Author: elishasbookreview

I am just a 30 something trying to figure out how to survive in this crazy world. I want to share my love of reading with everyone! I want to introduce people to some underrated or unknown authors. I also blog about other media I consume such as TV, Movies, Podcasts, and Video Games.
Posted in Book Reviews, Novels

REVIEW: All Systems Red (The Murderbot Diaries #1) by Martha Wells

Posted on by elishasbookreview

*No Major Spoilers*

In a corporate-dominated spacefaring future, planetary missions must be approved and supplied by the Company. Exploratory teams are accompanied by Company-supplied security androids, for their own safety.

But in a society where contracts are awarded to the lowest bidder, safety isn’t a primary concern.

On a distant planet, a team of scientists are conducting surface tests, shadowed by their Company-supplied ‘droid — a self-aware SecUnit that has hacked its own governor module, and refers to itself (though never out loud) as “Murderbot.” Scornful of humans, all it really wants is to be left alone long enough to figure out who it is.

But when a neighboring mission goes dark, it’s up to the scientists and their Murderbot to get to the truth.

Rating: 4 out of 5.

This is a series I’ve been wanting to delve into, but I just wasn’t sure if all the hype I was hearing about it would live up to my expectations. I read a lot of sci-fi, and so I guess it’s time to delve into All Systems Red.

When I first started reading this, it felt disjointed in regard to the way Murderbot interacted with the humans. For a long time I couldn’t describe why I felt like the humans were just cardboard. However, I think this was a stylistic choice to show how Murderbot feels when interacting with humans. They would just rather not talk to humans.

And in their corner all they had was Murderbot, who just wanted everyone to shut up and leave it alone so it could watch the entertainment feed all day.

Martha Wells; All Systems Red

There’s not much action in this first instillation, but it’s a great introduction to Murderbot and how they carry themselves and how they see the world around them. When the crew figure out that something is trying to hunt them down, that’s when Murderbot gets to shine.

This is a great place to start if you’re new to sci-fi, or wanting to get more into the genre. I know sometimes sci-fi gets carried away with all the science and tech, but All Systems Red explains the tech in ways I think newcomers to science fiction can follow.

Overall, I liked All Systems Red, I liked seeing a sci-fi mystery through the eyes of a robot. If you want a new take on the sci-fi genre or are looking for a quick read, then I’d recommend All Systems Red.

Posted in Audiobooks, Book Reviews, Novels

REVIEW: Elysium Girls by Kate Pentecost

Posted on by elishasbookreview

*No Major Spoilers*

In this sweeping Dust Bowl-inspired fantasy, a ten-year game between Life and Death pits the walled Oklahoma city of Elysium-including a girl gang of witches and a demon who longs for humanity-against the supernatural in order to judge mankind.

When Sal is named Successor to Mother Morevna, a powerful witch and leader of Elysium, she jumps at the chance to prove herself to the town. Ever since she was a kid, Sal has been plagued by false visions of rain, and though people think she’s a liar, she knows she’s a leader. Even the arrival of enigmatic outsider Asa-a human-obsessed demon in disguise-doesn’t shake her confidence in her ability. Until a terrible mistake results in both Sal and Asa’s exile into the Desert of Dust and Steel.

Face-to-face with a brutal, unforgiving landscape, Sal and Asa join a gang of girls headed by another Elysium exile-and young witch herself-Olivia Rosales. In order to atone for their mistake, they create a cavalry of magic powered, scrap metal horses to save Elysium from the coming apocalypse. But Sal, Asa, and Olivia must do more than simply tip the scales in Elysium’s favor-only by reinventing the rules can they beat the Life and Death at their own game.

Rating: 4 out of 5.

I have been discovering a lot of interesting books on TikTok, and this is another one of them. I saw this book on Arriane’s TikTok and I loved the setting and premise. So let’s cast a spell and reveal the truth of Elysium Girls.

I don’t read many books that take place in Oklahoma, and I love seeing that representation. I love how this happens during the Dust Bowl, and how we learn in the story that the rest of the world is in the middle of WWII. So being stuck in the era of the Dust Bowl and having to play to these goddesses games is interesting.

I love the characters, Sal I found to be relatable. She had her reputation torn to shreds because of no one supported her prediction of the drought ending. Even Mother Morevna shaming her and joining the rest of the town in shaming Sal was despicable to me.

Mother Morevna reminded me of the grandmother from Encanto, Abuela Alma Madrigal. Both are strong, magical women who have faced traumatic pasts and are handling things to what they think is the best way to do things, but actually aren’t.

I enjoyed getting to know the other characters such as Olivia, and the other friends they make while in exile. Although, of the new friend group, I can’t tell you who is who because of how quickly we’re introduced to the girl gang. However, that is a small complaint I have with the characters.

The ending was okay. It didn’t go the way I thought it was going to go, which is good. However, I’m feeling undecided on if I liked the way the story wrapped up. It was a solid ending overall. However I feel like I can’t delve more into it without going into spoilers and that’s no fun!

So overall, I really liked Elysium Girls. I loved the main characters, and how real the setting felt. This has small elements of steampunk, and the romance is natural and not forced into the plot. I would highly recommend if you enjoy magical realism, books that take place in Oklahoma, and historical fiction.

Posted in Book Reviews, Graphic Novels, Rapid Reviews

RAPID REVIEW: Squad by Maggie Tokuda-Hall

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*No Spoilers*

Trigger Warnings: brief sexual assault, swearing, and brief mentions about weight and peer pressure, moderate blood and gore

When Becca transfers to a high school in an elite San Francisco suburb, she’s worried she’s not going to fit in. To her surprise, she’s immediately adopted by the most popular girls in school. At first glance, Marley, Arianna, and Mandy are perfect. But at a party under a full moon, Becca learns that they also have a big secret.

Becca’s new friends are werewolves. Their prey? Slimy boys who take advantage of unsuspecting girls. Eager to be accepted, Becca allows her friends to turn her into a werewolf, and finally, for the first time in her life, she feels like she truly belongs.

But things get complicated when Arianna’s predatory boyfriend is killed, and the cops begin searching for a serial killer. As their pack begins to buckle under the pressure—and their moral high ground gets muddier and muddier—Becca realizes that she might have feelings for one of her new best friends.

Rating: 3 out of 5.

This graphic novel has been floating around TikTok and overall the reviews have been mixed. So I went into this story not expecting much, most high school tropes get on my nerves. So let’s sniff out this review for Squad.

This is another one of those novels that is obviously not for my demographic. I was never the new kid at school, and I never really joined a Mean Girls type friend group. Since those are huge aspects of this story that I don’t match then yeah, but I read it because I was curious. You don’t see female werewolves outside of the romance section.

One thing I didn’t like was that there’s pressure amongst the main group for Becca to fit a size 2 or 3 so they can easily share clothes. I want this toxic idea out of YA fiction. You should love your body no matter whether your a 0 or a 42+. If anyone disagrees then you don’t need that kind of toxicity in your life.

Overall, this was a mediocre story to the point where I really don’t have many thoughts or opinions about it. I liked the diversity amongst the main group of girls, but other than that this is just a petty story filled with melodrama and flimsy motives. I’d say pass on this unless your curious like I was.

Posted in Audiobooks, Book Reviews, Novels

REVIEW: Throwback by Edward J. McFadden III

Posted on by elishasbookreview

*Spoilers Marked*

A space cloud of unknown composition is on a collision course with Earth as the world holds its breath. 

The anomaly sails through the solar system and the International Space Station along with three astronauts and one cosmonaut are thrown back to the Cretaceous period where dinosaurs roam Earth hunting prey and great pterosaurs patrol the skies. 

Supplies on the station run low and desperation takes hold, but morale grows when the crew sees a bright multi-colored light blinking on the surface below. The astronauts decide to evacuate the station in the Soyuz escape capsule and investigate. As the adventurers struggle to survive in the primordial jungle, the party discovers artifacts of an ancient civilization that could help them find the light beacon. If they can stay alive long enough.

Rating: 3 out of 5.

I don’t remember how I found this audiobook, but the premise sounded interesting. I’m always game for sci-fi, time travel, and a good monster tale. So let’s rewind, and talk about Throwback.

First off, I felt like the beginning of this novel was rushed. There’s a ton of characters that are introduced and quickly killed off. It felt like the author was in a hurry to get to the dinosaur part and didn’t setup a decent introduction. On top of all of that, I felt like the characters we’re eventually left with were bland and unmemorable.

The only saving grace I have to say about this story is the dinosaur action. I loved how detailed the author got in to describing what they looked like and how they interacted with the world around them. Sadly, that is the only saving grace I have to say about this book.

The ending wasn’t satisfactory in my opinion. After their arduous journey and this mysterious light is just as much a mystery as when they first saw it in the spaceship. So as the typical humans do, they break it and just set up camp and proceed to live out the rest of their days in this prehistoric world.

No closure, no meaning for all the sacrifices they’ve made. Just ‘huh, I guess there’s nothing we can do, so let’s just live here now.’ I was shouting at my phone when the narrator was reading the end credits, ‘that’s it? That’s the end!?’. I feel like I wasted my time and energy with this one. The only reason this isn’t lower is because of the dinosaurs like I stated earlier in the review.

We get no answers for anything. What was the beacon? What was this ancient race doing? All we get is the astronomers guesses and assumptions. I would say to pass on this prehistoric waste of time.

Posted in Personal Blogs

Gaming REVIEW: Chicken Police: Paint it Red!

Posted on by elishasbookreview

*This game is rated M* The language used is not suitable for children. Additionally, some scenes might be disturbing to a young audience due to the described violence, visual partial nudity, tobacco and alcohol abuse.

A wild tale of love, death, chickens, and redemption! Chicken Police is a buddy-cop noir adventure with a carefully crafted world, a gritty story, and absurd humor. The game mixes classic adventure games with visual novel-style storytelling, presented in a beak-droppingly unique art style.

Rating: 4.5 out of 5.

I found this on Steam (a website where you can purchase PC games) when the algorithm recommended it for me. I tend to enjoy visual novels, farming simulators, and RPGs (Role Playing Game). So, I added it to my Wishlist and I intended to purchase it when it went on sale. However, my fiancé and I went to our local GameStop to get the new Pokemon game, and even though they didn’t have it in stock, they had a used copy of this game for the Nintendo Switch. So let’s peck out the clues and solve this mystery.

First off, I love Noir mysteries. I know we as a society tend to romanticize that era in history, but something about a jaded private-eye solving a case that quickly devolves into a deep mess is exciting.

A screenshot of Marty MacChicken and Lewis C. Hayworth

Our main characters are Sonny Featherland, a police officer who’s fallen on hard times and was put on sabbatical until his last 100 days of service are up. Sonny’s former partner and best friend, Marty MacChicken is still working for the police department and misses the days of when the whole world knew about the Chicken Police. Marty is the comedian of the duo, and I have some screenshots with some of his more memorable quotes.

One small hang-up I had was with the interrogations. At the beginning of each section, it would tell you ‘[character name] is [character traits] we can use that in our favor and squeeze out the truth.’. It wasn’t until I was about halfway through the game when it finally clicked what the game was conveying. I’m not sure if it was me being sleep-deprived while playing this, or just me missing the hints.

I had to look up some hints to the puzzles. Although most I figured out on my own, there was still one or two that I needed help with. I like it when games have puzzles I can easily solve on my own. Either by giving context clues or just exploring and examining everything in the room.

I loved the characters in this story, they were full of charm and humor. My favorite character was Monica. She works the front desk of the police station and is basically what is holding the place together. She doesn’t put up with anybody’s crap and is willing to help out Sonny and Marty when they needed to bend the rules. Monica ended up being my MVP by the end, I wanted to know more about her and be her friend.

Overall, I enjoyed this game. The mystery was great and even though once they hit a certain clue it was pretty predictable. Nonetheless, the characters, art style, and humor is what sells this game for me. I wish more people new about this game, but it’s okay. I guess I like my games how I like my books, hidden gems.