Legless by Eileen Mueller

When a new elf knocks on Santa's door, he doesn't even recognize him.  He has to show him his ears.  He's a woodland elf and much taller and lankier than the other elves.  He wants to help make toys.

The author shared this book with me for review (thank you). You can get a free copy HERE.

He's working away when the door opens and in comes a goblin.  The elf grabs his bow and shoots him.  Luckily the mask came off and the elf wearing it was safe.  

Then the elf goes out and starts riding a reindeer.  Santa goes after him but falls off the seat.  The elf come back and saves him.

The identity of the elf isn't revealed until the end of the story and it was a surprise!  Young ones will have fun with this story!

Champagne Charlie and the Amazing Gladys by B.G. Hilton

 Charlie is looking for who killed the steam cab driver.  Gladys is looking for her partner in a magic show. (Women are not allowed to do magic by themselves.  She and Charley team up; they'll help each other.

Library Thing and Odyssey Books let me read this book for review (thank you).  It has been published so you can grab a copy now.

I like steampunk novels.  They make wonderful inventions.  However this story is a cross between steampunk and science fiction.  That doesn't make it bad, it just makes your mind stretch further...

There are other creatures living in space.  The animals are human sized and they intend to take over the earth and wipe the humans out.  However the humans are aware they are there and one crazy professor intends to take the moon out by explosives.  And Gladys and Charlie end up in the middle of this.

Will they find the answers they are looking for?  How can they stop the destruction planned?

There is a lot going on and it keeps your attention.  I'm glad we don't have those monsters here...

Brownsville Bred: Dreaming Out Loud by Elaine Del Valle

This is based on a true story.  This woman lived a tough life.  She grew up in a bad part of town and her family ends up splitting up because her father was doing drugs...

The author sent me a copy of her book to read and review (thank you).  It is out now and you can buy your own copy.

Because she's from Puerto Rico, her parents ended up in not the nicest neighborhood.  Things are very expensive in Brooklyn. 

This is the story of her childhood.  There are a lot of predators out there.  She usually isn't allowed out oon her own but when she's sent out on an errand, a man grabs her and heads for the alley.  She knows what he wants and she doesn't intend to let him have it.  She fights back, he leaves.  But later she's tackled by more than one man.  They hit and kick her and then walk away.

When she gets home, her mother is upset and sends her to Puerto Rica to spend the summer with her dad and his mother.  Her grandmother doesn't like her so it's no easy visit.

Back home she gets a phone call from her father.  He's dying from AIDs.  Seems his needle wasn't as clean as it should be when he used it.  He hasn't done drugs since he left but it doesn't matter.  She refuses to go to his funeral.

Despite all these hardships, she goes on to first write a play about her life and then on to write this book.  She lived a hard life but she bloomed as she got older.

MAGICAL MEANDERINGS: A Collection of Short Fiction by Irene Radford

This was a fun read.  If you like fantasy and pixies and fairies and the like, you'll love this book!

Library Thing and the author shared this book with for a review (thank you).

This book is filled with short stories about everything magical.  All of the stories have a positive spin.  I liked them all.  

The only bad thing is that you'll have to put it down and do something else or you'll read it all in one sitting.

Why not take a trip away from the worries of the world and read about the magical adventures in this book?

Fire and Vengeance by Robert McCaw - Series: Koa Kane Hawaiian Mystery

Koa is a cop who is no angel.  He never told anyone but he had murdered a man when he was younger.  Now, when he finds someone dead, he feels bad and still has residual guilt that shows up.  When a school suddenly explodes and sets itself on fire, they find dead students and dead teachers.  Who built the school over a fault line from a volcano?

Oceanview Publishing and Edelweiss let me read this book for review (thank you).  It has already been published so you can get a copy now.

The school is forty years old but as they ask questions they find that those involved in the building are still on the islands.  The worst part is that someone is killing the people involved so long ago.

This turns into a complex case.  The governor, the mayor, the head of DOE are all suspects.  Someone hired the hitman.  No one will tell him anything.  As he digs, he finds out they were all involved in a death forty years ago.  The ones they thought might tell are the ones that are dead.  Then he gets taken off the case.  He doesn't quit though.  Murder doesn't have any statute of limitations.

Everybody uses everybody.  He has to do a few shady things to get to the truth, but he does.  He finds they have been stealing money, too.  There's a lot of corruption to sort out, as well as solving a couple of murders.  Makes you wonder why we trust officials...

One of Our Own : A Gregor Demarkian Novel by Jane Haddam

This story is complicated and complex.  It deals with problems of today and doesn't have good outcomes for most.  It holds your attention. 

Minotaur and Edelweiss let me read this book for review (thank you).  It will be published November 17th.

Gregor has retired.  He and his wife have just taken a foster boy on.  No one knows where he came from and they haven't found any relatives.  He's Spanish.  He also is trying to eat to make up for the times he was hungry.  He's a bottomless pit.  He also bought the priest's dog with him.  The priest says he can have that one, he'll adopt another.

Then Gregor has been asked to help on a case.  It seems a van fishtailed on a slick street and the back doors opened and a garbage bag fell out.  There is an old woman in the bag and they recognize her.  She was hit on the back of the head and is in a coma.  Various sections of the city are little settlements of refugees from other countries.  This happened in the Spanish part of town. 

Gregor starts asking questions.  He finds it easier to get answers now that he has no official standing.  When he visits her apartment, he finds a dead man in it.  It's the Superintendent who was trying to get her to take a smaller unit.  Just what happened here?

He finds that the man who owns all these apartment building uses coyotes to bring him illegal immigrants  and he gives them jobs and doesn't pay them much.  That cuts down on his overhead.  He goes to talk to the owner and finds out what he wants to know.  But he can't prove it...

Shelly Struggles to Shine (The Derby Daredevils #2) by Kit Rosewater

 Shelly is part of a group of schoolmates that play in the Derby.  All the others had special skills.  She doesn't think she has any...

Amulet Books sent a copy of this book to read for review (thank you).  It has been published and you can get a copy now.

The illustrations go with the story line well.  Sophie Escabasse is the illustrator.

What Shelly can do is draw.  She draws the team and wants to find them some costuming materials to make them stand out.  They have a tournament coming up and she wants to help them win.

Her first attempts don't turn out so well.  She even has to sit in the penalty box for one bout.  That gives her time to think of an alternate plan.

Her second plan works well.  Will she get picked as a shining star?