Book Review - Craven Manor by Darcy Coates

 

Daniel is down on his luck and he is desperate for a job. He is willing to take any job to be able to afford food and rent. Someone slides a note under his door offering him a job as a groundskeeper at an old crumbling estate. The job offers him free housing and food along with a generous salary. He feels like the job is too good to be true.

When he arrives at Craven Manor, he feels like he might have been a victim of a prank. The mansion is dilapidated and its front door is wide open. The house is covered in leaves and cobwebs and it's apparent that no one has lived there in a long time. When he turns to leave, he finds an envelope with his name on it. There is a note offering him the job and it contains money with the promise of more if he accepts the job.

Daniel accepts the job because his only other option is to be homeless. He moves into the groundskeeper's cottage and tries to do his job. He tries to ignore all the strange occurrences and focuses on getting his job done. However, he feels that something is wrong deep in bones especially when there is a candle flickering in the abandoned tower window. He feels that Craven Manor is hiding a terrible secret but, can he survive it?

I enjoyed this novel. I like for the first time, a character isn't oblivious that something is wrong. Unfortunately, I feel for Daniel because he is stuck in a tough spot.  However, I didn't like that Daniel kept caring for a person who didn't even have his best interest at heart. I understand that Daniel was at a low point and that person was there for him but, it seems that everything that person did was motivated by greed. Daniel realized that this person was motivated by greed but, still tries to be positive and caring towards that person. Overall, I enjoyed the book and look forward to reading other books by the author

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Book Review: Furyborn (The Empirium Trilogy) by Claire Legrand

Photo Credit - Amazon

Rielle Dardenne is hiding a secret from her kingdom and her loved ones.  However, when her beloved best friend, Audric is ambushed, Rielle is willing to risk everything to protect him. Rielle is exposed to be one of the prophesied queens; but she must prove that she is the queen of light and not the queen of blood. Rielle must perform seven elemental magic trials and if she fails, things will take a turn for the worse.

Queen Rielle is a fairy tale to Eliana Ferracora. She is a bounty hunter for the Undying Empire, who is trying to survive. When her mother suddenly vanishes and Eliana must join forces with the rebels to find her mother. At the side of the rebels, she realizes evil and how terrible the Empire treats its citizens.  How is Eliana and Rielle related as their story intersect? Will Eliana be able to save the rebels from the Undying Empire?

I found the novel to be an interesting and thrilling read. It was fun to read about two strong female leads. However, I found it hard to like Eliana. She act like she was invisible but she was consistently overtaken by Invictius and the general from Red Crown. I didn't like that she tried using her sex appeal to get out of a situation instead of trying to formulate a plan. While, Rielle to rely on her internal strength and convictions instead of using her sex appeal. I can't read to read the next installment of this book.

**Disclosure - I received a free unedited copy of this book in exchange for an honest opinion**