Special Offers by M.L. Ryan

Meet Hailey — possessed by an other-worldly being from another dimension who was previously trapped in her Kindle

Yep, you read that right, Hailey purchases a Kindle and ends up possessed by a being from another dimension, and that is just one of her problems. Ironically I read this book on my new kindle. It has an interesting story line and hey it is about a book hoarder so how can it possibly be a bad book, right? It is original for sure and as crazy as it sounds, the story becomes very, very interesting.  Detectives, inter-dimensional mysteries, sarcasm, wit, and of course magic made this book a light but fun read. I had a blast reading this book, in fact I finished it in one afternoon and downloaded the sequels. They just continued to get better. Buy the book, or download it, you won't be disappointed, but alas your download probably won't come with a handsome inter-dimensional prince so there is that. 

I give Special Offers 5 out of 5 stars
I give the audio Performance 5 out of 5 stars  

The Hundredth Queen by Emily R. Queen

As an orphan ward of the Sisterhood, eighteen-year-old Kalinda is destined for nothing more than a life of seclusion and prayer. Plagued by fevers, she’s an unlikely candidate for even a servant’s position, let alone a courtesan or wife. Her sole dream is to continue living in peace in the Sisterhood’s mountain temple.
But a visit from the tyrant Rajah Tarek disrupts Kalinda’s life. Within hours, she is ripped from the comfort of her home, set on a desert trek, and ordered to fight for her place among the rajah’s ninety-nine wives and numerous courtesans. Her only solace comes in the company of her guard, the stoic but kind Captain Deven Naik.
Faced with the danger of a tournament to the death—and her growing affection for Deven—Kalinda has only one hope for escape, and it lies in an arcane, forbidden power buried within her.

I have mixed feelings about this book. On one hand there is beautiful writing, excellent world building, well defined characters, romance, fantasy, bravery, and of course magic. On the other hand there is slavery, sexual slavery, polygamy, and murder. However, I feel the good balances the bad and the author never condones the negative. It is just presented as the culture of the world these people live in. The evils in this book are never portrayed as acceptable, but as obstacles the heroine has to  overcome if she is to survive. She is strong and smart. The protagonist adapts, she is not a weakling whining and complaining about her plight, but a character we are able to watch grow and evolve into a brave and likable young potential queen. Each chapter is exciting, leaving the reader wanting to know what is going to happen next, and in spite of the obvious negative connotations toward the treatment of women, the author counter balances this with strong female roles, and relationships throughout the story. 

Due to some of the more intense graphic scenes in this novel I would not recommend it for younger readers. There are gory fight scenes and more talk of sexual involvement than I would recommend for children. This book is for a young adult audience and higher. 

I give The Hundredth Queen 4 out of 5 stars

The Forgotten Book by Mechthild Gläser

Emma is used to things going her way. Her father is headmaster of her prestigious boarding school, her friends take her advice as gospel, and she's convinced that a relationship with her long-time crush is on the horizon.
As it turns out, Emma hasn't seen anything yet. When she finds an old book in an abandoned library, things really start going Emma's way: anything she writes in the book comes true.
But the power of the book is not without consequences, and Emma soon realizes that she isn't the only one who knows about it. Someone is determined to take it from her--and they'll stop at nothing to succeed.

This book is supposed to have tie-ins with Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austin. I will try to write this review based on the book itself and not on any relationship it has to Austin's book.
The first thing I noticed about this book was its beautiful cover. Like The Book Jumper, by the same author, it has a lovely cover, but that book did not impress me so I was hesitant. However, I am a sucker for a pretty cover and this time I was rewarded with a better story. The story within these pages is better suited to a younger audience. I believe I would recommend this book for middle school aged students. The relationships and angst between characters tends to be juvenile,  but adequate for that audience. The characters are not overly complex, but developed enough to create an interesting plot, and the story line is interesting. Overall the tale held my attention in spite of being mostly predictable. My own children enjoyed the book far more than I did. 

School aged ranking 4 out of 5 stars for The Forgotten Book
The audio performance 4 out of 5 stars
Overall I give The Forgotten Book 3 out of 5 stars