Tag: Books

Posted in Discussions, Personal Blogs

DISCUSSION: Christmas is Upon Us

Posted on by elishasbookreview
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Photo by Ylanite Koppens on Pexels.com

Thanksgiving is over, and Christmas is less than a month away. With the upcoming holiday and New Year, I’d like to reflect on this year and plan for the upcoming months.

I started this blog in January of this year. I felt like it’d be a fun side project to distract me from reality. It was a rough start, still kneading out the bumps, but more or less I have a rhythm going.

Hopefully, I’ll be still keeping this blog going for days to come. I enjoy being able to share my thoughts about the books I have read. Even the off topics discussions are fun too!

My plans so far for the next year is going through my “to be read” list. I have crates of books that I’ve purchased and I’d like to try and make a dent on that massive list.

I would also like to review books that I’ve read in the past. I like the Harry Potter series, but the later books are long and massive. I’ve read so many it’d be difficult to pick which ones I’d reread.

So those are my thoughts and ideas at this point in time. I hope everyone has a safe and happy holiday/Christmas/whatever holiday you celebrate! Thanks for reading my blog!

Posted in Audiobooks, Book Reviews, Novels

REVIEW: Subhuman: Unit 51 #1 by Michael McBride

Posted on by elishasbookreview
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*No Major Spoilers*

At a research station in Antarctica, five of the world’s top scientists have been brought together to solve one of the greatest mysteries in human history. Their subject, however, is anything but human.

Deep beneath the ice, the submerged ruins of a lost civilization hold the key to the strange mutations that each scientist has encountered across the globe: A misshapen skull in Russia. The grotesque carvings of a lost race in Peru. The mummified remains of a humanoid monstrosity in Egypt.

When a series of sound waves trigger the ancient organisms, a new kind of evolution begins. Latching onto a human host–crossbreeding with human DNA–a long-extinct life form is reborn. Its kind has not walked the earth for thousands of years. Its instincts are fiercer, more savage, than any predator alive. And its prey is the scientists who unleashed it, the humans who spawned it, and the tender living flesh on which it feeds.

Rating: 4 out of 5.

I enjoy reading books based on conspiracy theories. I have reviewed a few novels in this category. So the summary of this thrilling novel caught my attention.

My only downside is that there were too many characters. I felt like I needed to take notes about who was who and why they were invited to the Antartic research base.

Man is not what he thinks he is; he is what he hides.

Michael McBride; Subhuman

Other than that negative, I found this book to be enjoyable. It has an interesting premise that the author pulls off fairly well. I felt like this novel was inspired by the Alien franchise. The description of the monsters reminded me of the Xenomorphs in the famous franchise.

I am interested to see how this series progresses from here. I will highly recommend this book to science fiction lovers. If you enjoy conspiracy theories and the Alien franchise, then this is the book for you!

Posted in Book Reviews, DC comics, Graphic Novels, Manga, Marvel Comics

Free Comic Book Day Review!

Posted on by elishasbookreview

So this year’s free comic book day was a good selection of graphic novels. My fiance and I mostly picked the ones rated Teen and Mature. I will list the titles in which order I read them, and hopefully, this will make sense.

Shibuya Goldfish by Hiroumi Aoi – This manga is about alien goldfish that invade Japan and start devouring the citizens. It is up to Hiro, to guide the others to safety. I first discovered this Manga through a Facebook group I casually follow. So, when they had a free preview of this I instantly grabbed it and couldn’t wait to read it. I found the preview to be interesting and definitely couldn’t wait to read more!

Battle Angel Alita by Yukito Kishiro – A cyborg soldier readies himself for battle against Alita and her friends. Who will come out of this match alive? This free preview of this manga caught my eye by the cover art. I am a country girl at heart. This issue was brief and I am curious to know more, but I wasn’t sold on the plot. I would recommend reading the whole story.

Aposimz by Tsutomu Nihei – In this futuristic dystopian land, the land is frozen solid, disease rampant, and it’s up to one small group of survivors to survive. I enjoyed this preview into this manga. I liked the art style, it brings how desolate and barren the world is. I will definitely be checking out this manga in full volume.

Frankenstein by Junji Ito – A re-imagining of the famous story by Mary Shelley, this is from one of the most famous horror manga writers, so get ready for this terrifying story! I personally enjoyed this preview. I haven’t read the original story by Mary Shelley, so I can’t compare the two. However, I did enjoy this and I would recommend this for sure!

Jughead: The Hunger #1 by Frank Tieri – In this Archie Madhouse Comic Spinoff Series, beloved character Jughead Jones discovers his family’s curse, and is on the run. Betty: Werewolf Hunter along with Archie is hot on Jughead’s trail to stop the destruction their friend is causing. I’m not familiar with the Archie Comic Universe, however, I enjoyed this horror take on a classic and beloved series. Seeing Jughead handle the consequences of running away is heartbreaking. I would definitely recommend checking out this series.

Hellboy and the B.P.R.D.: 1953 #1: Phantom Hand and Kelpie by Mike Mignola – Hellboy is in the 1950’s with his friend and the owner of the mansion. The supernatural goings-on has killed and maimed the guests of the mansion, and it’s up to Hellboy to destroy whatever is causing this mayhem. I am not familiar with the Hellboy comic series. However, I found that this comic gave me a good idea about what Hellboy is all about. He fights paranormal evil.

John Constantine: The Hellblazer #1 by Neil Gaiman – This issue starts off with a dead homeless man wandering through the London underground. Meanwhile, John Constantine has his own problems to sort through. I love John Constantine. He is an awesome character that fights the monsters that go bump in the night as well as help others. I will definitely be reading more Constantine graphic novels in the future.

So, in conclusion, here are the graphic novels I’m going to be reading in the future!

  • Shibuya Goldfish by Hiroumi Aoi
  • Aposimz by Tsutomu Nihei
  • Jughead: The Hunger by Frank Tieri
  • John Constantine
Posted in Book Club Reads, Book Reviews, Novels

REVIEW: Summer’s End by Kristy Brown

Posted on by elishasbookreview

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*No Major Spoilers*

Alex Doone, a man trained to fight and kill anything in his path. Summer, a young woman who woke up after a coma that took away her memories. The wolf and the rabbit do their dance, but what happens when the hunting instincts turn into love?

I was given this ebook by the author, so thanks! I volunteered to review this book, the cover looked interesting and I was intrigued by the premise.

The first half of this novel was boring and drama filled. I felt a good chunk of it could’ve been left out, and it would’ve read just fine. For example, we don’t need a cardboard cutout “bad guy” just to show that Alex is slowly growing feelings for Summer. You could do these many other ways without making it read like the love triangle in Twilight.

Once you get to the meat and potatoes of this novel, it was entertaining and exciting. I felt like the explanations and motives were explained very well. I was able to follow along, and it turned out to be a good last half.

The inspiration from other popular Young Adult series is blatantly obvious. So if you’re looking for a Twilight fan fiction, this is your book.

 Elisha’sBookReview: Are you a fan of the Twilight series? Your newest book [Summer’s End] reminds me a lot of the series so far.

Kristy Brown: Certainly am. More so when it came out. But yes I’m inspired by it. Also The Immortal Instruments, Hush Hush, Fallen, Star Crossed, I could go on!

Overall, I thought this book was alright, the first half was dull and boring, but the last half was exciting and intense! The last half was well written and made reading this novel worth it.

Buy “Summer’s End” by Kristy Brown

Posted in Audiobooks, Book Reviews, Novels

REVIEW: The Deep by Nick Cutter

Posted on by elishasbookreview
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*No Major Spoilers*

A strange plague called the ’Gets is decimating humanity on a global scale. It causes people to forget—small things at first, like where they left their keys…then the not-so-small things like how to drive, or the letters of the alphabet. Then their bodies forget how to function involuntarily…and there is no cure. But now, far below the surface of the Pacific Ocean, deep in the Marianas Trench, a heretofore unknown substance hailed as “ambrosia” has been discovered—a universal healer, from initial reports. It may just be the key to a universal cure. In order to study this phenomenon, a special research lab, the Trieste, has been built eight miles under the sea’s surface. But now the station is incommunicado, and it’s up to a brave couple of people to descend through the light-less fathoms in hopes of unraveling the mysteries lurking at those crushing depths…and perhaps to encounter an evil blacker than anything one could possibly imagine.

Rating: 3 out of 5.

I will put a warning up front, read this with caution. I listened to the audiobook and it gave me terrible nightmares.

This thriller/horror starts from the first page. The impending doom of an unknown and incurable disease makes for a great premise of a horror novel.

Our main characters include Luke, a man who lost his wife and child, Clayton, a popular famous scientist, and Alice or “Al”, who delivers supplies to the scientists.

The Trieste is a multitrillion-dollar scientific base that is eight miles under the sea in the Mariana Trench. Being isolated from society to that extreme could drive perfectly sane people to their breaking point.

Water is what runs out of the kitchen taps or a playground drinking fountain. It fills bathubs and pools and yes, of course, the ocean- but at a certain depth, water becomes a barrier from all you remember, all you think you know.

Nick Cutter; The Deep

Things go haywire as soon as Luke and Al arrive on the Trieste, vivid memories begin to surface, nightmares terrorizing everyone on board. Something is up, and it’s up to Luke and Al to find out what is going on.

I noticed that the author takes inspiration from authors like Stephen King. It ends unsatisfyingly and abruptly. With that said, overall it was a good book, I found it to hold my attention, even though it gave me terrifying nightmares. If you’re looking for a good scare I would say this is a perfect book of choice.