Saturday Snippet Reviews | Midnight Under the Magnolia: Ep. 1 & Sentinel

There are times when Heather & I finish a book, but don’t have time to write a full, comprehensive review… or even a shorter “flashbulb” review.  BUT we still want to share our thoughts with you on what we’ve been reading. That’s why every Saturday we’ll be featuring 2 “snippet” reviews — short, sweet, to-the-point reviews that we’ll try to keep to 2-7 sentences.  So we hope you enjoy these!!

 

 

Filled with tantalizing hints of meaty backstory, populated by a town full of colorful characters, and told in Dacie Mae’s refreshingly candid, slightly wry voice, Gwenn Wright does a fantastic job laying the groundwork in this first episode of her serialized mystery, Midnight Under the Magnolia. Initially, I was hooked by Dacie Mae herself, intrepid girl reporter who tells it like it is, and subsequently by all the various threads skillfully woven together to create the mystery — the small town conflicts, unresolved grief, unrealized ambitions, quirks, rivalries, delicious romantic tension, memories best left forgotten, and of course… murder. For such a short story, it’s an impressive and rich introduction, (Think of it as a pilot episode?) with a sense of world, character and relationship building that comes across as organic and effortless.

Overall.  An intriguing beginning, and I look forward to uncovering more of the mysteries that reside within the town of Wallace, Missouri.  

 

Since I first picked up Halfblood two years ago, I loved The Covenant Series. I loved the world, the mythology, the action, and especially the characters. The whole series draws you in and keeps you reading. So, needless to say, I was looking forward to seeing how Jennifer L. Armentrout wrapped things up for Alex and Aiden and this world of the Hematoi.

Sentinel did not disappoint. The action and fight scenes were great. The romance was, as usual, perfect. The gods were…well, greek gods and therefore frustratingly impotent. And the secondary characters were some of my favorites.

My only gripe was the ending. Don’t get me wrong, I loved the way things ended in the battle, but the ending-ending…I’m just not buying it. It seemed a little forced and “too perfect.” I love ya, JLA, but I think you shied away from a great ending by pulling back like that.

As a whole, The Covenant Series is a great read. I still think that Deity/Elixir is the best of it, but Sentinel is a well done conclusion, and I look forward to reading more from JLA.