Thurdy (Author of Oddities)

Thurdy Thurdy rated a book it was amazing From the Drop of Heaven: Legends, Prejudice, and Revenge by Juliette Godot (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Meticulously researched, beautifully imagined! This story follows the struggles and triumphs of a family and their friends during 16th and 17th century France. The author Godot has done an amazing job of making this period in time seem not so distant ...more
Sep 22, 2025 09:34AM · like · see review · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of From the Drop of Heaven by Juliette Godot. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — From the Drop of Heaven by Juliette Godot <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Thurdy Thurdy rated a book it was amazing A Dead-End Job by Justin Alcala (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Delightfully dark and clever The nice thing about speculative fiction is that it can include virtually anything, and author Justin Alcala takes full advantage of this latitude in in his novel “A Dead-End Job”. There are vampires, zombies, historical f ...more
Jan 30, 2025 03:30PM · like · see review
Thurdy Thurdy rated a book really liked it The Captivating Flames of Madness by Jeff Parsons (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
A diverse collection of tasty sci-fi/horror morsels We may all enjoy a suspenseful story, but we disagree on what makes a good ending. Some of us need the hero to cut the red wire, thereby defusing the bomb and saving the world at the last second. But ...more
May 08, 2024 06:49AM · like · see review · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of The Captivating Flames of Madness by Jeff Parsons. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — The Captivating Flames of Madness by Jeff Parsons <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Thurdy Thurdy rated a book it was amazing Trials of the Innermost (The Etherea Cycle, #1) by Jonathan Fuller (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
An engaging and thought-provoking saga I’m a big fan of science fiction/fantasy adventures, and when I started reading this book, I thought that’s exactly what this was, a tale about a diverse band of characters on a quest of utmost importance. But as ...more
Apr 25, 2024 03:21PM · 5 likes · like · see review

Thurdy Thurdy rated a book it was amazing

From the Drop of Heaven by Juliette Godot

From the Drop of Heaven: Legends, Prejudice, and Revenge
by Juliette Godot (Goodreads Author)

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Meticulously researched, beautifully imagined!

This story follows the struggles and triumphs of a family and their friends during 16th and 17th century France. The author Godot has done an amazing job of making this period in time seem not so distant ...more

Thurdy Thurdy rated a book it was amazing

A Dead-End Job
by Justin Alcala (Goodreads Author)

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Delightfully dark and clever

The nice thing about speculative fiction is that it can include virtually anything, and author Justin Alcala takes full advantage of this latitude in in his novel “A Dead-End Job”. There are vampires, zombies, historical f ...more

Thurdy Thurdy rated a book really liked it

The Captivating Flames of Madness
by Jeff Parsons (Goodreads Author)

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A diverse collection of tasty sci-fi/horror morsels

We may all enjoy a suspenseful story, but we disagree on what makes a good ending. Some of us need the hero to cut the red wire, thereby defusing the bomb and saving the world at the last second. But A diverse collection of tasty sci-fi/horror morsels

We may all enjoy a suspenseful story, but we disagree on what makes a good ending. Some of us need the hero to cut the red wire, thereby defusing the bomb and saving the world at the last second. But some of us prefer it when the hero incorrectly cuts the green wire out of irony and their own hubris leading to disastrous results. If you are in this second group, the stories in “The Captivating Flames of Madness” might just be your cup of tea.

The stories in this collection are all nightmarish tales that seldom end well for the characters involved. What I liked about it was the variety of characters, timeframes, and settings. It was like watching shorts at a film festival. And I appreciated the author’s ability to immediately create tension. There’s no beating around the bush in these stories. Within pages, you’ll find yourself unnerved and with a feeling of dread.

There’s a bit of gore and gross content in here, which honestly isn’t my favorite style of horror. I prefer more spooky tales. But there’s a fair amount of that too, creating a nice balance.

Speaking of which, “Witches Hill” was my favorite story. It is creepy and tense, and I felt the author stretched himself a bit. I particularly enjoyed the writing style of this one.

I would have liked to see the author explore the endings a little more and create some afterglow to his stories. There is a strong pattern in this collection of ending abruptly with a single sentence. A sudden stop is a great device to create a sense of confusion and shock, but used over and over, the endings can start to feel a little like punchlines, horrific unsettling punchlines. They were, however, often surprising, and unpredictable.

I also appreciated that these were intentionally very short in length. Because of their brevity, they are very digestible tales and can be quickly and easily consumed. It seems that these days many stories require a huge investment in time and a comprehension of an entire universe. But these can be enjoyed as little treats… maybe just not before bedtime. ...more

Thurdy Thurdy rated a book it was amazing

Trials of the Innermost by Jonathan Fuller

Trials of the Innermost (The Etherea Cycle, #1)
by Jonathan Fuller (Goodreads Author)

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An engaging and thought-provoking saga

I’m a big fan of science fiction/fantasy adventures, and when I started reading this book, I thought that’s exactly what this was, a tale about a diverse band of characters on a quest of utmost importance. But as An engaging and thought-provoking saga

I’m a big fan of science fiction/fantasy adventures, and when I started reading this book, I thought that’s exactly what this was, a tale about a diverse band of characters on a quest of utmost importance. But as I got into it, I found that this book had much more to offer.

The authors have done a great job creating a world in total stasis, one that is physically unmoving. It’s a novel idea and allows them to explore what would happen to societies whose viewpoints are fixed, literally. Without the evidence of normal cycles and seasons that we take for granted, how would the mythos of a people develop? How entrenched and intolerant would their systems of belief become? And how would realms with polar opposite vantages interact with one another?

The details of the world Etherea are meticulously thought out and the characters are well developed. It’s very easy to get invested in them and begin to feel like you understand them and where they come from, and the storyline is delivered with a nice writing style and use of language.

There are several themes threaded through this story, but two that struck me very strongly were: the interplay of politics and religion in governing (and controlling) a society and the personal struggle experienced by anyone who doesn’t fit the mold expected of them or whose views are challenged by a broadening vista. The Truthseekers in this tale come with very different viewpoints and must come to grips with the realization that the sky doesn’t end at the horizon they’ve always known.

At its heart though, this is a tale of adventure. The plot is strong, and I found myself staying up to read later than I probably should have because I wanted to know “what happens next”.

If you’re going to read this book, I would advise that you first familiarize yourself with the terms at the end. The various realms, and even the subsets of people within them, use different vernacular for things, and I think it would be very helpful to have a cursory understanding of the different terms from the start.

My only real criticism is more of a technical one. I don’t know if it’s my version of the Kindle app or the EPUB file (or maybe that I’m not super experienced with eBooks), but the chapter links didn’t work for me, so I had to scroll to the point I left off reading each time. Not a huge deal though.

Trials of the Innermost was a pleasant surprise, a thoroughly enjoyable read, and a great start to the series. ...more

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