Black Dahlia, Red Rose by Piu Eatwell REVIEW

Summary:
The shocking murder of hopeful starlet Elizabeth Short, in the wicked, noir-tinged Los Angeles of 1947, holds a permanent place in American lore as one of our most inscrutable true crime mysteries. In a groundbreaking feat of detection, relentless legal sleuth Piu Eatwell cracks the case after 70 years, rescuing Short from tabloid fodder to reveal the woman behind the headlines and construct a compelling theory about who killed her. Drawing from unredacted FBI and LAPD files and exclusive interviews, Black Dahlia, Red Rose is a gripping panorama of the seedy side of Hollywood and a persuasive account of one of the biggest unsolved murders of all time.

My Thoughts:
The murder of Elizabeth Short is really fascinating to me, so I decided to learn more about it by picking up this book.
I really like how thorough Eatwell is with her research. On nearly every page there are footnotes to explain further on things, and the back section not only has a sources page, but also an index, notes, and a list of the people involved.
I love how Eatwell not only gives evidence as to why she believes that Leslie Dillon and Mark Hansen worked together on the murder, but explains why the other suspects were not involved with lots of evidence. This might be partially because I am also taking a research class. This was very well written and easy to read compared to other nonfiction books I have read.
I would definitely recommend this to anyone who is into true crime or murder mysteries.

*I don't rate nonfiction, since it is based entirely on facts*

The Forge of Bonds by Wendy Terrien REVIEW

Summary:

Jason Lex and Sadie Callahan are together again in their hometown of Salton recovering from personal tragedies and bearing the burden of new secrets. Both are wishing for nothing but normalcy, but when Skyfish swarm and a rogue Bigfoot attacks, Jason and Sadie know looming danger can't be ignored.
Their friendship is challenged when a vanquished enemy returns from the dead bringing imminent threat to the lives of their friends and family. Sadie turns her back on Jason and he struggles without her to balance his upgraded Guard powers against fears of his own dark destiny, while Sadie is solely consumed on avenging her loss and defeating her adversary once and for all.
After a stunning family revelation, an agonizing betrayal exposes Jason and Sadie to their greatest enemy yet. They must find a way to fight together or suffer the loss of everything and everyone they love.

My Thoughts:

This was a really fun book to read. I do not think that I have read any other fantasy book like this before. Despite going into this book partially blind (I got an ARC and I have not read the previous books), it made me want to go back and read them.
The characters were refreshingly normal-they went to school, had classmates they disliked, had normal friends. While in the end I am grateful that Jason did not kill the creature despite Sadie yelling at him to do so, I do not really understand his hesitation to wound or kill evil creatures. Spoiler alert-the creature ends up being Sadie's mother who was thought to be dead. And the enemy they were trying to avoid was hiding in plain sight all along, which was cool.
Another thing I did not understand was Sadie's refusal to train. I understand not wanting to wipe someone's memory, but training is an entirely different thing that would have been extremely helpful for the big fight at the end.
Overall, I really enjoyed this book. I am really glad I was able to read it.

My Rating: 5 stars

Under the Black Flag by David Cordingly REVIEW

My Thoughts:

*this is the first non-fiction book I have reviewed here, so it may not be great*

I got this book from a used book sale about a year ago, and I have finally read it. It was a bit of a slow read, however it was very interesting. It talks about the history and beginnings of pirates as well as where the myths come from and if they were true. For example, only one pirate ever buried his treasure. There were several female pirates mentioned as well, including some that are not famous (at least in the US). It was really interesting to find out where the cliches in fictional stories came from and how most pirates used to be seamen who either lost their job or needed money.
Overall, it was slow but worth it to read and learn things that I never knew before.

My Rating: 3.5 stars

Fallen Skies by Philippa Gregory REVIEW

Summary:

Lily Valence is determined to forget the horrors of the war by throwing herself into the decadent pleasures of the 1920s and pursuing her career as a music hall singer. When she meets Captain Stephen Winters, a decorated veteran, she's immediately drawn to his wealth and status. And Stephen, burdened by his guilt over surviving the Flanders battlefields where so many soldiers perished, sees the possibility of forgetting his anguish in Lily, but his family does not approve.
Lily marries Stephen, only to discover that his family's facade of respectability conceals a terrifying combination of repression, jealousy, and violence. When Stephen's terrors merge dangerously close with reality, the truth of what took place in the mud and darkness brings him and all who love him to a terrible reckoning.

My Thoughts:

While this book was well written as expected, I did not enjoy it as much as I have enjoyed Ms. Gregory's other books. Lily, Rory, Charlie, and Coventry were the only likable characters. I did not like Stephen from the start, and hoped maybe I would later on, but I only started to hate him more. On their first (?) "date", he briefly thinks about raping Lily. As the book went on, he became both verbally and physically abusive toward her after they married. While Coventry was friends with Stephen from the war, he is a lot more likable. He has a soft spot for Lily, and ends up saving her and her baby in the end from Stephen. Rory is Stephen's father who was badly injured in the war. Lily spends time taking care of him, and as he starts to get better, we see why Lily spent so much of her free time with him: he is kind. Charlie is Lily's first love who she met during her time working as a singer. He loves her as well but won't marry her because of his infidelity. He also tells Lily that if she decides to leave Stephen, she can live with him.
While the book was really interesting, I was not a huge fan of it. I probably won't pick it up again.

My Rating: 2 stars

Mad Love by Paul Dini and Pat Cadigan REVIEW

Summary:

When she was only seven years old, Harleen Quinzel witnessed her father being beaten up by thugs, and then arrested by the police. That night she ran away to the safest place she could think of: Coney Island amusement park. But there, pursued into the Funhouse by the men who brutalised her father, she beheld unimaginable horrors.
Years later, Harleen has put her past behind her and used her intelligence and ambition to escape her childhood of poverty with a career in psychiatry. Assigned to her first position at Arkham Hospital, she will discover, deep in the asylum, something dangerous and alluring, something quite unlike anything else she has ever known before: the Joker. Because why would you settle for love, when you could have Mad Love?

My Thoughts:

It was really interesting to me what her childhood was like, as she has always interested me in a deeper level than just a woman in love with a psychopath. On the night she runs to the amusement park, she is about to be sold to a pedophile when she runs away again and is rescued by her mother. Her parents get arrested by the police, and that is when Harleen's distrust of law enforcement starts. Why did they not try to catch who did this to her and her father? It seems to me as well that this is part of the reason why she believes that the Joker can be saved. Of course, she didn't save him, she just freed him and let him walk all over her for a while before she tries to start anew. Which, of course, doesn't work for long.
I do wish this book was longer.
I can honestly understand her hatred and distrust toward Batman now. Although she doesn't really seem to trust anyone.

My Rating: 4 stars