DDBook Reviews

 An Elf, a warrior, a dwarf, and a weedy man enter a pub in Slagbottom, and soon all four are dead. As the local crime-solving busybody, Miss Marble is in the hospital, Constable Big-Girl’s-Blouse asks the Met to help with the investigation. DS Dogsbreath is sent to start the investigation that will be done by the Corner of the Yard (aka DI Aloysius Corner of Scotland Yard). As the investigation develops, DS Dogsbreath finds it challenging to navigate the suspects, all of whom swear that they did not see who committed the crimes, if there were even crimes. The four strangers did not either commit suicide or die by some freakish accidents. After all, who knew the cistern could fall on a dwarf’s head and kill him or that a man could be killed by billiard balls or a lone dart to the head. When Dogsbreath insists that the four deaths were murders and he comes close to discovering the secret kept by all the villagers, Miss Marble solves the crimes from her hospitable bed, declaring all ...

  Zee Morani, author of a syndicated opinion column, wants to become a "serious" journalist. To do this, she has secured an interview with disgraced scientist Dr. Ian McNeary, but when she arrives at his office, she is met with a horrific sight. Dr. McNeary has been murdered! After she identifies a possible culprit and he subsequently implores her to solve the murder because he is innocent, Zee starts to investigate, gathering evidence, making dumb decisions, and landing herself in dangerous situations. She is supported by her best friend. Fontina is a holistic mystic who teaches yoga and believes in herbs, meditation, and intuition. The problem is that Zee's intuition lands her in trouble and the emergency room. Seeing herself as an investigative journalist, Zee does what she thinks is necessary, visiting the victim's father, his old friends, and colleagues and searching through old garbage dumpsters in search of the murder weapon. Through her tenacity, she solves th...

  What do you do when your dragon just wants to play and not take a bath? When he starts to stink but sees through all your plans to get him wet and clean? Well, you devise a brilliant plan that he does not see coming. After trying to lure his dragon to the bath, the little boy tried catching and bribing him with his favorite toy. The boy tried playing with the hose in the garden, but the dragon stayed dry, and the boy got wet. Next, he tried to lure the dragon into the pool, but the sly dragon remained outside and just stank up the yard. Then, when the stink became so bad, and it seemed the dragon would stay stinky forever, suddenly the weather changed, and the dragon ran out. What brilliant plan did the boy make to trick his dragon into washing up? How to Wash My Dragon, Children's Guide to Washing Their Dragon, by Terry E Gunn, is a colorful children's book written for a fun reading time and an excellent introduction to fantasy and imagination. Terry E Gunn wrote the fun s...

  Kings and Queens have been murdered, and both kingdoms blame the other. At the same time, a third party takes advantage of the chaos to finally exact revenge on humans and dragons alike After the battle of Nevergrace, where the newly knighted Cyran Orendain survived an epic battle with the famed Dragon Queen, monsters from the Evenmeres target villages on the edges of the forest. Cyran and his archers travel on Eidelmere, an ancient forest dragon, and are sent to investigate the truth about the village attacks. When they travel into Murgare, they are captured and taken to Northsheeren, where the Dragon Queen offers Cyran an opportunity to study under her and learn about dragons and the Nebl í r. Rescue comes from a most surprising ally, and Cyran flees back to Belvenguard. At King Igare’s stronghold, Galvenstone, he finds his sister together with the Lady of the Never, where Jaslin is sleuthing around to find the traitor responsible for the death of her queen. Meanwhile, Pavol ...

                                                                                  Valtera, or the Emerald city, has been cursed to travel forever over the plains for over a century. Men may leave the city during the day only to disappear with it at twilight. Now someone is murdering citizens, and the people of Valtera have been placed in Calec of the Woods. Calec, a retired knight, has been living with his mate Serileen and the people of the Woods. Now he feels the need to travel again, and in this restless state, he is abducted by people from the Emerald city in the hope that he would help them break the curse they bore for burning a witch a century before. Calec must discover how to locate the vanishing city to help the people. He has to naviga...

Time's Orphan by Hayley Chow is a YA fantasy that tells the story of Emara, who lives in Okarria, a land destroyed by war and overrun by cannibals and undead doing the bidding of the Dead King. A Mage and a Necromancer have resurrected Idriel, or the Dead King as he is known, but they need a Time Heir, blessed with a healing gift, to heal Idriel's broken body. Emara has hidden her gift of healing all her life and only uses it to help ease pain and heal minor wounds. When the city of Faveno falls to the enemy, she is captured and taken to Austerden, where the Dead King rules. On her way there, she is joined by a talking black cat and reunited with the Shadow Heir and Dragon Heir. Together, they can kill the Dead King and save their beloved Okaria. But as all seems lost, something miraculous happens, and Emara is sent back in time with the order to find Bellaphia, a Magus who can help her with her gift as Time Heir. In the past she makes friends with a street rat and the second...

Zomerschoon, Beauty of Summer by Wendi Dass is a beautiful contemporary romance set against the academic backdrop of Oxford. Anna Franklin comes from an Academia family that pressures her into following in their footsteps. Though she is a mathematician and cryptography genius, at 25, she is looking for some warmth and love. When her academic overseer falls into a coma after a stroke, she is left with Hendrik van der Aart, a Dutch Cryptographer, as her overseer. When their love for puzzles brings them together, they realise that there may be something between them to fight for. However, can Anna look past the academic rules that keep them apart and see the man with a strong moral compass, and can Hendrik accept that she is a genius and still want to be with her? If these were but the only struggles in their blooming relationship. Jealous roommates and difficult parents also influence the two lovebirds.   Wendi Dass has written a beautiful romance, perfectly capturing the atmosph...