Janet McNultyRezensionen

When you meet the characters involved in this story, it is obvious the story will involve deep character development. Each person brings their own personal weaknesses to the ship, and they work to over come them while facing unthinkable trials in the search for the crystals. I loved that Janet brought 6 distinct personalities together for this adventure. She does a great job at making their strengths and weakness shine without overshadowing another character. Since this is only the first book you get the notion that much more character growth will happen for each of the heroes. The main characters are all easy to relate to, it is easy to become engrossed in their stories, and how they play into the over arcing story-line.

My biggest disappointment with this book is the ending, it doesn't standalone as a story, and leaves you wanting the rest of the book. I have not read the other three yet for this saga, but if the books are the same as this one I will venture to say they should combine them into one book, instead of four parts. For me, when I read a series, I appreciate a series long arc, with small arcs within each book. This book lacks its own person arc. It does a fantastic job at building Rynahs world and making her goals clear, but otherwise doesn't finish out any pending questions.

I would recommend it to anyone interested in Science Fiction or Space Operas but only if they would commit to reading all 4 books at once. Solaris Seethes is the beginning to a thrilling adventure in a world unlike our own, and I hope to finish the series one day.

See Full Review here: https://forums.onlinebookclub.org/viewtopic.php?f=21&t=51272

The best thing I can say about it is that it was short. Very short.

Sugar And Spice And Not So Nice (Mellow Summers #1) by Janet McNulty

Mellow moved into an apartment with her friend Jackie so she could go back to College to get her degree. They get a great price on the Apartment to find that it is haunted. There lives the ghost Rachel, the previous tenant who was murdered. Mellow and Rachel search to find her killer but it will be up to Mellow to prove who did it and why.

A fast paced original cozy murder mystery with a fun plot. Mellow is likable, kind and determined. Rachel is super cool in all her ghostliness. The two make a great pair, who would not like having a friendly Ghost hanging around? Overall I found Sugar And Spice And Not So Nice very enjoyable and highly recommend to those who love a great cozy murder/mystery with a paranormal twist.

An ok story. Moves a little slow for what I like, and is pretty average for its genre. A fairly original story but doesn't really stand out in any way. A decent read but I wouldn't recommend it over other things.

Solaris Seethes by Janet McNulty is a Sci-Fi novel quite unlike any other I’ve read. When Rynah (a lab worker from the planet of Lanyr) is betrayed by one of her own kind, she is forced to flee her dying planet in a ship built by her grandfather. A character in itself, Solaris (name of the ship as well as its artificial intelligence counterpart) boasts a sassy attitude as they guide Rynah on a perilous journey to right things on her home world.

There is a lot of travelling between alien planets, with non-stop action that had me wondering if the heroes would survive their ordeals. I found this book to be incredibly enjoyable and was curious to explore Rynah’s perspective. From Rynah’s determination to restore her planet to its former glory, to the range of quirky personalities that Solaris allows to dwell within her, there is never a dull moment.
My greatest love for this story comes with Brie’s character, a timid human girl with a big heart. Although she starts off as a somewhat shy and clumsy individual, we see her develop dramatically over the course of the novel, becoming a strong fighter who manages to prove her own self-worth to leader Rynah, as well as to the other three individuals mentioned in an ancient prophecy.

Although I liked many things about this book, there were a few areas that I found lacking, such as the amount of description that was given in some scenes. At times it came across as info-dumping and did little to enhance my experience as a reader. I also thought that the inclusion of illustrations was unnecessary and did nothing to improve the book’s layout or the reader experience.
Some scenes were not realistic, for instance, the first scene where Rynah is fleeing her home planet. In a near-death situation, for some reason she focuses on the exterior of Solaris (the spaceship) instead of running for her life. Another such example comes when the four humans first appear inside of Solaris. In a situation like this, I would expect the characters to panic as they would have no idea of their location or of how they had gotten there, or to ask questions, but no. They appeared to be oddly unphased.

Solaris Seethes is a remarkable read that held my attention from start to end, with characters that I quickly came to adore. I would recommend it to lovers of Science Fiction and Fantasy.

This was terrible. The numerous grammatical mistakes took me right out of the story and I could barely finish it. Also, the main character was mean as hell to all the other characters.

I loved how the author gets right to the point. Good pace. However I felt that it could have been more descriptive, in terms how did they know which planet to go to, or how did the ship choose the 4 heroes. Since Rynah herself did not have much knowledge or until the moment hadn't even believed in the legends, it could have better to include the reader into the planning and the plotting. I felt like a spectator, rather than a part of the story.
I loved the sarcasm.
Didn't have much patience with Rynah. For someone out to save the galaxy, she was surprisingly short sighted. However, if that was author's intention, then it was very well captured.
I felt that had it been someone else other than Rynah, it wouldn't have much difference to the story, her only good point being her training in security.

Very cute

This book has amazing illustrations and the use of special characters in the text really ties it together. The rhyme was a little rough in some areas but overall an energetic story that should delight young children!

Rynah wants revenge against her ex-lover, Klanor, for destroying her home planet and almost killing her to get one of six crystals that will help him become powerful and able to destroy much more than he already has. Solaris is a ship that was left to her by her grandfather, and she soon realizes that the artificial intelligence program that is Solaris will help her and her team of friends to stop Klanor before more people get killed in his quest for the crystals.

Good story line, a little different form the norm. The writing style is a little formal for my personal taste but this has the potential to be a fun series.

I received a free ebook version from Library Thing member giveaway.

I enjoyed the premise of this book and liked most of the concepts. The vocabulary was pretty basic, but suitable for the young adult audience this is aimed at. I will warn parents of younger kids who may be interested that there is some mild profanity (shit, damn, bastard, bullshit) but used very sparingly. Also some violence and death, but spares the gory details. No romance or sexual content.

I did not rate this any higher because there were many instances of things happening that were so unbelievable, and I prefer my dystopias to be plausible. Most of the dialogue I felt was on the cheesy side as well with friendships forming very quickly and trust gained too easily.

The ending doesn't really resolve anything because this is apparently the first in a trilogy or series. I'm mildly curious to see what happens next, but not going to lose sleep over it and probably won't read further any time soon because my to-read list is huge.

I totally enjoyed reading this book. A short, quick paced story. I found it entertaining, humorous and at times quite funny. The characters well developed, quite believable and true to life.
Mellow Summers, her friend, Jackie, and a very determined ghost, Rachel, who used to live in the apartment Mellow and Jackie share. And all Rachel, the ghost, wants is help in finding out who murdered her. Easy enough . . . right? So who does she recruit to help her? Mellow!
Mellow, aka Mel Summers, has her work cut out for her. Attending classes at college, working part time in a candle shop, a sexy neighbor, Greg, who quickly becomes a major love interest. And not to forget, Tiny and his band of biker buddies who take Mellow under their wing to try to protect her.
Ms. McNulty weaves an entertaining story with just the right amount of twists and turns to keep you guessing and on your toes.
I would highly recommend to all looking for a quick, fun cozy mystery.
I received this book free from the author in exchange for an honest review.

This book was wonderful. Mellow is a fascinating character. Plus she can see and talk to ghosts and investigate crime. Her friend Jackie is a little wild and fun and balance well against Mellow. Even the ghost Rachael is mufti-faceted. I be reading more of this series. It was a well written and interesting read. I highly recommend it. Especially if you like strong female characters.

[Dystopia] by [Janet McNulty] is a modern version of [1984] and example of when good intentions get caught up in greed and people are too lazy to care. The characters were very well developed as well as their relationships. The whole idea struck me as what people in the old Soviet Union must have felt like. (I am a history nerd.) I feel the message is that no matter what if people are apathetic they will lose what means the most to them and sometimes standing up for what is right can be really hard.

I was given a free copy of this book for an honest review. In this social system there are the have and the have-nots. Most have their food, electricity and their jobs selected for them. Non-compliance is severely punished. Chips implanted under the skin control everything.

I received this book from Library Thing to read and honestly review. This was a pretty good book. It was short. It was entertaining. I was humorous and sometimes funny. Mel has just begun college, and, while she does believe sort in ghosts, she is surprised when the ghost of the last person to inhabit her apartment arrives on the scene asking Mel for help finding the person who murdered her. This story covers Mel’s task doing that—assisted by Rachel, the ghost, Jackie, her roommate/girlfriend from way back when, Gregg, her new boyfriend and neighbor in the complex, and Tiny, a motor cycle gang member who befriends Mel and, along with his gang, works in her behalf. The story, as I said, moves along quickly, but not too quickly. The characters are all very well done, as are the many scenes at Mel’s apartment, at school and elsewhere in the area. I found the story interesting almost from the start. My only complaint is that it all ended way too quickly for me. I wanted to continue along with Mel and the others, as they went about their daily lives. I think this makes a great series. The author has enough know-how not to make things too complicated or to add too many distractions and sub-plots, which allows for a good, clean storyline. I have not read other books by this author, but will not go looking for them. I always like to add authors to my repertoire of reading materials, and now have another. I recommend this to anyone liking or wanting a fast moving, but definitely interesting, story, who enjoys good cozy mysteries or who is looking for something short and sweet to provide some good entertaining reading.

This book was sent to me by www.librarything.com to review.
This was a fun fast paced book. It was as suggested light hearted with a slight creepy twist to it.
This was one for the sunbed, the author writes well with good characters.
I will seek this author out in future.

Compelling and all too plausible

Set in a totalitarian future society, in Dystopia everyone lives in cookie-cutter houses, and fried food, antisocial behavior, and inquisitiveness are all forbidden. Although it was more of a novella than a full-length book and the writing could have been more in depth and descriptive at times, I found the basic "Big Brother" plot compelling.

All in all, a decent read with an interesting theme.½

The author really needs to learn about subtly. You get hit with a tirade in Chapter Two that is clearly anti-President Obama and liberals. Now I don't have a problem with other peoples views in fact, I love a book that challenges my beliefs but to beat a dead horse for paragraphs is off-putting. I like my author's point of view sprinkled throughout the plot and characters. However, I did want to find out what happened to Dana so I read on. The writing is very simplistic which is sometimes okay but it kind of bored me in this case. Maybe I'm a literary snob? I don't know but this just wasn't to my taste and I usually like dystopian novels.

Fast Moving, Quick Read!

The president and council of Dystopia dictate jobs, ration food and control all aspects of life. 17 year old Dana is the rebel teenager who questions authority and finds there are consequences to her actions. She is soon to discover how unjust their government is.

This is a short story written for the young adult audience and adults alike. Personally parts of the story lack flow and were a little choppy, the end a little abrupt, though the overall story was well put together. It did lack in visualization of the characters, though your imagination could compensate. This is a short story, which would explain the lack of depth. It was a fast read, moving at all times.

I did enjoy the book overall and wish to read the sequel.

Lately, I’ve been drinking in dystopian novels, so I jumped at the chance to read Dystopia. Almost immediately I realized this particular book was going to be a let-down.

The author’s writing lacks polish. Neither the characters nor the storyline drew me in due to poor grammar and word choice, glaring inconsistencies, and an overall absence of any type of development.

For example, initially Dana’s sister was taken five years ago, but a few pages later that same sister had been diagnosed with cancer only three years prior. Maybe that’s a small thing, but I think authors should be able to keep the details of his or her own novel straight.

In another instance, an officer killed one of the other characters and Dana’s reaction was “Jerk!” That’s not a reaction I imagine many people having in a situation such as that.

Needless to say, I found myself completely uninterested in the characters or the story’s outcome.

***A copy of this book was provided to me by the author in exchange for an honest review.***

I've been trying to read books different than I usually do so I was glad to be given a chance to read this. I enjoyed it much more than I thought I would.

People are assigned careers, and Dana is sent to Waste Management, a harsh sector where people don't live very long. She makes some friends, including George, a member of the resistance. You get to see Dana struggle to accept her fate while still holding on to the person she was before being sent to Waste Management.

Dystopia is a world created because people didn't want to make choices anymore. The government decides who works where, who can live together, who can have children, and who can receive medical treatment. In wanting to be free, the population is actually enslaved to the government. People are treated as prisoners.

Dana has to decide if she's going to be a sheep and follow the rules, or aide the resistance.

My only real complaint is the cliffhanger ending. I know it's the first book of a trilogy, but I still would have preferred it to have some type of ending. I'm not a fan of cliffhangers.

The book draws you in, and I look forward to reading more about Dana's quest to escape the life assigned to her in the other two books.

**A free copy was provided by the author via LibraryThing in exchange for an honest review.**

here is the interview with the author : http://sukriti810.blogspot.in/2014/08/behind-books-with-janet-mcnulty.html

Here's the link to the complete review: http://sukriti810.blogspot.in/2014/07/author-mcnulty-her-official-website-no.htm...

STAR RATING: 4.5/5
DESCRIPTION IN ONE LINE: I was at the edge the entire time and turned pages eagerly.

Title: Dystopia actually means an imagined place or state in which everything is unpleasant or bad, typically a totalitarian or environmentally degraded one. The title is highly appropriate for the book and conveys the general idea of the book completely.
Title Rating: 5/5

Cover: The choice of the grim colours depicts the plight of the people of Dystopia and the pair of eyes is the indication of the constant watching. Certainly an apt cover and we must say the cover designer is an expert at his/her field of work.
Cover Rating: 4.5/5

Characters: DANA : Our rebel girl who is a fearless girl and not afraid to voice her opinions. She has a strong character in the trained world where people are not allowed to speak up. She's the pure dystopian fiction queen with the guts to rule down the President. She's sensitive to other's problems and not in the least frightened to help.
GEORGE: He's our secretive guy who doesn't trust easily and loves our Dana in fatherly sort of a way. He is gutsy and headstrong to bring down the government.
DANA'S FRIENDS: Dana has gained trust among her friends and they are ready to help her out in a land where bonding is a crime. They are understanding, caring, supportive and have certain individual qualities.
Characters Rating:4.5/5

I love dystopian fiction, so I was excited to read the aptly-titled "Dystopia". Unfortunately, I was disappointed from chapter one. Dana's story of life in a dystopian American society is promising, but poor grammar, weak writing, and lack of description do the book a great injustice.

The characters have vague descriptions, if any at all; I finished the book in a weekend with no mental image of the main character except for her long, dark hair.

The book reads like a fifth-grade story: this happened, then this happened, then this happened. The language is very simple and somewhat boring.

Events are unclear and disjointed throughout the novel. It took half a chapter for the author to state what kind of wound one character received; one moment he was running and the next he was inexplicably bleeding. Upon arrival at "The Plant", everyone is stripped of their clothes and given a jumpsuit, yet midway through the book Dana is putting on street clothes, despite an evident need for them, a place to buy them, or mention of them being issued to her. When a group of people attempts to escape with alarms blaring around them, conveniently enough, the exit door is unguarded. These are only three examples; I could fill a page with just the inconsistencies I noticed throughout the book.

The heroine - if you can call her such - has no special skills, intelligence, or mental abilities, apart from a mild defiance of the government, which is certainly not severe enough to explain the events of the book. Throughout the book, other characters are murdered for speaking out, yet when she commits the same "crime", she goes relatively unpunished. The authority figures seem to randomly choose her for their mission, and upon its completion praise her for doing something that they "never could have achieved". How about sending undercover officers who are older than seventeen and know what they're doing to do the job?

As a whole, the book did nothing for me aside from making me want to shove it back at the author with a list of things to correct before continuing to charge people to buy it. Unless you just don't care about how a story is written, don't bother spending your money on it. I won't be buying the rest of the series.

A copy of this book was provided to me by the author in exchange for an honest review.

I thought the concept for Dystopia was wonderful and the world was interesting. I am a huge dystopian fan and truly wanted to love the book. However, I felt that the writing was a little disjointed and choppy. The sentences seem very short and to the point, many of them being only a few words, and for me that made it extremely difficult to get into the book. I think it reads a bit more like a screen play than a novel. I also felt that it could have been slightly better paced. The end kind of comes all at once without much build up and then putters out quickly. As I said I did love the concept and the world that was created. I also enjoyed the characters a great deal.Sanders was one of my favorite characters by far.