to cook and clean up after them. When Lalitha's vain stepsister, Sophie, decides her relationship future, she sends Lalitha to give a waiting suitor the bad news. His reaction? Shout and force Lalitha to marry him. Perfectly rational behavior, right?

There are some interesting things I got from this book. I learned about William Thomas Stead and the abduction of virgins for sale in other countries. While this did have some impact on the story, I became more interested researching Mr. Stead and his unorthodox ways of getting stories. I will say this story was reminiscent of other things. Not only Cinderella, but I picked up a few similarities with Hazard of Hearts as well. I'm talking about the movie, since I haven't read the book. The main difference is the female in the movie has spirit and a backbone. Lalitha has been beaten into submission too often to do anything of the sort.

This was a pretty good example of what BC made her living on. It was entertaining. You just have to pretend the woman doesn't pause every other word. I just skip the pauses and pretend she can speak like a normal human being. Good Book!

The Well of Eternity (War of the Ancients #1) - Richard A. Knaak

A while back, we purchased a Humble Bundle that had World of Warcraft content. There were comics, manga and novels. I was getting a bit nostalgic about WoW, so I decided to dive into this trilogy.

Krasus is a dragon mage who enlists the help of his friend, Rhonin, to investigate a wrongness in their world. Nozdormu, the Dragon of Time, needs help. When the mages get close to the anomaly, it transports them back in time. It's before the initial invasion of the Burning Legion. A portal is being made to try and bring the Legion into the night elf city, and Krasus and Rhonin have to decide if they want to risk altering the past and possibly destroying the future.

There is a lot going on in this. An orc has also been transported to the past, and he has zero chance of blending in. He doesn't even really have any idea what's happened to him. Familiar names in the world of the night elves had me wracking my brain to remember them. Malfurion Stormrage and his twin, Illidan are young and just learning how to use their powers. Tyrande, the priestess of Elune, has yet to choose who to spend her life with. But with the Legion trying to come through, they don't have tons of time to figure out their love life.

I really enjoyed this book, but I hated the copy I got from Humble Bundle. It was long enough ago that the link no longer worked, so I was stuck with each page of my pdf being landscape with two pages on it. I had to read it on my tablet, which I really don't like doing.

You're definitely meant to keep going with the trilogy. I wouldn't recommend diving into this unless you plan on reading all three. While major elements of the plot are wrapped up, other important elements are left unsettled.

The story was really fun for me. I could see a lot of the characters in my mind as I read about them, but I haven't played in a few years, so I looked up a few to refresh my memory of what they looked like. The night elves are special to me, since my main character was a night elf priest. World of Warcraft was a big part of my life for a long time. I went around healing my warrior husband, and we made friends that we still have to this day. I'm glad the other two books are in a normal format, and I look forward to diving into the next one, The Demon Soul. Good Book! 

Love Lifts the Curse - Barbara Cartland

I’m always in the mood for a Barbara Cartland. They follow a formula, and I can read them in a day.

In this one, Jacoba has to move out of her house after her father and uncle die in a rail accident. She has no money and no idea what to do. Her solicitor finds a position for her with an old man, but it’s actually a young(ish) Earl. His nephew was annoyed with him and decided to play a joke on him by sending him a woman. The Earl has sworn to not have women in his home, and the nephew thinks sending a random woman will be a hilarious joke.

Once Jacoba arrives, she finds out she’s been deceived. The Earl isn’t old, deaf or blind. In fact, he yells at her so loud that his dogs attack her. Once she starts to get better, the Earl is attacked and spends a good chunk of the book unconscious. But guess what? They fall in love!

This is definitely a Barbara Cartland. The woman is dumber than a box of rocks and is incapable of speaking a sentence without pausing every two words. The man and woman are barely together, but they are madly in love! If you know what to expect from these, you’ll be content. For me, they’re nostalgic and hilarious. It’s almost always a Good Book! and this one gets the tag!

The Shadowy Horses - Susanna Kearsley

I was looking up authors who were similar to Barbara Michaels, and this book was listed. I waited for the price to drop, and I was anxious to see how it measured up.

Verity has agreed to go on a dig with her ex-boyfriend, Adrian. She knows nothing else about it, but by his tone, she’s knows it’s something big. She finds out a man is searching for a unicorn. Not a literal unicorn, but it’s a specific Roman encampment that no one’s been able to find. While she’s there, she meets David, and they are the romance element.

While on the dig, the supernatural is also present. Verity hears horses galloping through almost every night, but there aren’t any. Also, there’s a Roman soldier that can be communicated with through a little boy. It shouldn’t be possible to find what they’re looking for, but they get clues that lead them to the truth.

I really liked certain elements of this book, but I’m not sure I loved the way they were used. The horses for example. I may have missed it, but I never understood why they were there. Peter told an Irish tale about horses and the waves, but this group was in Scotland. And then there was the Sentinel. I thought this was a clever in some respects. But I felt like he wasn’t in there enough.

The thing that bothered me the most was the romance. There was nothing specifically wrong with it, but I wasn’t a fan. It ruined the end for me, because I wanted to know what they did about the Sentinel, and instead, I had to read about David and Verity. It was also a bit abrupt for some reason. Not the rescue itself, I guess I’m referring to the wrap-up. Was it a bad book? Not at all. Was it something that made me want to read more? Nah.

Beyond Band of Brothers - Major Dick Winters

If you've seen HBO's Band of Brothers mini-series, you'll know who this man is.

This book is the life of Dick Winters. He covers almost all of his life, and he gives some information that goes beyond what was written in Stephen Ambrose's book about Easy Company.

It took me a while to get through this one, and I'm not sure I can explain why. I think that since I've read a few of the memoirs from this group, and I've seen the show, it was a bit repetitive. I should probably spread out reading them a bit more. Also, I've been spreading myself a bit thin by trying to read too many things at once.

On the flip side of that, I really enjoyed getting this man's particular point of view. He was right in the thick of things for the important battles, and considered a good friend and comrade to many. At the end of the book, he goes over some thoughts on leadership. I'm not really in a position where that would apply to me, but the advice is solid.

Thanks to men like Major Winters and men he fought with, we have examples of what real courage and bravery look like. I'll give it a Good Book! review, but it isn't one of the ones that will stand out in my memory.

A Certain Crossroad - Emilie Loring

I guess I've been living under a rock. Emilie Loring is an American romance author who started writing at the age of 50. She ended up writing 30 books during her lifetime. After her death, her sons took her unfinished material and published 20 more. My semi-sad copy was a purchase at the used book store, and it cost me less than $1! I'd never heard of her.

Judy made a mistake a year ago. She gave Neil an ultimatum, but he didn't bow to her wishes. She knows she was selfish, but when she meets Neil again, his attitude is cold. When Judy is pushed off a tree, it brings the two together again, but the mystery doesn't stop there. Strange things are happening on the water, and not everyone is what they seem.

This book felt very familiar. After I finished it, I decided it's like a romantic Nancy Drew. Almost like a cross over of Nancy with a Barbara Cartland. The great thing is, the heroine isn't a total idiot. She was irritating a couple of times, but overall, she was much stronger and smarter than the average Barbara Cartland heroine.

I really did enjoy this one. It was the third book Loring published (in 1925), and I'm really impressed with the style and story, especially considering when it was written. I will say it definitely follows a template. It was a great diet book, and I wouldn't mind reading more. Good Book!