Category Archives: Steve Bein

Daughter of the Sword by Steve Bein
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Fated Blades, Book 1

Synopsis:Mariko Oshiro is not your average Tokyo cop. As the only female detective in the city’s most elite police unit, she has to fight for every ounce of respect, especially from her new boss. While she wants to track down a rumored cocaine shipment, he gives her the least promising case possible. But the case—the attempted theft of an old samurai sword—proves more dangerous than anyone on the force could have imagined.
The owner of the sword, Professor Yasuo Yamada, says it was crafted by the legendary Master Inazuma, a sword smith whose blades are rumored to have magical qualities. The man trying to steal it already owns another Inazuma—one whose deadly power eventually comes to control all who wield it. Or so says Yamada, and though he has studied swords and swordsmanship all his life, Mariko isn’t convinced.

But Mariko’s skepticism hardly matters. Her investigation has put her on a collision course with a curse centuries old and as bloodthirsty as ever. She is only the latest in a long line of warriors and soldiers to confront this power, and even the sword she learns to wield could turn against her.

Review:  I was very intrigued by the synopsis as soon as I had the possibility to read it. I must say that I haven’t had yet the opportunity to read a book such as this one, taking place in Tokyo and featuringsamurais and legends about mythical swords.

Well at first it was very difficult for me to get into the story. The writing style of the author is very special, much more complex than I usually had theopportunity to read and it took me a little time to really get into the story, to understand what happened. Another point to note, I also had a little trouble to really know the characters in the story at the beginning, it was difficult to remember who was who with Japanese names such as those that we have here. But all this, is resolvedas soon as we truly advance in the novel.

Mariko is a young woman who tries to prove herself in the Tokyo police, but as she is the single woman, it’s always difficult for her tobe accepted. However, she does her best, and when she discovers a cocaine’s problem, she feels something suspicious and tries to investigate about it. But her boss will do anything to stop and force her totake care of a saber’s robbery instead. However, the investigation takes her far beyond than what she would have thought at first. She will meet Yamada, a swords specialist who narrates storiesand who will teach her how to wield a sword, something he believes to be her destiny.
I enjoyed this novel, it is far from what I thought. We discover many complex characters and it will take a little time to really get to identify them. Yamada is very interesting,we try to understand what he wants,what he’s trying to do. We have the impression that he has all the answers for Mariko but never gives her them. Our heroine, meanwhile, is a brave and courageous woman who will do anything to achieve her goals. A rather extraordinary character.
I was surprised initially by the book with clippings of past events, telling the story of three legendary swords. And even though I was eager to know the further adventures of Mariko,I let myself get into the game and I loved to learnmore about what had happened. The events are well recountedand I was curious about the end of the book.
Steve Bein presents us a beautiful novel that makes us really think throughout the story. This is a totally unique novel, and I could not evenfind something that comes close to it.A good surprise.

Daughter of the Sword de Steve Bein (VO)
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Fated Blades, Tome 1

Résumé (traduction personnelle) :

Mariko Oshiro n’est pas comme la plupart des policiers de Tokyo. En tant que seule femme détective de l’élite de l’unité de police de la ville, elle doit se battre pour être respectée, surtout par son nouveau boss. Alors qu’elle veut enquêter sur cette rumeur de vente de cocaïne, il lui donne l’affaire la moins prometteuse. Mais l’affaire – la tentative de vol d’un ancien sabre de samouraï – se révèle être plus dangereuse que ce que l’on ne pourrait l’imaginer.

Le propriétaire du sabre, le Professeur Yasuo Yamada, dit qu’il a été créé par le légendaire Master Inazuma, un sabre qui est connu pour posséder des qualités magiques. L’homme qui essaie de le voler possède déjà un autre Inazuma – un pouvoir mortel qui contrôle tous ceux qui le détiennent. Du moins c’est ce que dit Yamada, et bien qu’il ait étudié les sabres et ceux qui les manient durant toute sa vie, Mariko n’est pas convaincue.

Mais le scepticisme de Mariko n’a pas d’importance. Son enquête l’oblige à faire face à une malédiction qui date de plusieurs siècles et à une soif de sang illimitée. Elle est la dernière d’une longue lignée de guerriers et de soldats pour faire face à ce pouvoir, et même le sabre, qu’elle manie pourrait se retourner contre elle.
Avis : J’ai été très intriguée par le résumé dès que j’ai eu l’occasion de tomber dessus. Il faut dire que je n’ai pas encore eu l’occasion de lire un livre tel que celui-ci, se passant à Tokyo et mettant en scène des samouraïs et des légendes au  sujet de sabres mythiques.
Je dois dire que j’ai eu beaucoup de mal à rentrer dans l’histoire au départ. Le style d’écriture de l’auteur est très particulier, beaucoup plus complexe que ce que j’ai eu l’occasion de rencontrer habituellement et il faut un peu de temps avant de vraiment bien rentrer dans l’histoire et comprendre ce qu’il se passe. Un autre point à souligner, j’ai aussi eu un peu de difficultés à vraiment placer les personnages en commençant l’histoire, j’ai eu un peu de mal à me rappeler de qui était qui avec des noms japonais tels que ceux que l’on a. Mais tout cela se résout dès qu’on avance véritablement dans le roman.
Mariko est une jeune femme qui essaie de faire ses preuves dans la police de Tokyo, mais en tant que seule femme, c’est toujours difficile d’être acceptée. Elle fait cependant de son mieux, et quand elle découvre un futur de trafic de cocaïne, elle sent quelque chose de louche et essaie d’enquêter. Mais son patron va tout faire pour lui mettre des bâtons dans les roues et l’obligera à s’occuper d’une affaire de vol de sabre. Mais cette enquête l’emmènera bien plus loin que ce qu’elle aurait pensé. Elle rencontrera Yamada, un spécialiste des sabres qui lui contera des histoires et qui lui apprendra à manier le sabre, chose qu’il pense être sa destinée.
J’ai beaucoup apprécié ce roman, il est loin de ce que je pensais. On découvre de nombreux personnages complexes et il nous faudra un peu de temps avant de vraiment arriver à les cerner. Yamada est très intéressant, on essaie de comprendre ce qu’il veut, ce qu’il essaie de faire. On a l’impression qu’il possède toutes les réponses aux questions de Mariko sans jamais vraiment les lui donner. Notre héroïne quant à elle, est une femme brave et courageuse qui fera tout pour atteindre ses buts. Un personnage assez extraordinaire.
J’ai été surprise au départ par les coupures de livre avec des événements du passé, contant l’histoire des trois sabres mythiques. Et même si j’étais pressée de connaître la suite des aventures de Mariko, je me suis laissé prendre au jeu et j’ai beaucoup apprécié d’en apprendre plus sur ce qu’il s’était passé. Les événements sont très bien contés et j’étais curieuse de connaître le fin mot de l’histoire.
Steve Bein nous présente un joli roman qui nous fait réfléchir tout au long de l’histoire. C’est un livre totalement unique, et je ne pourrais même pas trouver quelque chose qui s’en rapproche. Une bonne surprise.

Stacking the Shelves #18
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Stacking the Shelves is a meme hosted by Tynga’s Reviews

Between D&R
Grab the Code

Première tombe sur la droite (Charley Davidson, 1) – Darynda Jones
A smashing, award-winning debut novel that introduces Charley Davidson: part-time private investigator and full-time Grim Reaper
Charley sees dead people. That’s right, she sees dead people. And it’s her job to convince them to “go into the light.” But when these very dead people have died under less than ideal circumstances (i.e. murder), sometimes they want Charley to bring the bad guys to justice. Complicating matters are the intensely hot dreams she’s been having about an Entity who has been following her all her life…and it turns out he might not be dead after all. In fact, he might be something else entirely.

Charley Davidson est détective privée et faucheuse. Son boulot consiste à convaincre les morts « d’aller vers la lumière ». Mais ce n’est pas toujours si simple : parfois Charley doit les aider à accomplir quelque chose avant qu’ils acceptent de s’en aller, comme retrouver l’assassin de ces trois avocats. Ce qui ne serait pas un problème si Charley ne passait pas son temps à faire des rêves érotiques provoqués par une entité qui la suit depuis toujours… Or, il se pourrait que l’homme de ses rêves ne soit pas mort. Il pourrait même être tout à fait autre chose…
 Deuxième tombe sur la gauche (Charley Davidson, 2) – Darynda Jones 
Charley Davidson, Grim Reaper Extraordinaire, is back in this sexy, suspenseful novel of supernatural shenanigans When Charley is rudely awakened in the middle of the night by her best friend who tells her to get dressed quickly and tosses clothes out of the closet at her, she can’t help but wonder what Cookie’s up to. Leather scrunch boots with a floral miniskirt? Together? Seriously? Cookie explains that a friend of hers named Mimi disappeared five days earlier and that she just got a text from her setting up a meet at a coffee shop downtown. They show up at the coffee shop, but no Mimi. But Charley finds a message on the bathroom wall. Mimi left a clue, a woman’s name. Mimi’s husband explains that his wife had been acting strange since she found out an old friend of hers from high school had been found murdered a couple weeks prior. The same woman Mimi had named in her message. Meanwhile, Reyes Alexander Farrow (otherwise known as the Son of Satan. Yes. Literally) has left his corporeal body and is haunting Charley. He’s left his body because he’s being tortured by demons who want to lure Charley closer. But Reyes can’t let that happen. Because if the demons get to Charley, they’ll have a portal to heaven. And if they have a portal to heaven…well, let’s just say it wouldn’t be pretty. Can Charley handle hot nights with Reyes and even hotter days tracking down a missing woman? Will Cookie ever get a true fashion sense? And is there enough coffee and chocolate in the world to fuel them as they do? 
Charley, détective privée et faucheuse, et Cookie, sa meilleure amie/réceptionniste, se lancent à la recherche d’une jeune femme, disparue depuis le meurtre d’une camarade de lycée. Pendant ce temps, Reyes – le fils de Satan ! – est sorti de son corps physique pour hanter Charley afin d’empêcher des démons de s’emparer de la jeune femme et d’accéder au ciel par son biais. Mais Charley pourra-t-elle supporter ses nuits ardentes avec Reyes et ses journées à cent à l’heure sur la piste d’une femme disparue ?
Fourth grave beneath my feet (Charley Davidson, 4) – Darynda Jones

Sometimes being the grim reaper really is that. Grim. And since Charley’s last case went so awry, she has taken a couple months off to wallow in the wonders of self-pity. But when a woman shows up on her doorstep convinced someone is trying to kill her, Charley has to force herself to rise above. Or at least get dressed. She quickly realizes something is amiss when everyone the woman knows swears she’s insane. The more they refute the woman’s story, the more Charley believes it.

In the meantime, the sexy, sultry son of Satan, Reyes Farrow, has been cleared of all charges. He is out of prison and out of Charley’s life, as per her wishes and several perfectly timed death threats. But his absence has put a serious crimp in her sex life. While there are other things to consider, like the fact that the city of Albuquerque has been taken hostage by an arsonist, Charley is having a difficult time staying away. Especially when it looks like Reyes may be involved. Just when life was returning to normal, Charley is thrust back into the world of crime, punishment, and the devil in blue jeans. 

 The Mage (Sons of Destiny, 8) – Jean Johnson

Eight brothers, born in four sets of twins, two years apart to the day–they fulfill the Curse of Eight Prophecy.  Though no longer trapped in exile, their growing family faces new problems.  The worst of those troubles now falls upon the last of the Sons of Destiny.

Hope, Morganen’s foretold bride, has finally arrived on the island.  She hasn’t been telling the full truth about herself, and the consequences will stretch further than even she anticipates.  Just as Morg gets used to Hope’s revelation, new enemies arrive on the Isle, seeking to steal away the brothers’ chances at creating a new nation.  During the attack, an old foe resurfaces and strikes amid the confusion, kidnapping the final bride-to-be.

Either Morg will rescue Hope and help his family complete the Prophecies of the Seer Draganna and the last Duchess of Nightfall, carving a new kingdom in the process…or their enemies will be free to slaughter them all…

 A trace of Moonlight (Abby Sinclair, 3) – Allison Pang

Drinking from the waters of lethe and offering herself up as Faerie’s sacrificial Tithe . . . these just might be the least of Abby Sinclair’s problems. 

Abby’s pact with a daemon—whether or not she remembers making it—is binding, so she’d better count herself lucky that (in the words of a daemon who knows better) there’s nearly always a loophole. But her friends’ reckless attempts to free her, well intentioned though they may be, set off a disastrous chain of events. In no time at all, Abby turns her incubus lover mortal, then gets herself killed, cursed, and married to an elven prince whose mother wants her dead. On top of everything else, she’s lost the Key to the CrossRoads to her mortal enemy, who promptly uses his restored power to wreak havoc on the OtherWorld and put its very existence in jeopardy. Only one person can make things right again, but to find her, Abby must place her trust in allies of mixed loyalties, and conquer her nightmares once and for all.

Dead, undead or somewhere in Between (Rhiannon’s Law, 1) – J.A. Saare
One bad corpse can ruin your whole day.

No one knows that better than Rhiannon Murphy.

She left behind the flash and sass of Miami for the no-nonsense groove of New York City, eager for a clean slate and a fresh start. A bartender by trade, a loud mouth by choice, and a necromancer by chance; she managed to keep her nifty talent hidden from those around her—until now.

The deliciously good-looking vampire, Disco, knows her secret. When he strolls into her bar to solicit help investigating the mysterious disappearances of his kind from the city, Rhiannon discovers he’s not the kind of person that appreciates the significance of the word no.

But in a world where vampires peddle their blood as the latest and greatest drug of choice, it’s only a matter of time before the next big thing hits the market. Someone or something is killing vampires to steal their hearts, and unlike Rhiannon, this isn’t their first stroll around the undead block.

Edge of Oblivion (Night Prowler, 2) – J.T. Geissinger
In a dark underground cell, Morgan Montgomery waits to die. A member of the Ikati, an ancient tribe of shape-shifters, Morgan stands convicted of treason. And Ikati law clearly spells out her fate: death to all who dare betray.

But there is a glimmer of hope. Thanks to her friendship with Jenna, the new queen of the Ikati, Morgan has one last chance to prove her loyalty. She must discover and infiltrate the headquarters of the Expurgari, the Ikati’s ancient enemy, so they can be destroyed once and for all. The catch? She has only a fortnight to complete her mission and will be accompanied by Xander Luna, the tribe’s most feared enforcer. If Morgan fails, her life is forfeit. Because Xander is as lethal as he is loyal, and no one—not even this beautiful, passionate renegade—will distract him from his mission. But as the pair races across Europe into the heart of Italy, the attraction blooming between them becomes undeniable. Suddenly more than justice is at stake: so is love.

 Daughter of the Sword (Fated Blades, 1) – Steve Bein

Mariko Oshiro is not your average Tokyo cop. As the only female detective in the city’s most elite police unit, she has to fight for every ounce of respect, especially from her new boss. While she wants to track down a rumored cocaine shipment, he gives her the least promising case possible. But the case—the attempted theft of an old samurai sword—proves more dangerous than anyone on the force could have imagined.

The owner of the sword, Professor Yasuo Yamada, says it was crafted by the legendary Master Inazuma, a sword smith whose blades are rumored to have magical qualities. The man trying to steal it already owns another Inazuma—one whose deadly power eventually comes to control all who wield it. Or so says Yamada, and though he has studied swords and swordsmanship all his life, Mariko isn’t convinced.

But Mariko’s skepticism hardly matters. Her investigation has put her on a collision course with a curse centuries old and as bloodthirsty as ever. She is only the latest in a long line of warriors and soldiers to confront this power, and even the sword she learns to wield could turn against her.

 A Witch before dying (A wishcraft mystery, 2) – Heather Blake

Darcy Merriweather is Salem, Massachusetts’ newest resident Wishcrafter—a witch who can grant wishes for others. While Darcy isn’t able to grant wishes for herself, she does possess a certain knack for solving problems—including the occasional murder…

When Darcy is hired by Elodie Keaton to clean up her missing mother’s disorderly home, the Wishcrafter is certainly up for the task. After all, the motto of her Aunt Ve’s personal concierge service As You Wish is “No Job Impossible.” But beneath the piles of old newspapers and knickknacks Darcy discovers something much more disturbing—Patrice Keaton’s body.

Darcy’s determined to give Elodie peace of mind by investigating her mother’s disappearance and death. Patrice was last seen over a year ago after a fight with her Charmcrafter boyfriend. Was her murder a crime of passion? Or were Patrice’s troubles caused by the Anicula, a wish-granting amulet? Now Darcy has to not only find a killer, she has to find the Anicula— before the power of ultimate wish fulfillment falls into the wrong hands…