Book Review: WTF (Geek Actually #1.1) by Cathy Yardley, Cecilia Tan, Rachel Stuhler, and Melissa Blue

Author: Cathy Yardley, Cecilia Tan, Rachel Stuhler, and Melissa Blue
Series: Geek Actually #1.1
Audience: +18
Genre: Erotica, Women's Fiction
Publisher: Serial Box
Release Date: June 7th 2017
My Rating: 3.5 cups
Source: Netgalley
Blurb (from Goodreads):

This is the 1st episode in the first season of Geek, Actually, a 13-episode serial from Serial Box Publishing. This episode written by Cathy Yardley.

Meet your new best girlfriends in this sexy, genre-busting serial that’s all about feminism, friendship, and fandom.

Michelle and Aditi have been friends for ages, but with Michelle as Aditi’s editor for her debut fantasy novel, their relationship is under a bit of strain. Aditi needs to blow off some steam—a hot Tinder date does the trick (and then some). Meanwhile, Taneesha and Elli are both having some job trouble.

Join this tight-knit group of lady geeks as they navigate the ups and downs of their personal and professional lives. Michelle is a hard-nosed fantasy and sci-fi editor used to things going her way. Taneesha is a talented video game programmer used to being the odd (wo)man out. Aditi is a fantasy writer on the verge of her big break. Christina is a rebel on the sidelines of Hollywood. And Elli is a fan—of anything and everything that keeps her from “proper adulting.” They might live far apart, but through the power of the internet and a shared love of all things geek, they are ready to face the world together.

*Disclaimer: I received an e-copy from Netgalley and Serial Box in exchange for an honest review. This does not influence my rating or the content of my review in any way

This is the first installment in the Geek Actually serial, the pilot if you may, and we get to meet five women: Michelle, Aditi, Taneesha, Elli and Christina. They're friends (Michelle and Christina are actually half-sisters) and we get to observe them navigating their lives. It kind of reminded me of Sex And The City, which intrigued me.

This book was told from multiple POVs, with an accent on Michelle and Aditi. I'm thinking that each episode focuses more on one of the women than the other, which is interesting. I connected a lot more with Taneesha, to be honest. She's a woman, she's a black woman, and she's a video game programmer, so she basically holds the job that once upon a time I wanted, and there's a scene with her and her bosses that is so painful and infuriating that I wanted to jump into the book and slap both of those idiots. I was also insanely curious about Aditi and her relationship with someone important in her life.

I felt like this was a bit too short for my taste, but I could see myself reading the rest of the installments. Since it was a pilot installment, I can't exactly say I was in love with the story, but it's good enough to make me curious about the rest of it.

Book Review: Legal Wolf's Mate by Eve Langlais

Author: Eve Langlais
Series: Fabian Garoux #1
Audience: +18
Genre: Erotic Romance, Paranormal Romance
Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin
Release Date: October 4th 2016
My Rating: 4 cups
Source: Netgalley
Blurb (from Goodreads):

In Eve Langlais's Legal Wolf’s Mate—previously published in the anthology Growl— taking on a pro bono murder case isn't a problem for a lawyer who enjoys a challenge. Discovering his new client is his mate? A tad more complicated. Gavin has no intention of settling down, especially not with a woman accused of murder. But the beautiful, fiery Megan has his blood boiling and his heart racing, and it doesn't take Gavin long to know that his fate is sealed...

*Disclaimer: I received an e-copy of this book from Netgalley and St. Martin's Griffin in exchange for an honest review. This does not influence my rating or the content of my review in any way.

This book was a nice discovery in the realm of paranormal genre. It had all the ingredients for a good paranormal book, and a good series starter.

Gavin is super sexy and super smart. Very stubborn too, which I guess you have to be, if you're going to be a lawyer. I liked how confused by Megan and by the way he felt for her he was, but I also liked that he was really trying to make the entire situation better and to save her.

Megan was a mystery. While the book is told both from hers and Gavin's perspective, at times I felt just as confused and in the dark about Megan as he was. It isn't until towards the end that we get to understand exactly the what, why, and how of it all, and let me tell you, I was surprised. I was expecting some kind of twist, but definitely not that.

The book is pretty fast paced, and I enjoyed reading it. The werewolf mythology was interesting, especially with how they shift. I'm curious if other shapeshifters are affected the same as wolves. As I said, I had a moment of confusion towards the end, but I certainly liked the book enough to want to read more books from this author. And I'm super ecstatic that there are at least two more books in this series, since we all know how much I enjoy paranormal series. Definitely check this one out if you like paranormal romance.

Comic Book Tuesday #24: Monstress Vol 2 by Marjorie M Liu, Sana Takeda

Author: Marjorie M. Liu, Sana Takeda
Series: Monstress (Collected Editions) #2
Audience: +18
Genre:Comic Book
Publisher: Image Comics
Release Date: July 11th 2017
My Rating: 5 Cups
Source: Edelweiss
Blurb (from Goodreads):

The Eisner-nominated MONSTRESS is back! Maika, Kippa, and Ren journey to Thyria in search of answers to her past... and discover a new, terrible, threat. Collects MONSTRESS #7-12

*Disclaimer: I received an e-copy of this book from Edelweiss and Image Comics in exchange for an honest review. This does not influence my rating or the content of my review in any way.

I've been waiting for a long, long time for this volume to come out, and it was just as fantastic as I'd hoped and imagined it would be.

Let me start by saying that the art is just as fantastic and amazing as it was in the first volume, if not even more gorgeous. The tone in some drawings changed a little bit, with some panels being more colorful than usual, and even more detailed than before. I love how dynamic the art looks, you can almost imagine the drawing moving. The entire time I was reading this book I could almost see the characters moving, speaking, the smell of the ocean and the sounds of the city, every little detail was present in those panels in such a way to make me imagine the story and see it in my head much like I would watch a movie.

The story picks up right where volume 1 ends, and we get to learn more about Maika, and why she's so dark and tough, especially with Kippa, all the time. I liked the glimpses we got into Maika's childhood, as it made me understand her more. I am curious to see how her story ends and if she'll find the closure she needs. Kippa, as always, was fantastic. She grew from being the little fox-child needing protection from everyone, to making choices and being braver than in the previous volume. This is also probably due to Maika's form of tough love, but also because Kippa is a brave character. Master Ren is still the snarky cat I remember, but he's taking a few risks I didn't imagine him taking in this story. I really want to understand what his angle is though, what's his endgame.

It seems to me that somehow everyone knows something about Maika that she isn't aware of herself, which is kinda sad and infuriating, because I wonder if everybody has a hidden agenda here.

The story is completed by the lectures of professor Tam Tam, and they offer a glimpse into some stuff that Maika is definitely not aware of, or so I believe. We also find out more about the monster inside Maika, her backstory, and how she ended up inside Maika, as well as more about Maika's family.

I loved this story so much, and I am impatiently waiting for the next installments, especially after that ending, although I will be completely honest with you, I am not ready for the story to end! Not at all!