Review: The Case of the Twisted Truths by Lucy Banks

The Case of the Twisted Truths by Lucy Banks
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I was provided an ARC via Edelweiss in exchanged for an honest review.  This book comes out on October 6, 2020.

This is book four of the Dr. Ribero's Agency of the Supernatural Series.  I thought that this was the final book of the series, but was pleasantly surprised to find that there will be more books.  I really enjoy this series.  The cast of characters is hilarious, and they are terrible at investigating the supernatural and sending them back to whence they came.  This book does end on a cliffhanger, however I'm glad to know that we will finally uncover some of the missing pieces of the backstory.

Like the other books, this follows Kester, a lovable character who kind of stumbles along his newfound life in the realm of the paranormal after his mother's death.  His mother was involved in the paranormal world, but kept it all from Kester and now that he has reunited with his father he has been thrust into the paranormal world and is trying to find his place in it.  Unlike the previous books in the series, where his father's "ghost hunting" agency is actively working on a case, this book is mainly focused on Kester and following up on events of the previous book [book:The Case of the Hidden Daemon|44556436].  Kester is still facing his fear of the spirit world, which terrifies him, trying to learn his father's business, and going to the university to learn about all things paranormal.  While juggling all of his responsibilities he finds himself in the middle of a moral dilemma and he can't tell anyone what he is doing.  Hrschni, the daemon who kidnapped him, has an agenda that Kester doesn't support, but he also has information that Kester is desperate to learn.  

I really liked that Kester is finally accepting his fate as a spirit door opener and starting to believe in himself.  He is still scared of his own shadow, but he is starting to find his stride.  I loved seeing him finally stick up to his father when it came to running the business.  Kester's development is slow, but he makes steps in the direction in each book.  It is mentioned in this book that he is only 23 years old, so he is still figuring out who he is as a person and he's had a lot thrown at him in a short amount of time.  While I didn't appreciate the cliffhanger (who does), I do like that we are finally going to find out more about Kester's mysterious mother and perhaps why she kept so many secrets in the next installment.

I love this series and highly recommend it if you are looking for a paranormal, mystery type of series.  This series sort of fits into the cozy genre as there is some comedy and it is fun and easy to read.  I've really come to love the characters and really like the humor.

View all my reviews

Review: The Hanged Man and the Fortune Teller by Lucy Banks

The Hanged Man and the Fortune Teller by Lucy Banks
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I was provided an ARC of this book via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.  This book will be released on September 3, 2019.

This was a bit different from Banks' other works I've read. It still delves into the paranormal, but this is a bit more on the historical fiction side. This follows a ghost throughout his afterlife as he is trying to remember what happened to him and he is looking for his wife. Surely their love would tether her to this world as it has him, right? He is accompanied by Agnes, the ghost of a women he met during his life, and she tries to remind him of his life and why he keeps visiting the people and places he does.

This book jumps around from our main characters current time as a ghost, then back in time to when he was alive, and many years in between when he was alive and after his death. The timeline is not linear and the story is slowly told through the time jumps. We learn why the ghost is drawn to the people he is drawn to, what happens to his family, and how he died. These things unfold overtime as you jump around from the 1870's, 2017, and all over the 1900's.

This is a story of love, loss, family, and the human condition. Unlike Bank's other books I've read this stayed pretty serious throughout. The ghost is drawn to people with sad, painful energy and the feel of the book is fairly somber. Banks tells a good story, but I prefer linear timelines, and I prefer her other works that have a bit of comic relief. This was just a bit too sad for my liking.

View all my reviews

October Wrap up

I think I had a pretty good reading month, 6 e-books and 7 audiobooks completed. While I didn't get everything reviewed on time, I did most of my October books reviewed.  I have 2 left, then I think I am finally caught up on all of the reviews I need to write and I have nothing to review in November.  That means I have some time to focus on finishing up my reading challenge prompts.  I updated my challenge spreadsheet and I have 10 left after October.  Fortunately I have books picked out for all of the remaining prompts and I own most of them.

Most of my books for October were of the spooky, mystery variety which I think was perfect given the time of year.  I love Halloween and fall is my favorite time of year.  The beginning of October was unseasonably hot, but about mid-month it finally started to get cold and actually felt like fall.  Halloween was rainy and foggy, but my kids had a blast and in the words of Garfield the Cat there was lots of "Candy Candy Candy!"

Books/Ebooks/ARCs

• The Case of the Hidden Daemon by Lucy Banks
• Review
• I really loved the previous books in this series and this one is no different.  It moves the storyline from book 2 along nicely, while having it's own plot.  The group of ghost-hunters is pretty hysterical and I really enjoy Banks' writing style and humor.  This comes out October 23rd.
• The Spellbook of Katrina VanTassel by Alyssa Palombo
• Review
• This is perfect to get into the Halloween spirit.  This is a retelling of Sleepy Hollow.  I used to love the Headless Horseman cartoon when I was a kid because it was scary and I really enjoyed the TV show for a while.  This was not as paranormal and magic related as I wanted it to be.  It was much more of a historical romance, and from that perspective it was good book and from a retelling perspective it was one of the better ones.
• The Legend of Sleepy Hollow by Washington Irving
• I'm glad to have finally read this. I have always loved this story and it is about time I read the original work. Perfect for fall and Halloween approaching.  I read this directly after reading the Spellbook of Katrina Van Tassel to see how the retelling matched up.  It was fairly short, and pretty good.  I'm also using this to fill the reading challenge prompt for a book with an ugly cover.  This cover is completely unappealing.
• 
• Fight or Flight by Samantha Young
• Review
• I loved this.  I couldn't put it down.  It is a hate to love romance and I loved the couple.  I needed a good contemporary and this was the book I didn't know I needed until I read it.  Really no complaints about this at all.
• The Halloween Tree by Ray Bradbury
• This is a weird little book.  It is poetic and beautiful, but its weird.  It pays homage to all of the various cultural death ceremonies throughout time that eventually came to be what we know in the US to be Halloween. I love Halloween and I really loved this little book.  The art and story were appropriately strange to be respectful to all of the different times mentioned.  I really enjoyed it.  I met the challenge prompt for a book about Halloween.  it could also meet a book with and ugly cover as the art is not aesthetically pleasing to me, but is totally appropriate to the story in a Tim Burton kind of way.
• The Boy I Grew Up With by Tijan
• Review
• This came out on October 29th.  This is kind of a crossover between the Crew series and Fallen Crest (which I haven't read).  It tells the backstory and present day story of side characters in both series, Channing and Heather.  It is kind of a dark contemporary.  There are plenty of steamy scences, and because of the crew business there are some violent mafia/gang kind of situations that the characters get into.  I liked it.

Audiobooks

I got through a ton of audiobooks this month.  I actually posted a couple of reviews for them too.  That in itself is amazing.  I almost never post reviews for audiobooks because I just never get to them.  I mean to but I just don't do it.

• Ready Player One by Ernest Cline
• Review
• This covered a book challenge prompt for a book I borrowed.  I loved it.  I'm a child of the 80's so I really appreciated all of the 80's references.  This really appealed to my inner nerd.  It was so good, it just made me laugh and feel happy.
• 1984 by George Orwell
• This was an interesting read.  I can see why it is taught in high school and college courses.  You can see the post Nazi-era influence and the Marxism in the writing.  While this isn't my normal reading preference, I can appreciate it for what it is.  This covers a reading challenge prompt for a book set in the decade I was born.
• Minecraft: The Island by Max Brooks
• I picked this up when it was a free promo on Volumes.  My son loves Minecraft and I got it for him.  He and I listened to it on our way to and from his basketball practices and games.  Jack Black was an amazing narrator, and while I don't know anything about Minecraft I found this really funny and pretty entertaining.  My son loved it and said it was pretty authentic to the game.
• How to Stop Time by Matt Haig
• I was expecting this to be about time travel, it isn't but its still interesting.  It follows a man who ages very slowly and who has lived through some very iconic historical events.  It is a little slow paced for my taste but I still enjoyed it.
• The King of Attolia by Megan Whalen Turner
• This was pretty entertaining.  We follow Gen, who is now King of Attolia but he really doesn't want to be King.  As with the previous books, Gen is full of his usual antics and surprises you at the the most unexpected times.  You always think he's not paying attention or he is going to do one thing and he does the complete opposite.  He really comes into his role as King.  I really enjoy how this series is progressing.
• Warcross by Marie Lu
• Review
• This fulfills my cyberpunk reading challenge prompt.  I loved this.  The romance was a little cheesy but whatever.  I really enjoy Lu's writing and this was no different.  This wasn't super technical, it was more focused on the characters and plot.  
• The Poppy War by R.F. Kuang
• This has gotten a ton of hype and lots of great reviews.  They are all well deserved!  This is one epic fantasy.  I haven't delved into a good epic fantasy in a long time and this was worth every minute of my time.  There are some seriously brutal and violent moments, but it is so well written.  I highly recommend it, it is one of the best fantasies I've read in quite some time.  I can't wait for the next book.

Review: The Case of the Hidden Daemon by Lucy Banks

The Case of the Hidden Daemon by Lucy Banks
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I was provided an ARC via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.  This will be released on October 23, 2018.  I do recommend reading atleast book 2 before reading this one.  Book 1 was pretty much a standalone, but this one picks up where book 2 leaves off.  If you are going to read book 2, though start at the beginning because book 1 is great.  I really like this series. 

As was the case with the previous book in the series I really loved this. The band of characters is really comical. They each have a specific paranormal ability that helps them with their "ghost hunting". They all have flawed personalities and insecurities, and if they didn't work together they wouldn't work anywhere else. I do wish Kester would kind of find himself and his backbone. He keeps starting to find his courage and then he reverts to the naive, insecure, scared little boy. It doesn't help that people are constantly insulting him all of the time. I do hope that as the series continues Kester begins to conquer his fears and his colleagues begin to respect him. Overall, though I do really like the characters, they are witty and funny, and at the heart of it they really do care about each other.

This particular installment didn't focus on sending a spirit back to the spirit realm, but it did focus on daemons this time which is new for the series. I really liked the way Kester had to step up and solve the clues that the daemon left behind and the inclusion of the Thelemites, a cult-like organization that focuses on human-spirit interaction. As Kester and the agency try to figure out what the daemon and the Thelemites are up to, Kester is also trying to navigate a budding romance with librarian Anya. Anya has gotten herself mixed up in with the Thelemites and Kester is trying to protect her and fumble through his first relationship.

I will say I hate cliffhangers, this one wasn't too bad. The story does end, but it leaves you wanting more. I can't wait for the next book and to see where this is headed. There are so many different ways the story can play out and I'm so exited to see where it goes next. I have so many unanswered questions. Overall, I love this series and I highly recommend it.

View all my reviews

Review: The Case of the Deadly Doppelganger

The Case of the Deadly Doppelganger by Lucy Banks
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I received a copy of this book from the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.  This comes out on February 6, 2018 and I recommend it.

Lucy Banks is quickly becoming one of my favorite paranormal fiction writers. I recently read book 1, but you could have easily picked up with book 2 as a standalone. The book picks up shortly after book 1 leaves off, but there are only a few references made back to the information of book 1 and it is fairly well summarized so you aren't left feeling completely confused or like you are missing something. I highly recommend book 1 because I loved it, and I loved book 2.

The team of Dr. Ribero's Agency of the Supernatural again finds themselves on a mission to extinguish a supernatural being back to the spirit world, but there are plenty of complications. They find themselves working with a rival agency, and the interactions with the owners, Dr. Ribero and Larry Higgins are hilarious. Kester, our main character, is finally settling into his role at the agency, though he still can't control his own supernatural gift. He is starting to find his own way as an adult by living on his own and dating. His roommates provide comic relief throughout the book, as do his co-workers Mike and Serena. Kester is once again left to dig through the clues behind what is really going on in the small seaside town of Lyme Regis where several people have ended up dead. Strange things are afoot and with Kester's ability to research and uncover information. I really loved the history and mythology in this one just like the last one. I felt like I was there with the team as they were walking around, and I want to be a member of their ghost-busting team.

Totally unrelated to the plot but something I really loved about this book was the interaction of the team with the transgender character Lara/Luke. We are introduced to Lara, from Team Higgins, as a female, but Kester sees her out in town and notices that she wears male looking clothing. Eventually Serena calls Lara out for looking manly, and Lara tells the team she has always identified as male. The Ribero Team is so welcoming to this information and immediately asks how they should be addressed going forward to make them feel more comforatable. This is when Lara becomes Luke, and she becomes him. Naturally the team slips up from time to time, but they make every attempt to make Luke comfortable. Luke also is very open to questions to make the team feel comfortable. I like they way this was handled and there were so many sweet moments between the team and Luke, especially Pamela, Ms. Wellbeloved. I will say that I feel like Kester could have spoke out to his father about his narrow minded thinking towards transgender people, that is out of character for Kester, and the inner monologue addressing it was more in alignment with his personality.

View all my reviews

Review: The Case of the Green-Dressed Ghost

The Case of the Green-Dressed Ghost by Lucy Banks
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I loved this. I haven't read a paranormal in quite a while that wasn't also a young adult and filled with predictable tropes. I think that's why I liked this so much, it was not filled with any of that. I loved the writing, the characters, the ghost mythology.

Normally I would be annoyed by the main character Kester. He's kind of whiny, weak, and naive. I don't mind him though, he's oddly likable. I think I don't mind it because he fully is aware of his faults. His mother pretty much sheltered him and coddled him his entire life in an attempt to protect him. This leaves him a 22 year old who really doesn't know how to take care of himself or what is out there in the world. After his mother's death, Kester goes on a quest to find the mysterious Dr. Ribero. Upon finding the doctor, Kester is confronted with the knowledge that Dr. Ribero is his father and that he owns and runs a paranormal investigative service. At the office, Kester meets the good Dr.'s co-workers who each have a special talent when dealing with the paranormal.  To go along with their special paranormal gift, they each have a unique personality making for hilarious interactions on cases and in the office.  I loved the dialog between the characters. Kester is thrown into the fray and discovers that his mother led an entirely different life he knew nothing about before he came along. She had a paranormal talent and may have passed it on to Kester. Kester is terrified of the paranormal and just wants to go back to his unsuspecting life, but like most things once you seen them you can't unsee them. Determined to make his father proud and become a useful part of the team, Kester sets out to solve the mystery of the team's latest case.

I very much enjoyed this, and I'm looking forward to book 2. I was lucky enough to get an advanced copy of book and I'm anxious to get started.  Had I not received an ARC of the 2nd book I would have never picked this up.  I always try to read things in order and I'm so glad that I did, this was so fun and a nice change of pace from what I normally read.  Lucy Banks is an author I'm going to keep and eye out for as I really enjoyed her writing style.