Hungry Ghosts by Stephen Blackmoore is the third Eric Carter audiobook. Narrated by Rudy Sanda, it shares the last confrontation with the Queen of Death. Grab a cup of coffee and travel with us to the Aztec land of the dead.

Hungry Ghosts
by Stephen Blackmoore
Series: Eric Carter #3
Narrator: Rudy Sanda
Length: 9 hours and 15 minutes
Genres: Urban Fantasy
Source: Publisher
Purchase*: Amazon | Audible *affiliate

Rating:
Narration: 5 cups Speed: 1.5x

Stephen Blackmoore’s dark urban fantasy series follows necromancer Eric Carter through a world of vengeful gods and goddesses, mysterious murders, and restless ghosts.

Necromancer Eric Carter’s problems keep getting bigger. Bad enough he’s the unwilling husband to the patron saint of death, Santa Muerte, but now her ex, the Aztec King of the dead, Mictlantecuhtli, has come back—and it turns out that Carter and he are swapping places. As Mictlantecuhtli breaks loose of his prison of jade, Carter is slowly turning to stone.

To make matters worse, both gods are trying to get Carter to assassinate the other. But only one of them can be telling him the truth and he can’t trust either one. Carter’s solution? Kill them both.

If he wants to get out of this situation with his soul intact, he’ll have to go to Mictlan, the Aztec land of the dead, and take down a couple of death gods while facing down the worst trials the place has to offer him: his own sins.

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In Hungry Ghosts, as with most urban fantasy it is best to begin at the start. Eric is slowly turning to jade, and it seems both Santa Muerte and her ex, the Aztec King of the Dead, want him to nix the other. Eric isn’t sure who to believe, but he is racing against the clock. Each time he taps into the powers he’s been given, he loses a little more of himself. Now that he has the weapon, he’ll need to travel to Aztec land of the dead.

This was a clever tale and my favorite of the trilogy involving Santa Muerte. I love the way the author blends old gods, necromancy, ghosts and more into his tale. While I was vaguely familiar with Santa Muerte, I found the Aztec land of the dead and Eric’s journey fascinating.

The mystery of why the Queen of the Dead set things into motion and what she ultimately wants was intriguing. We see character growth from Eric. Oh, he is still jaded, but perhaps he’s forgiven himself a little. The build up to the end kept me listening. I was impressed with how it all unfolded. We are given a bit of an epilogue that left enough of a hook me into wanting more. I’ll be curious to see what Eric does next in Fire Season.

Rudy Sanda did a stellar job of capturing the tone and characters of this series. He is perfect as the voice of Eric bringing forth his gruff personality, doubts, fears and anger.

Amazon | Audible

Reading this book contributed to these challenges:

• 2022 Audiobook Challenge

Source

Original source: https://caffeinatedbookreviewer.com/2023/01/hungry-ghosts-by-stephen-blackmoore.html

What Happened on Saturday is an illuminating book that delves into the thirty-six hours between the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

One of the standout features of this book is the way it weaves together historical facts with compelling storytelling, creating a rich and immersive reading experience. I enjoyed this thought-provoking book as it presents a well-researched argument on the topic. Even though the author acknowledges that there is more than one interpretation the author provides plenty of facts, research, and personal experiences to bring clarity to a subject that many think is lost to time.

Author Trinity Royal uses easy-to-understand language throughout the book, which removes the scholarly veil which has shrouded the subject and makes it easy to understand and deeply compelling to the general public. If you are at all interested in the events that took place during the thirty-six hours between Christ’s death and resurrection, I highly recommend this book because it brings excellent lucidity to a short but important period in history.

This informative book provides a wealth of history and facts to support the research and personal experiences shared within. This is a must-read for theologians, and devotees, and will also be valuable to anyone with an interest in history. It is incredibly enlightening and reveals new insights about Jesus and his teachings. This is an impactful book that answered many of my lingering questions, offered profound new questions and answers, and helped me strengthen my spiritual connection.

I highly recommend What Happened on Saturday to anyone seeking to understand Christ’s life better, or to readers who have always wanted to know what happened between the time of Christ’s death and resurrection. What Happened on Saturday is a thought-provoking and engaging read that is sure to appeal to readers.

Pages: 73 | ASIN: B0BMZP4F8N

Original source: https://literarytitan.com/2023/01/27/what-happened-on-saturday/

Regrets, Love, Sex and Life Lessons by Melissa Owens will take you on an evocative and scandalous journey through a series of short stories about relationships and life choices that have expected and unexpected outcomes. This provocative compilation of narratives will be relatable to many and shocking to most. Should you keep quiet about inappropriate affairs in the workplace? Can you ignore the red flags with the new boyfriend? Is your gut feeling about someone reliable? Should you act upon passion driven impulses? These are the questions the characters have to answer for themselves and live with the consequences: good, bad, or indifferent.

2 Imperfect People threw me for a loop and was a story that I did not expect. Author Melissa Owens sets a quick pace with this story and I wanted to read more. From there the stories took me on a roller coaster of emotions and I found myself rolling my eyes and rooting for the main character for sticking up for herself. I feel many of these stories will be relatable to many readers, especially women. The sex scenes were incredible; many of the characters in the stories were having sex for three hours! The author created vivid scenes that are filled with passion and yearning and sometimes that ended in disappointment for one of the characters, mostly the women. Country Carlton Has Taught Me a True Valuable Lesson in This Thing Called “Life” is another short story that surprised me because of Carlton’s behavior.

Author Melissa Owens has provided readers with a collection of intriguing stories about women and their experiences with dating, having sex, and regretting many decisions with the men that they choose. This is a captivating read and, while relatable, the last story in the book gives hope to many that there are still good ones out there.

Pages: 122 | ASIN: B09B4F7SS4

Original source: https://literarytitan.com/2023/01/27/regrets-love-sex-and-life-lessons/

The Road Renounced by Kaye D. Schmitz is a historical fiction story that follows the ugly effects of war, following people far from the battlefield. World War I was devasting, and while it’s a fictional account, the story tugs at the heartstrings.

The story begins with three characters at different places and times. In 2015, in Pennsylvania, Suzanne Ryan discovers her grandmother Maude’s diary. She learns that back in 1915, Maude Brewer was living on the family farm with her parents and brother Henry who spent much of his time with Buzz Ryan, his best friend. Their lives are abruptly impacted by the first world war, with death and despair.

When you initially start reading The Road Renounced and weave through the three characters and their perspectives, you’ll eagerly want to find how they intercept and what makes their lives connect. The author does a great job of pulling the curiosity out of readers, keeping them on edge until all three storylines converge. It’s a fantastic read that will keep you turning one page after the next.

I found this book well-written, and the author didn’t shy away from the horrors of war on the battlefield, back home, and with the remaining family members awaiting any news. The characters are complex and intriguing, and the story doesn’t pull away from the brutality of war and the issues that arise behind people’s closed doors. Schmitz does a great job of handling the dual storylines and integrating them together.

The Road Renounced by Kaye D. Schmitz is an excellent, 5-star read that will keep you reading from start to finish. Highly recommended!

Pages 382 | ASIN: B0BLYDJ1WB

Original source: https://literarytitan.com/2023/01/27/the-road-renounced-2/

One night, a baby is left outside a doorway. The parents kiss their child goodbye, leave a note, and say goodbye. The Moon takes great interest in the child and asks the Sun for help. She is watched over by the Sun and the Moon throughout her life and is connected to her birth parents through them.

Author Geraldine Moran shares a personal story with readers with her heartfelt children’s book, The Moon Child. This is an imaginative story that bring the Sun and the Moon to life and gives hope to any child that is adopted and might feel disconnected from their birth parents. It inspires hope and tells a stirring story that feels like a folktale.

The gorgeous artwork by illustrator Daniella Banco reflects the warm and sincere tone of the story. Each page contains beautiful watercolor artwork that will capture the attention of any young child as their parents or teachers read this story to them. I especially loved the image where the baby’s parents stood under the tree at night.

The Moon Child is a stirring and uplifting children’s book that will touch the hearts of readers. I would highly recommend this wonderful book to children who are struggling with adoption, or to anyone who feels out of place.

Pages: 24 | ASIN: B0BN5LL69R

Original source: https://literarytitan.com/2023/01/27/the-moon-child/

Who Knew? is an eloquent collection of poems that capture the emotion of a person at a moment in time in New York City’s history. Each poem is short but impactful. I was astonished to find that each poem conveys a deep meaning with so few works.

Each poem is evocative and captures the person’s strife and uncertainty all with a single sentence at the end of each poem, ‘Who knew?’ Each poem gives readers a glimpse at the life of someone who lived, or lives, in New York City; an immigrant, a slave, a police officer, a firefighter. I was pleasantly surprised to find that there was a test at the end, which asks the reader to guess who each poem was about. Before moving on to find the answers, I found myself flipping back through the poems one more time to try and find out who they might be about. This adds a lot of engagement to the poetry, and made me want to read the poems more than once.

Poetry readers will enjoy the potency of each poem, and casual readers will be able to easily pick this book up and complete it quickly because of the brevity of the poems. Anyone interested in New York City history will also find this poems fascinating as they are intriguing artistic glimpses of what it meant to be alive in New York City to different people at different times.

Pages: 17 | ASIN: B08V1SH4QH

Original source: https://literarytitan.com/2023/01/27/who-knew/