Book Review: Marked by K.A. Gandy

Marked (Populations Crumble: Resurgence #1) by K.A. Gandy
Genre: Young Adult Fiction (Dystopian Romance)
Date Published: February 25, 2023
Publisher: Thigpen-Gandy Publishing

Demy has been on the run since she was thirteen years old. Mysterious men in black cloaks have been chasing her, and so far she's evaded them. Something, though, has changed since she turned eighteen. Their attempts to capture her have gotten closer and closer, until she's only got one option left: turning herself over to the NLC, for the compulsory marriage program.

She doesn't want to get married, but with her would-be captors on her heels, she's got no choice but to hope the NLC's strict security protocols will be a safe haven. Marriage is a small price to pay for her life, after all. And maybe, just maybe, she'll finally have the space to discover why she's being hunted.

Marked is a new entry point in the Populations Crumble world, but many familiar characters will be present from the original trilogy.

Marked is the first book in the Populations Crumble: Resurgence Series by K.A. Gandy. I’m so glad there’s more for us in this world, because I really wanted to know how things progressed after the last trilogy. What's changed? We do get to see some of those characters too, which really adds to the fun of this book, but Demy is a fantastic character all on her own. This was an introduction to her life, and I’m really curious as to what’s going on that we don’t know yet! Who’s after her?! Why!? What?! I can’t wait for more!

Marked by K.A. Gandy was kindly provided to me by Book Sirens for review. The opinions are my own.

Have you read the original trilogy yet?? 

K. A. Gandy was born and raised in Jacksonville, Florida. She is married with two babies of her own. K. A. has worked as a restaurant hostess, library book shelver, ranch hand, tour guide, Realtor, tech whiz, landlord, and small business consultant, all in addition to pursuing her passion of writing. As a person of many interests, her life has never been boring.

She likes to write late in the evenings and thinks drinking hot tea and baking great cookies fuels hopes and dreams.

To learn more about K. A. Gandy and her books, visit her on  Facebook & Goodreads.

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Trilogy Review: Populations Crumble by K.A. Gandy

Dwindle (Populations Crumble #1) by K.A. Gandy
Genre: Young Adult Fiction (Dystopian Romance)
Date Published: August 1, 2022
Publisher: Thigpen-Gandy Publishing

Humankind is in trouble. The Sterilization Vector has crippled reproduction across the globe. With the human population on the brink of utter collapse, the government has stepped in to try to save the human race.

Sadie is just one woman, but could her genes hold the key to unlocking what remains of the world's reproductive potential? Taken from her home and family, she must fight to find not just her best genetic match, but a man she can try to build a life with.

Will she be able to find someone to love, despite the odds stacked against her, or will she be one more woman swallowed up by the decline of humanity?

Dwindle is the first book in the Populations Crumble trilogy by K. A. Gandy. This one was pretty unique. Women are in a tough spot in this world. They’re basically brood mares. This would be hell for me. Sadie is pretty accepting of it all, but then things start changing for the worst. It kind of has a The Selection/Bachelorette feel to it, but it’s nothing like either of those really. Sure, the girls have to choose their husbands, but some don’t really even have a choice if they only have one match. Sadie gets to find out just how different she is. I enjoyed her character. Actually, I enjoyed all the characters. There were a lot to remember and some were forgettable, but I think that was by design. In a situation like this, Sadie wouldn’t have found them memorable either. I was pleasantly surprised by this story, and I’m anxious to get started on the next book in the series

Rise (Populations Crumble #2) by K.A. Gandy
Genre: Young Adult Fiction (Dystopian Romance)
Date Published: August 1, 2022
Publisher: Thigpen-Gandy Publishing

Humankind is in trouble. The Sterilization Vector has crippled reproduction across the globe. With the human population on the brink of utter collapse, the government has stepped in to try to save the human race.

Sadie is just one woman, but could her genes hold the key to unlocking what remains of the world's reproductive potential? Taken from her home and family, she must fight to find not just her best genetic match, but a man she can try to build a life with.

Will she be able to find someone to love, despite the odds stacked against her, or will she be one more woman swallowed up by the decline of humanity?

Rise is book two in the Populations Crumble trilogy by K. A. Gandy. It’s honeymoon time for Sadie and Patrick. The pressure is on to get Sadie knocked up. Plus, someone is still trying to kidnap her. So much is going on here. This world sounds like my personal hell, what with the being forced to have kids thing. I wouldn't want to trade with Sadie, that's for sure. It's a bit scary too. With its government that has more power and control than sense, I could see this as a potential real life future. No thank you to that! But, it makes for an interesting read, and it’s an idea that is very believable. 

Reign (Populations Crumble #3) by K.A. Gandy
Genre: Young Adult Fiction (Dystopian Romance)
Date Published: August 1, 2022
Publisher: Thigpen-Gandy Publishing

With Patrick as the only solid ground in a sea of uncertainty, the two of them must work to come together, or they’ll fall apart. Pressure builds from all sides, and they must choose—to assume the royal mantle, or the path of freedom and anonymity. Old friends and temporary allies abound, but only one thing is someone’s lying. Who can they trust, and will Sadie find out who before she, too, becomes a captive? The spellbinding conclusion to the Populations Crumble trilogy. One-click now to start this clean dystopian romance that will keep you on the edge of your seat to the final word!

Reign is the third book in the Populations Crumble trilogy by K. A. Gandy. There was a lot of action and goings ons in this story. I don’t know where to being, and actually there’s not much I can say without letting a spoiler slip out. I can say we meet a lot of new characters. We can’t trust all of them. There are some big reveals too. 

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I thought this was the final book, but I’m happy to say that there will be more books that take place in this world.

K. A. Gandy was born and raised in Jacksonville, Florida. She is married with two babies of her own. K. A. has worked as a restaurant hostess, library book shelver, ranch hand, tour guide, Realtor, tech whiz, landlord, and small business consultant, all in addition to pursuing her passion of writing. As a person of many interests, her life has never been boring.

She likes to write late in the evenings and thinks drinking hot tea and baking great cookies fuels hopes and dreams.

To learn more about K. A. Gandy and her books, visit her on  Facebook & Goodreads.

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Book Review: Mountains Made of Glass by Scarlett St. Clair

Mountains Made of Glass (Fairy Tale Retellings #1) by Scarlett St. Clair
Genre: Adult Fiction (Fantasy Romance)
Date Published: March 7, 2023
Publisher: Bloom Books

"Could you love me?" he whispered. The question stole my breath and burned my lungs in the silence that followed.

I wanted to answer, to whisper yes into the space between us, but I was afraid.

All Gesela's life, her home village of Elk has been cursed. And it isn't a single curse—it is one after another, each to be broken by a villager, each with devastating consequences. When Elk's well goes dry, it is Gesela's turn to save her town by killing the toad that lives at the bottom. Except… the toad is not a toad at all. He is an Elven prince under a curse of his own, and upon his death, his brothers come for Gesela, seeking retribution.

As punishment, the princes banish Gesela to live with their seventh brother, the one they call the beast. Gesela expects to be the prisoner of a hideous monster, but the beast turns out to be exquisitely beautiful, and rather than lock her in a cell, he offers Gesela a deal. If she can guess his true name in seven days, she can go free.

Gesela agrees, but there is a hidden catch—she must speak his name with love in order to free him, too.

Mountains Made of Glass off the first book in the Fairy Tale Retellings series by Scarlett St. Clair. I thought this was going to be a Beauty and the Beast retelling, but as it turns out, it was kind of a mix out tales. The story and the characters were pretty well built. I liked that Gasela wasn’t this damsel in distress. It was also a bit of a naughty little story. I felt like the pacing was pretty good for a shorter story like this, except for maybe the romance it self. To me, it felt pretty rushed in the end. All in all? Pretty good. I’d be curious to see what’s next in this series

USA Today and Wall Street Journal bestselling author Scarlett St. Clair was born and raised in Oklahoma and is a citizen of the Muscogee Nation. She is the author of several books, including A TOUCH OF DARKNESS, KING OF BATTLE AND BLOOD, and WHEN STARS COME OUT. Originally self-published, Scarlett’s books ignited readers into a frenzy, and A TOUCH OF DARKNESS quickly became a TikTok-trending title.  Scarlett rocketed to the top of bestseller lists across the industry 2021, leading the prolific and popular author to sign with the Bloom Books imprint of Sourcebooks. 

Scarlett is published in more than 13 countries. With millions of copies of her books sold around the world, she is a global bestseller.

The author is a fierce advocate of inclusivity in all her creative endeavors; her books celebrate agency, sex positivity and female empowerment.

To learn more about Scarlett St. Clair and her books, visit her website. You can also find her on Goodreads, Facebook, Instagram, Tumblr, and Twitter.

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Book Review: The Watchers by A.M. Shine

The Watchers by A.M. Shine
Genre:  Adult Fiction (Horror)
Date Published: October 14, 2021
Publisher: Head of Zeus

This forest isn't charted on any map. Every car breaks down at its treeline. Mina's is no different. Left stranded, she is forced into the dark woodland only to find a woman shouting, urging Mina to run to a concrete bunker. As the door slams behind her, the building is besieged by screams.

Mina finds herself in a room with a wall of glass, and an electric light that activates at nightfall, when the Watchers come above ground. These creatures emerge to observe their captive humans—and terrible things happen to anyone who doesn't reach the bunker in time.

The Watchers is the debut novel by A.M. Shine. It's a story with a great premise, but a whole lot of down time where not much happens. Once you get past the first half, things start to get more interesting. The Watchers are creepy and extremely intriguing. The more you learn about them , the more I wanted to know. The evil buggers. I want to know if the character's theory of what they are is actually what they are. I really liked the last quarter of the book. That ending leaves so much room for a sequel. And, I really do want to know what happens next. It left a pretty abrupt cliffhanger. I read to escape reality, yet I want the book to be believable at the same time. It's a fine line, and I feel like The Watchers dances along that line perfectly.

After reading this book, I found out it's going to be made into a movie directed by Ishana Night Shyamalan. I love her father's movies, so I'm pretty excited to see what she'll do with it as her directorial debut.

A. M. Shine is an author of Literary Horror from the west of Ireland. It was there that at a young age he discovered a passion for classic horror stories, and where he received his Masters in history, before ultimately sharpening his quill to pursue a life devoted to all things literary and macabre. His writing is inspired by the trinity of horror, history, and superstition, and he has tormented, toyed with, and tortured more characters than he will ever confess to.

To learn more about A. M. Shine and his books, visit his website. You can also find him on Goodreads, Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.

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