Lenni Reviews: "Fenced-In Felix" by Cheyenne Blue

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*This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review and is rated for 18+

Felix Jameson has been working on turning her family's land into a hospitality business including cabins, campgrounds, and trail rides with her own horses. As she's doing errands and distributing some promotional materials around her small Australian town, she meets Josie, a drifter currently bar tending at the local watering hole. Felix tries to avoid getting involved but Josie also needs a place to board her horse; Flame. But Flame looks eerily like a recently stolen racehorse, leading Felix to wonder what this woman she has fallen for may be involved in.

This book is in a series called "Girl Meets Girl" but it functions perfectly fine as a standalone story.

I got a real good sense of the Australian outback and Felix and Josie as characters. I love how the mystery surrounding the horses moves their relationship and while that initial event brings them together; it follows along with them in a very real way. As the mystery deepens, so does Felix and Josie's connection. It's also comforting for everything to be wrapped up in a realistic way so we avoid an unrealistically neat ending.

If I were to nitpick, I would say that the ending needed an epilogue for some of the unanswered questions as to the fate of the horse after the investigation (I am trying to avoid spoilers). Also, it kinda bugged me in the beginning when Felix kept saying Josie wasn't beautiful. And I don't mean "she wasn't beautiful; she was - insert descriptive term like 'compelling'-". It it was just eh, not pretty. Ok then, what are you attracted to? Just her butt? I got over it but it raised my eyebrow... Overall? 4 out of 5. A very sweet and saucy lesbian romance.

Lenni Reviews: "Cross My Heart" by Catt Ford

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*This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review and is rated for 18+

Daniel Hunter sees Lana Renault pass him in the streets and is immediately smitten by this beautiful, elegant, and classy Parisian woman. But Lana is Roland Reynolds; who feels more comfortable living as Lana and wearing women's clothing without judgment. Having had painful and violent reactions in the past, Lana has resigned herself to a life of loneliness. Daniel's gentle and romantic pursuit of her is very tempting but Lana is terrified of how Daniel may react to the truth.

This book reminds me of those old black and white romance movies with some deliciously smutty bits thrown in. At times it does fall into the trap of being too perfect but this is a book for hopeless romantics who believe in happily ever after - which I am not. But, with Ford's writing, I almost believe it. Starting off a bit slow but touching my heart, I give this book a 3.7 out of 5. 

Lenni Reviews: "City of Dreams" by Sydney Blackburn

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*This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review and is rated 18+

Marcus Allegro travels to the City of Dreams to study art under Sebastian Moreaux; a master painter and well known to bed any willing student he comes across, shunning any sort of commitment. When he sets his sights on Marcus, Sebastian is baffled when the young man absolutely refuses to add his name to Sebastian's long list of forgotten conquests. This makes Sebastian want him even more but Marcus is looking for true love, which Sebastian takes great pains to avoid.

I feel if given more space to grow, this story would have more of an impact. I would have had a better understanding of how magic fits in this world, how artists have The Eye, how Sebastian came to be so guarded, how Marcus came to be such a romantic, and gotten to know them both more; I would be more invested in their romance and in their world. Coming in at a scant 59 pages as it is, this story is more like a sweet breeze; enjoyable but gone too fast. 3 out of 5.

Lenni Reviews: "The Edge of the Blade" by Jeffe Kennedy

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*This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review and is rated for 18+

Elite warrior, scout, and spy Jepp is lethal with her blades and her tongue so when she is selected for a diplomatic mission as an ambassador to a country where women are wives or sex slaves, she finds remaining docile and subservient more challenging than anything she's faced before. But she must gather information on how big of a threat this foreign king may be and return alive without starting a war. Oh, and she's sleeping with the king's son; Prince Kral... Who has a wife.

Jepp is a cool character. You get a great sense of who she is from the smart writing and enjoy the story from her perspective. She's smart, tough, and funny; you could see yourself chilling at the bar with her despite the fact she would drink you under the table.

While containing romantic and erotic elements, the way this book is structured made them feel like a legitimate part of the story instead of the plot grinding to a halt so the main characters can bone. There is genuine peril and intrigue with high stakes in a well written and constructed fantasy world. I haven't read the first book (it may have given me some deeper context into some character relationships but it's not necessary) but the story is so interesting, I'd be excited to follow to the next book. It's obvious Jepp and the Uncharted Realms world have plenty more stories to tell. 4.5 out of 5.

13 Reasons Why Review

Reviewed By Justin D Williams

13 Reasons Why, based on the bestselling books by Jay Asher, follows teenager Clay Jensen (Dylan Minnette) as he returns home from school to find a mysterious box with his name on it lying on his porch. Inside he discovers a group of cassette tapes recorded by Hannah Baker (Katherine Langford) his classmate and crush who tragically committed suicide two weeks earlier. On tape, Hannah unfolds an emotional audio diary, detailing the thirteen reasons why she decided to end her life.

If there is a show that you need to watch, out of all the Netflix original series this is the one to watch. 13 Reasons Why, is a breath of fresh air bringing in an injection of realism and social commentary needed at the right time. This show is an emotional ride that everyone especially parents need to watch with their kids. The show touches on various topics such as bullying, suicide and one topic I won’t discuss due to spoilers. It is in your face and at times uncomfortable but it is a story that needs to be told. Everyone on this project deserves to be applauded from the actors, the directors, producers, cameramen etc. As stated in the synopsis the story follows Clay Jensen, as he listens to a series of tapes left by his crush Hannah detailing the reasons why she killed herself. For the sake of spoilers I won’t even mention one reason why.  I will say that her reasons are a doozey. What I really loved about the show is the build up to Hannah’s death, it’s also how her actions effects everyone around her.

This show greatly displays how someone committing suicide impacts friends, family and even their enemies. Throughout the story Clay is constantly wondering am I the reason she killed herself. There is this sense of guilt and questioning of what could I have done to prevent this. This is a show that you don’t need to binge in one sitting. Instead I recommend that you watch an episode a day or even once a week to let it sink in. The show is very emotion heavy and this is a show I think parents need to watch with their teenagers. In this fast growing world where everything is online and not kept in the dark, things are easy to access this will be a subject matter to really sit down and discuss as a family. The characters in the story all work well. Since this does take place in high school you do get the typical cliché archetypes that you usually see in high school. You have the popular jocks in Justin, Marcus and Zach of course these three end up being bad news. Then there is the cheerleader Jessica who plays a major role in Hannah’s psyche. I really love Jessica’s arc its starts off innocent then gets dark towards the end.  There is this dynamic I couldn’t help but notice that in some ways Hannah and Jessica were the same. Only difference was that Hannah choose a different way of doing things. Overall the story is spot on target. It’s moving, engaging and there is a lot to discuss after the final credits roll.

The acting on the show is really good. Katherine Langford and Dylan Minnette are absolutely fantastic as the leads. Katherine Langford really hits home with her performance as Hannah.  She hits all the right emotional notes when it’s time and when that fateful does come you will have tears in your eyes. Hannah is very likable and credit goes to Katherine Langford’s acting. Dylan Minnette as Clay is the heart of the show. He brings this innocence to the character and gives him a genuine everyday good guy. It’s very hard not to like Clay. At times he can be socially awkward and usually flies under the radar of other students until he discover the tapes. Dylan Minnette shows a vulnerability in his performance which makes you hope that Clay is a not a reason Hannah killed herself. The character had great development which I think audiences will love. The supporting cast does well

13 Reasons Why is truly a show you need to see and discuss with friends and family on how we can prevent these events from happening. The show delivers on great commentary on bullying, suicide amongst other topics. The musical score is just right and fits the dark tone of the show. Get the soundtrack! See the show! Discuss it with your kids!

Final Rating – 5/5 Stars

Saga of Tanya the Evil (Review)

Reviewed by Alfred Campbell 

It is June of the year CE 1923. A young girl with blond hair and blue eyes, Tanya Degurechaff, has entered the final curriculum of the Imperial Military Academy and is training at the third patrol line in the northern military district, the Norden Theater, as part of her service to the force. Her training, the first step toward a brilliant career as an aviation mage, should have gone off without a hitch... but things took an unexpected turn.

An anime released in winter 2016, one of the first anime to come out to top off the new year and boy did it top the new year off right. The Saga of Tanya the Evil was one of those gems that if you didn't give it a chance you may have over looked it. The art style was something that was different in it's own right, and pulled off some interesting style differences from character to character. If you cannot tell already, I will say this before I go into any more details. This is a highly recommended series, and now I will explain to you why.

The story revolves around a little girl named Tanya, at the time of the story she is around ten. She was born in an orphanage in an age reminiscent to the era of World War One. The orphanage that doubled as a church often lacked food so she knew what hunger was and suffered as she was growing. Only by the good graces of god that she was gifted with amazing aptitude for magic, and because of that she was able to enlist in the army at a ripe young age. She was a prodigy and showed it, and moved up the ranks fast. There was however, a lot more to Tanya then meets the eye.

This is what makes the story so compelling. Tanya is a reincarnation of a man who died in modern day Tokyo. The middle aged man lived his whole life apathetic and believing in rules and regulations. Doing only what you need to survive and if you cannot follow that order then you cannot blame anyone else but yourself for your actions. This man was a rational and logical man but he lacked empathy and fired a man who was unproductive to the company, it was just a regular day to him.. Until the same man pushes him into the train tracks.

The train was a second from striking him as he was falling, when the world around him came to cease. And a voice came and appeared to him, and asked him a series of questions. The dialog carried on and the man defied the god and condemned him. He condemned this entity and explained why people lost faith, because there was a lack of struggle. To which the godly like figure in the most pettiest of manners declared to him that if that is how you feel, I will put you in a situation and you will come to worship me. This is your last reincarnation, so be sure to live it right.

The whole concept of the story at this point, changes to not one of only survival but defiance as well. This is what caught my immediate attention, that and it's pretty wicked to see this ten year old faux prodigy use her knowledge of her previous life to raise the ranks and develop plans and tactics. The animation is spectacular and amazing to look at, the characters are all well rounded and their personalities matches them. And Tanya herself, is one of the most cold and calculating protagonist I have seen in a long time.

You become confused on if you want to root for her or not, and that in itself is good writing. This is a must watch and as for the first season, it gets a full 5/5.

Lenni Reviews: "Tartarus" by Eric Andrews-Katz

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*This book was sent to me in exchange for an honest review and is rated for 18+

The Titan, Echidna, has escaped from her underworld prison and vows vengeance on the Olympians who put her there. But the power of the old gods now resides in their descendants. Twins Adrian and Annelise have been unaware of their godly lineage until Echidna attacks them and an artist named Zack reveals himself to be another descendant of the gods. They must defeat Echidna before she destroys them and takes back the world under her rule.

While an interesting concept, the beginning felt so slow, I had trouble getting into it. I also had issues believing these characters were in their late 40's. The way they speak, you would think they were in their late 20's or early 30's. And this applies to all three of our main characters. If you want a believable set of older characters, Deadlight Jack is a perfect example. When I am reminded of their age in this book, they all seem terribly immature.

The best parts of this book for me were how the mythology is intertwined with real life. I have always been a huge fan of Greek Mythology so seeing the legends brought to life was cool. As for the romance elements, they are an afterthought. Zack and Adrian have this love/hate relationship with these random moments of intimacy as if to say "B.T. Dubz, they're in love now."

All in all, it was cool to see the mythic creatures and characters again but the rest is oddly framed. 3 out of 5.