Crimzon and Clover I-X

                I’m not usually a fantasy enthusiast so I tend to be rather picky about which books I read in this genre. I read a few reviews about this author and decided to try this short story collection about a strong willed girl, Clover, and her fiery protective dragon, Crimzon. As the author explains at the beginning, there is no book one in the collection as it can be obtained for free online. Also explained is why books eight and nine don’t contain the two main characters, Crimzon and Clover, at all. As much as I loved these characters’ adventures throughout the collection, it was actually the two books without Crimzon and Clover that I loved the most and I hope there are more stories involving the fairy folk and the wizard. I loved the world created by M.R. Mathias. It’s magical and entertaining. The characters are multifaceted and leads the reader to care about what happens to them. In one of the stories, something bad happens to a dragon (not Crimzon) and I actually felt really sad for this mythical, made-up creature. That is the work of a good writer. It’s also nice to have all of the stories in one large collection so that they can be read as one. It held my interest much better this way. The entire collection formatted to my ereader very well. Due to the fact that I read it on my ereader I really didn’t take notice of the cover and it had no bearing on my choosing to read this collection.

Embracing the Wild in Your Dog - Bryan Bailey

                I really don’t want to like this book and here is why. I have to admit that I am one of those dog owners whose pooch owns more clothes than I do, has his own Christmas stocking from Santa, and has an overflowing toy box. According to this book, my tiny seven pounder is really a wolf in Yorkie clothing and should be treated accordingly. Mentored as a teen by a Special Forces instructor in Alaska, the author scatters the wisdom of this unnamed gentleman throughout the book and it was these parts that I found to be the most useful and interesting. I can’t say I liked all of what the author had to say but after reading his reasoning and checking out a few of his sources which he listed in the back, I have to grudgingly agree with his conclusions. This is not a book about how to train your dog but it does provide insight as to why your dog does some of the things that may drive you crazy, such as jumping up. After reading why he does this I thought how obvious it was when the behaviour was explained. I read the digital version of this short book and it formatted well, as did the beautiful pictures throughout the book. The cover is a good representation of the book. This is a must read for dog owners even though you may not like what you find out.

Loving the Headsman's Daughter - Oscar Manta

                Loving the Headsman’s Daughter is a fairly short erotic tale about the daughter of a highly respected executioner (he took off Anne Boleyn’s head) and the man who falls in love with her, Denis. Denis and Jacquette commit a crime in self-defence and must try to stay ahead of the law. To do this, Denis runs away to live with Jacquette and her family of legalized killers. Here he finds out about her secret taboo passion and has to decide whether he can live with it or not. The description for the book makes it sound much more explicit than it is. There is some sexual content but it is written tastefully and, although the love story is a large part of the whole tale, the truly interesting part involves the rest of the story. I found the information about the executioner’s life and how he tortured criminals during this time period to be fascinating. I thoroughly enjoyed the era the book is set in and the author really nailed the feeling of life in the 1500s (or what I think life would be like!). I read the digital version of this book and it formatted well to my ereader. The cover, in my opinion, looks like one for a romance story and this book is so much more than that and would be enjoyed by people not interested in that sort of thing. I really enjoyed reading this!