Tag: retelling

A Bad Breed- Blog Tour

TheCaffeinatedReader13 Comments

BadBreed

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Synopsis:

Pricolici.
A creature out of folklore. And nightmare.
January 1889. When a Romanian village suffers a series of brutal attacks, occult investigator Anne Lawrence is dispatched to the forests of the Old Country to hunt the killer – only to vanish without a trace.
The trail leads her mentor Vivienne Cumberland deep into the Carpathians to a remote monastery. As a blizzard rages outside, trapping them all with the pricolici, Vivienne risks sharing the fate of the woman she came to find. But is the culprit truly a werewolf … or something even more dangerous?
A man bent on revenge. And a love that was never meant to be.
Imprisoned in a decaying castle, Anne finds herself ensnared in a web of dark enchantment, at the mercy of a mysterious captor with a beast inside – and a memory as old as the ancient legends.
As the weeks pass, Anne learns his real identity, and slowly uncovers a complex and deeply passionate man. But is she willing to pay the price for falling under his spell?
Note: This darkly magical reimagining of Beauty and the Beast is the third book in the Gaslamp Gothic series, but can be read as a standalone with no need to start with Book #1, The Daemoniac.

Book Information:
A Bad Breed (Gaslamp Gothic, #3) by Kat Ross
Published by: Acorn Publishing
Publication date: May 31st 2019
Genres: Adult, Fantasy, Paranormal, Retelling
GoodReads Link

Where To Buy

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My Review

Let’s see if I can articulate words for how much I loved this. I’ll be honest I thought I was looking at a 3, maybe 4, cups of coffee read, it sounded entertaining and I knew I would like it, but it definitely exceeded my expectations. I love Victorian era books, whether they’re written in modern times or in Victorian times, they’re some of my favorite books but this also means I can be picky about them as I want something that really feels Victorian if they’re modern books.

This nailed it. Or rather, Ross nailed it. This instantly transported you to a feel of Victorian that felt as if you had leapt back in time. Her writing style though isn’t dry as some people might find Victorian books, she keeps you completely engaged from page one. This doesn’t just stay in London either, we get to travel around, and there’s so much beauty and darkness. ‘Gaslamp Gothic’ stays true, think of Penny Dreadfuls and all the dark things we love about Victorian era gothic and Ross obliges by giving us those things. There’s the occult, secret societies, necromancer, ancient magic, and the hint of supernatural in a small Romanian village. Not to mention she makes everything she writes her own, this is a retelling of Beauty and the Beast without making you feel that its sole purpose is just to retell a beloved tale.

Anne has vanished and Vivienne goes after her ward and friend, she needs to know what has happened. This is its own part of the book and it is the first we encounter when picking up A Bad Breed. I found myself so engrossed in Vivienne’s part in the book I forgot that we had yet to skim the surface of Anne and her own going-ons in the book. This is the third book in the series but it can absolutely be read as a stand alone. [Though, I’m ready to read the other two this month in preparation of book four coming out this summer.]

We switch from Vivienne to Anne and occasionally to Anne’s brother, who is also Vivienne’s bonded partner. This has to do with what and who they are which is fabulous and magical and if you want to know then go read it yourself. 😉

Mostly though once we hit its stride, we’re reading this tale of Anne and her monster…or is she the beast in comparison? There’s such a complex twist to how these two feed off each other, that while you know who the beast is, it’s not always clear that, that should mean that the other is completely human/civil in tandem to the beast. [I mean this is one suave beast if I do say so myself, and I ship them, and love their chemistry]

This however does not have the same ending as your typical Beauty and the Beast tale and I LOVE that. I actually thought the ending was brilliant, I’d say more, but I don’t want to give it away.

Beautiful landscapes, beasts with more to them than meets the eye, women who fight the darkness, and men seeking redemption. This book was amazing, and I’m gushing, I know, but I really hope to share just how much I loved this with you all. Please check it out if you are intrigued and get the chance.

A 5 cups of coffee read for me and a definite favorite.

 

About the Author

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Kat Ross worked as a journalist at the United Nations for ten years before happily falling back into what she likes best: making stuff up. She’s the author of the Fourth Element and Fourth Talisman fantasy series, the Gaslamp Gothic paranormal mysteries, and the dystopian thriller Some Fine Day. She loves myths, monsters and doomsday scenarios. Check out Kat’s Pinterestpage for the people, places and things that inspire her books.

Author Links

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Thanks to Xpresso Book Tours for letting me take part in this blog tour!

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Dream Angus

TheCaffeinatedReader2 Comments


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GoodReads:

Part of a series of books containing myths as retold by first-rank contemporary authors, this is Alexander McCall Smith’s telling of the Celtic myth of Dream Angus, a god of love, youth, beauty, and also the bringer of dreams. He is cherished by all, but fated to love only Caér, the swan maiden from his own dreams. Smith spins five charming stories of Dream Angus with five tales of his modern alter egos.

“…what is life but the pursuit of dreams?”

Thank you to Canongate Books for sending me a copy of this, I was so excited as I love takes on mythology.

[So excited in fact that my email said Revew Request in my haste to type. Let that sink in. Revew. I’m still mortified.]

Admittedly I’ve never read any of Alexander McCall Smith’s works before, I’d heard of him and had been interested but just hadn’t gotten around to it until now.

Dream Angus gives us an interwoven work of short stories that spans the ages to give us a more modern day retelling of the Celtic God of Dreams, Angus.

One thing that impressed me from the start is rarely do a read an introduction unless it’s an academic work, if it catches my eye I will and McCall Smith’s intro was actually very enjoyable to read. It’s hard to know how to introduce your own work when you’re tackling legends and myths and we all know many authors do it well, but it’s still always nice to know that even the prolific authors understand the delicate work they’re doing.

Onto the real meat of the book however I have to say this is just one of those books you read in an almost dreamy manner -no pun intended- it is something to be read as an experience rather than trying to just gobble it up, devour it, and analyze it. That comes later. Half jk.

Rather than trying to give an epic tale, threaded through various times and places are the stories of the small and wondrous gifts bestowed on people by the dreams and powers of Angus, there is love, there is peace, and of course most importantly there are the dreams.

My favorite parts were actually the tale of how Angus came to be, and how he confronted his Father eventually. [Would say more, but, spoilers!] There’s just always something about a good origins story to me.

This is a rather languid and flowery work, it’s not meant for those looking for a clear cut collection of short stories and/or a Michael Bay version of mythology.

Anyway, if you’re into a rather thought provoking novel that’s a leisurely [and rather short] read, I highly recommend Dream Angus to you. Don’t forget The Canons has a whole series of books done by well known authors, ‘The Myths’ and it includes works by Margaret Atwood, A.S. Byatt, and Philip Pullman as well!

“But Angus does more than that: he represents youth and the intense, passionate love that we might experience when we are young but which we might still try to remember as age creeps up. Age and experience might make us sombre and cautious, but there is always an Angus within us- Angus the dreamer.”

-Alexander McCall Smith, 2006