Hear the Crickets (The Gibborim Series #1) by BJ Sheldon Review

Hello readers! Hope you're all having an awesome end to your weekend, I know I am! Tonight I'm sharing another review with you guys of a recent release I devoured earlier this month from an author I absolutely love. I met this incredible woman at UtopYA last summer and her enthusiasm and optimism have inspired me since. She's such an inspiration to all of her colleagues and fans. I am so excited to have read my first read from her. On the chopping block tonight? Hear the Crickets by the incredible BJ Sheldon! Before we get to my thoughts, here's a bit about the novel and our author:

Skyy’s a freak. She’ll tell you so herself. Her past – a mystery. Her future – uncertain. Having spent most of her life avoiding humans in an effort to conceal her wings, she wants nothing more than to end it all, leaving behind the solitary life she’s been forced to live. But numerous attempts to die have proven immortality is both a curse and a nuisance. She now lives out her days in self-imposed seclusion to stay hidden from the world. But that quiet way of life is shattered when mysterious siblings arrive and reveal a destiny which sends her running for the hills. When an earth shattering discovery is made in the Badlands, history and science collide furthering the mystery behind Skyy’s past – and her future. Skyy will need to embrace her fate and confront an evil so ancient, only a miracle can keep the world from ceasing to be.

    

BJ Sheldon

B.J. Sheldon's love of writing has developed into a passion for creating exciting characters and story lines that she hopes will enthrall and inspire young readers to pick up a book and use their imaginations.

B.J. lives in the Black Hills of South Dakota with her best friend and husband, Steven, an Army veteran. They have 3 daughters, 3 cats, and a dog – all of whom are trying to take over the world. She grew up in Iowa and spent many years in sunny Arizona before finally settling down in the hills that she loves. She has a B.S. degree in Project Management from the University of Phoenix and has a PhD in life. B.J. began reading at age 4, and by the 4th grade had already read most of the literary classics. Her hobbies include cuticle care, fighting off zombies, and traveling through space and time with a mad man in a blue box.

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*****

My Thoughts:

After meeting BJ Sheldon in person and experiencing her warm, inspiring personality, I could not wait to finally devour one of her novels. When I was contacted by her publisher seeking review for her upcoming release, Hear the Crickets, I jumped a the opportunity. After reading the synopsis I was confident this would definitely be right up my alley. As anyone who follows my posts regularly will know, I'm a huge fan of this trope and can never get enough. Could Sheldon hold her own against some of the greatest writers of our generation?

Yes. Beautifully.

In true One Guy's Guide to Good Reads fashion, I'll get my few negative critiques out of the way first.

I sat on this review for some time, because I really didn't know how best to put my thoughts on my two biggest criticism into words. So I'll just throw them out here on the table and then rave later. First off, there were a few lulls in the book. Nothing bad, just quite a bit of down time in between action scenes. Sheldon definitely feels the dead zones with lots of thoughts and reflection, but it was odd pacing for me as a reader to see so many high octane scenes followed by chapters of no action. Not bad, just unexpected for a novel of this particular genre.

Second, I really did not care for the main character. Skyy was not likable, nor relatable for me in almost any way. I personally found her to be pushy, rude, and extremely selfish, with very little regard for those who love and care for her. In one aspect I almost believe that Sheldon wrote Skyy in this fashion deliberately. As so the reader can see the redemption of the character. And in a way, I definitely saw the redemption, but it still wasn't enough for me to ultimately care about her eternal well-being. I loved the supporting cast (we'll discuss that later), but I have to say that it was difficult at times to read a story in which you don't care for the main character. This could just be an 'Ethan-thing' but it did hinder my reading experience slightly. 

Okay we're done with the negatives, let's rave!

So when it comes to the plot of Hear the Crickets, I was really intrigued. I have read quite a few angel/demon/watcher-esque novels as they are one of my favorite tropes, but this one definitely stood on its' own and stood out. Sheldon does an incredible job taking the legends and twisting them to fit her own version of the story. It's both memorable and intriguing. Research clearly went into this read and this blogger definitely appreciated the attention to detail that Sheldon put into this novel. Especially regarding the archaeology and geology aspect of the story, Sheldon did an incredible job with the science and the historical aspect of Hear the Crickets. As a detail-oriented reader, that was really noteworthy for me. (That being said, I would have LOVED to see more of the historical settings that Sheldon briefly mentioned in the novel. Maybe more of that in coming sequels?) The plot was full of twists and some gripping backstories for our characters that I didn't see coming. 

And the ending?! You best believe that this guy is ready for the sequel, I NEED to know what happens next.

I've already expressed my thoughts on Skyy, the main character in the novel, but haven't touched on the others. While I may not have cared for Skyy, I absolutely loved the rest of the cast. Each character was written to their full potentials, each had an emotional past and an important role to play in the plot. It was really interesting to see where some of the most... obscure... characters fit into the story. My favorite character, by far, was that of Skyy's human-best friend, Sean. Sean is nerdy, compassionate, and loyal to a fault. He loves and cares for Skyy unconditionally, even though she is a pretty rough friend to have at times. I think Sean is a character than many readers will be able to relate to. His role in the story for me was one of the most heart-wrenching and I really loved the was Sheldon utilized his character. Love Dorian and frienemy Lillith proved to be two more extremely well-rounded characters that I loved reading from. 

This novel really features some absolutely incredible themes as well. Sheldon had me catching the feels on more than one occasion. Covering powerful subjects such as depression, acceptance, love, destiny, life, death, and family, Sheldon proves that life is so much more than just an adventure from point A to B. I'm not kidding, I caught some major feels when reading this one. 

Sheldon has crafted an elegant tale full of spirit, reflection, and redemption; Hear the Crickets is not to be missed. A powerful beginning to a series with massive potential, add this one to your TBR today!

As you can see, I had a couple of big critiques for Hear the Crickets, but in the end, it was a read that I did thoroughly enjoy. I can't wait for more from Sheldon and this series. I am granting Hear the Crickets a well-deserved 4-star review. A highly recommended read for all readers YA and up. Don't miss out on this new series from Sheldon and Whiskey Creek Press!

*****

Alright readers, that's all I have for you on the topic of Hear the Crickets by BJ Sheldon. While not without some issues, it was still a novel that I was really excited to have read. I know I'll be anxiously anticipating its' upcoming sequel. Be on the look out for more on that as info becomes available. Thank so much to Whiskey Creek Press for supplying me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review and thanks to the reader for stopping by! Until next time, Happy Reading!

-Ethan

Dark Hope (The Devil's Assistant #1) by H.D. Smith Review

Hey readers and Happy Sunday! I don't know about you guys, but it has been a CRAZY past few days for me! I have been reading like a bandit, but I am 5 books behind on my reviews! Ahh! I actually finished this book about a week ago, but thankfully I typed the review as soon as I finished reading so I have it here for you guys! This time on the chopping block? Dark Hope,  the recent released paranormal, urban fantasy novel from Mrs. H.D. Smith! Here's a little about Dark Hope before we get to my thoughts:

Claire, the Devil’s assistant, knows very little about the world she was dropped into five years ago, when she inherited her mother’s unpaid debt to the Demon King. She certainly didn’t expect to be a contender for the Fallen Queen’s throne, a target for the Druid King’s mafia, or a suspect in the murder of Junior, the Devil’s oldest hell spawn.

In a last ditch effort to save her life and get out of her deal with the Devil, she sets out to solve Junior’s murder only to be taken prisoner by the four most dangerous immortal hell spawn alive.

Not to be out done, the Pagan Queen Mab, claims Claire for entering her realm uninvited. She has an old debt to settle with her brother the Devil. Taking Claire from him after losing her years ago is just icing on the cake.

Will Claire win her freedom, and save herself from the Devil? Or be trapped by Mab forever?

Available now!

 

H.D. Smith

HD Smith has been writing as a hobby for over ten years. DARK HOPE is her first full length novel. She has previously self-published two middle grade novellas in ebook format. She is a software developer by day, working for an awesome cruise line in Celebration, FL.

HD grew up in South Carolina, but has called the Sunshine State home since 1997. She has Computer Science degrees from Clemson University (BS) and Florida Institute of Technology (MS). Her other hobbies include painting and screen printing. She enjoys creating t- shirts inspired by the places in her books.


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My Thoughts:

I was approached a few weeks ago by the author about reviewing her first full length novel, Dark Hope. After reading the synopsis I was intrigued, but confused. I took a chance and jumped in hoping to clear up the confusion and in the end, ended up even more confused. But in the good way that time! Regardless of what Goodreads (and some of the reviewers there) has to say about it, I am placing Dark Hope in the New Adult, Paranormal-Fantasy genre. There was not a romance in this novel. Sorry, but I don’t believe it can be classified as a romance at all. Which is fantastic, in my opinion.

As my readers will tell you, I have a slight obsession with New Adult Paranormal novels. Why? Because there is nothing better than a kick ass paranormal story where you can explore adult elements. I love a good YA, but sometimes you just have to read some words that aren’t YA appropriate. HD Smith hits her target audience right on the head. The book follows the path of Claire, The Boss’ assistant, in her journey to clear her name (ish) in the wake murder after The Boss’ son was shot down. Who is this “Boss”, you ask? None other than Satan himself. Yep. Intrigued now? I was.

Let me get some of my negative comments out of the way before I hit on all the good points. My biggest negative about this book is that it really was just too much story for 270 pages. I don’t know that I have ever said that about a book before. HD Smith fits her story into those pages, but I feel like it’s just too much plot, too much action, and too much happens. This book shouldn’t have taken me long to read, but it really did seem like forever because I kept having to backtrack to remind myself what was going on. There was more action in this one novel than some entire series I have read. It was a seriously a heart-palpitating adventure because the action never lets up. Why is this a bad thing you ask? Well.. Maybe it isn’t bad, per-se. I just feel like HD Smith is an excellent author who gets excited when she writes (which is awesome) and then bombarded the novel with lots of action and not so much explanation. I was all involved and glued to the page but once I would get to a breaking point I would say “wait… what happened” or “why did that happen?”. Not necessarily a bad thing by any means, I just think that looking back this novel could have been very easily split up!

Another negative aspect I found kind of ties into the one listed above. This book features a huge cast of characters. I mean a huge cast of characters. From cover to cover there were probably ~30 characters who played a large role and I really found myself super confused when the ones from the beginning started popping up at the end. I had no idea who they were and, again, had to backtrack to the beginning and remind myself. The story goes so fast that I really was having a hard time believing the stuff at the beginning of the novel was the same book as the end of the novel. I can’t really elaborate on that front without spoiling anything, but at least that part has an explanation.

Aside from those two negative critiques, I really liked most everything else about the novel. I will admit that at times the plot line was a little hard to follow. I mentioned this above, but there were more than a few times I had to re-read a chapter to understand what on earth was going on! 

The story seriously kept me on the edge of my seat the entire time. I had a pretty good idea how it would come together in the end the entire time, but then, guess what? Smith stumped me. I didn’t see the ending coming, which I really enjoyed! There were lots of loose ends that were wrapped up, but just as many that I hope will be expanded upon in future novels in this series! 

Smith has a beautiful writing style and crafts her words with elegance. It seriously reads like she just sat down one day and decided to tell us this entire story. In some books there are very obvious points where the author struggled with writers block or didn’t know where to take the story, not here! Smith starts the action on page one and keeps the story flowing until the very last page! 

After finishing Dark Hope and sitting on this review for a few days I realize how much it stuck with me. Some of it makes a little more sense after some time, but I am really hoping that the next book in the series answers the rest of my lingering questions. I am really interested in learning more about Claire's background! 

All in all, even with my lengthy critiques, I found Dark Hope to be a new twist to an ever-changing genre. Between the interesting storyline and Smith's great writing style, I was really wanting more by the end of the novel! I will be anxiously awaiting book 2 in the series! I am granting Dark Hope a well deserved 4-Star review! 

Thank you Mrs. Smith for supplying me with a copy of this awesome novel in exchange for an honest review!

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Alright readers, that's all I have for you guys on the topic of Dark Hope by H.D. Smith! A unique read that I am glad to have checked out! Have you guys read it? What'd you think? Let me know in the comments below! Thank you so much for stopping by and checking out my thoughts! Until next time, Happy Reading!

-Ethan