Posted in Audiobooks, Book Reviews, Novels

REVIEW: God of War by Matthew Stover and Robert E. Vardeman

Posted on by elishasbookreview

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*Possible Spoilers for the God of War Games*

A brutal warrior, Kratos is a slave to the gods of Olympus. Plagued by the nightmares of his past and yearning for freedom, the Ghost of Sparta would do anything to be free of his debt to the gods. He is on the verge of losing all hope when the gods give him one last task to end his servitude.

He must destroy Ares, the god of war.

But what chance does a mere mortal have against a god? Armed with the deadly chained Blades of Chaos, guided by the goddess Athena, and driven by his own insatiable thirst for vengeance, Kratos seeks the only relic powerful enough to slay Ares . . . a quest that will take him deep into the mysterious temple borne by the Titan Cronos!

From the black depths of Hades to the war-torn city of Athens to the lost desert beyond, God of War sheds a brutal new light on the bestselling video game and on the legend of Kratos.

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I have been a fan of Greek Mythology for a long time. With the Percy Jackson series introducing young readers into the mythos in a kid-friendly way, God of War is basically Percy Jackson for adults. The video games are well known for their antihero Kratos, who let his bloodlust go too far and cause pain and death all around him.

If you’re familiar with the video games, then you are familiar with Kratos’ backstory. He is a Spartan who asked Ares to become his apprentice. This decision haunts him as he seeks relief from the nightmares and the decisions his younger self made in the past.

Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed God of War. The action, adventure, and feelings of other stories inspired by Greek Mythology were enough to keep me enthralled in the story. I haven’t played or watched any of the God of War games myself, but knowing there are novelizations of the games makes me want to continue on the adventure.

I would highly recommend this novel for fans of the Percy Jackson series as well as fans of Greek Mythology in general. There is plenty of action, adventure, and plenty of Greek gods to keep you invested in the story. I can’t wait to jump back into the world and continue on with Kratos.

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Posted in Audiobooks, Book Reviews, Novels

REVIEW: Gears of War: Aspho Fields (Gears of War #1) by Karen Traviss

Posted on by elishasbookreview

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*Possible Spoilers for the Gears of War Games*

For the first time, fans of the blockbuster Gears of War video games get an in-depth look at Delta Squad’s toughest fighters–soldier’s soldier Marcus Fenix and rock-solid Dominic Santiago–as well as a detailed account of the pivotal battle of the Pendulum Wars.

As kids, the three of them were inseparable; as soldiers, they were torn apart. Marcus, Fenix, and Dominic Santiago fought alongside Dom’s elder brother Carlos at Aspho Fields in the epic battle that changed the course of the Pendulum Wars. There’s a new war to fight now, a war for mankind’s very survival. But while the last human stronghold on Sera braces itself for another onslaught from the Locust Horde, ghosts come back to haunt Marcus and Dom. For Marcus–decorated war hero, convicted traitor–the return of an old comrade threatens to dredge up an agonizing secret he’s sworn to keep.

As the beleaguered Gears of the Coalition of Ordered Governments take a last stand to save mankind from extermination, the harrowing decisions made at Aspho Fields have to be re-lived and made again. Marcus and Dom can take anything the Locust Horde throws at them–but will their friendship survive the truth about Carlos Santiago?

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I enjoy playing and watching video games, and the Gears of War series has always been a series that I’ve been casually interested in. I don’t typically enjoy military fiction, but I figured I’d give it a try. So let’s see how Gears of War holds up.

The first struggle I faced with the novel was I became confused about which story was which. The story of how Carlos died seemed to intertwine with the “present-day” story. It wasn’t until near the end of the novel I was able to separate the two battles.

Even though I struggled with the two different stories going on, I felt like you didn’t need to know much about the games to enjoy this novel. This is actually a prequel to the first game in the series. This gives fans more insight into the characters’ backstories as well as for newcomers to learn about the main characters and the overall plot of the games.

I liked how the author not only included quotes from the human characters, but as well as quotes from the enemy leaders. I felt like this gave the bad guys more personality as well as insight into how they’re just two factions both believing they’re doing the right thing in their part in the war.

Both parts of the story were written well. At times, I felt like I was on the battlefield with the other Gears. I could imagine the chaos of gunfire, the bombs, and the constant fight-or-flight senses going off. So if you are a military buff, then I think you would enjoy this novel and/or series.

Overall, I enjoyed Gears of War: Aspho Fields I found it to be action-packed and somewhat thought-provoking. If you enjoy the video game series, or hesitant about jumping into it, then I would highly recommend you start off here.

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Posted in Author Q&A

Author Q&A: Duncan Ralston

Posted on by elishasbookreview

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*No Spoilers for Ghostland by Duncan Ralston*

Who do you relate to more, Ben or Lillian? If so in what way(s)?

Mr. Ralston: I relate a bit to both of them for different reasons. With Ben, it’s his childhood illness and love of horror novels. With Lilian, it’s her sarcasm and needs to present a tough, seen-it-all exterior, which I remember trying to project when I was her age.

Was it difficult creating the world of Ghostland?

Mr. Ralston: It was pretty difficult but also a lot of fun. There were really no limits as to where I could take the technology of the park – the biggest hurdle was trying to reign it all in to make for a cohesive story rather than a bunch of random incidents and set pieces strung together.

Did you base some of the ghosts on real-life events?

Mr. Ralston: Not that I can recall. There may be some that were unintentionally inspired by other stories or real-life events, mostly I took the standard tropes and tried to put a fresh spin on them.

What are your thoughts on Halloween in this politically correct society?

Mr. Ralston: It seems like much of the pushback against Halloween comes from the folks who aren’t so interested in political correctness.

Do you have a favorite non-Horror movie/book/tv show?

Mr. Ralston: Favorite non-horror book: Perfume: Story of a Murderer. Movie: currently, Interstellar. TV Show: all-time, LOST.

Would you be surprised if one day we had the technology where everyone could experience hauntings for themselves?

Mr. Ralston: It would surprise me very much as I don’t believe in the existence of ghosts – and the idea of them disturbs me deeply. That we would go on, trapped here on Earth without our bodies. Stuck re”living” past events. Is it purgatory? A way station between life and death? I’d much rather believe in reincarnation, or Heaven or just life being the end of everything. That said, if life after death was ever proven, I’d be all in. Though like some of the characters in Ghostland, I would have moral issues with exploiting them.

Is there any other Paranormal phenomenon you’d be interested in writing about in the future?

Mr. Ralston: I’m interested in just about every possible paranormal phenomenon you can think of – from TK [telekinetic] to UFOs. The second Ghostland book will feature psychic phenomena more directly than the first, exploring some of the powers displayed by ghosts at Ghostland.

Thanks, Mr. Ralston for answering my questions, and I can’t wait to read the next installment of the Ghostland series!

You can read my review of Ghostland here!

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Posted in Book Reviews, Novels

REVIEW: Ghostland by Duncan Ralston

Posted on by elishasbookreview

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*No Spoilers*

After a near-death experience caused by the park’s star haunted attraction, Ben has come to Ghostland seeking to reconnect with his former best friend Lilian, whose post-traumatic stress won’t let her live life to the fullest. She’s come at the insistence of her therapist, Dr. Allison Wexler, who tags along out of professional curiosity, eager to study the new tech’s psychological effect on the user.

But when a computer virus sets the ghosts free and the park goes into lockdown, the trio finds themselves trapped in an endless nightmare.

With time running short and the dead quickly outnumbering the living, the survivors must tap into their knowledge of horror and video games to escape… or become Ghostland’s newest exhibits.

”If they didn’t get out of there soon, they would all die at the hands of the exhibits, then they too would become a part of Ghostland, a part of Garrote’s ghost army.” – Ghostland

I found this novel when I renewed my Kindle Unlimited subscription. I found the concept of a haunted amusement park to be intriguing and exciting. The thought of ghosts being the museum exhibits instead of the objects or buildings being the exhibits.

I will warn you upfront, this novel gets to be a gorefest at points. So if you are the squeamish type, I’d pass on this one. Otherwise, it is clearly a love letter to the classic horror movies that weren’t afraid of showing blood and letting out curse words.

I love how the author built this universe from the ground up. He even included footnotes for the ghosts and exhibits in case you wanted to know more about these fictional ghosts. Even though you learned about the barebones of the universe through dialogue and the main characters’ knowledge of the exhibits, it was nice to read more into each of the famous attractions. I think my favorite one was about a guy who got lost in his own mirror maze and ended up cutting off pieces of himself to try and keep from going around in circles.

I don’t want to spoil too much, but each character has depth and personality. Both Ben and Lillian change throughout the novel. Not only through witnessing so much trauma and horror, but just by trying to survive the murderous park. Lillian was so affected by Ben’s near-death that she stopped living life.

I was gripped to the edge of my seat until the epilogue. The anticipation of wanting to know who was going to survive, and who was going to have a gruesome demise kept me guessing until the end. One thing I did like was that the author wasn’t afraid to kill any characters. I often wondered if no one was safe.

I often found myself forgetting that Ben and Lillian were only able to see the ghosts through the artificial reality headsets they wore throughout the majority of the story. I kept forgetting about this and was amazed at how the fictional technology seamlessly blended into the background.

Overall, I really enjoyed Ghostland it was a breath of fresh air to the horror genre for me, the author wasn’t afraid to kill off characters, and even though the story is from the perspective of two teenagers, I feel like it was written for adults. If you are looking for a novel to help with your horror genre burnout, then I would highly recommend Ghostland.

Click here to read an interview I did with Duncan Ralston.

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