Review of "The Forest of Hands and Teeth" by Carrie Ryan

Title: The Forest of Hands and Teeth

Author: Carrie Ryan
Release date: July 1, 2009
Rating:2.5/5
Publisher: Gollancz
Book Summary: 

In Mary's world there are simple truths. The Sisterhood always knows best. The Guardians will protect and serve. The Unconsecrated will never relent. And you must always mind the fence that surrounds the village; the fence that protects the town from the Forest of Hands and Teeth. But, slowly, Mary’s truths are failing her. She’s learning things she never wanted to know about the Sisterhood and its secrets, and the Guardians and their power, and about the Unconsecrated and their relentlessness. When the fence is breached and her world is thrown into chaos, she must choose between her village and her future—between the one she loves and the one who loves her. And she must face the truth about the Forest of Hands and Teeth. Could there be life outside a world surrounded by so much death?

Review: 

To explain how disappointed I was about this novel is an understatement. 

This novel has been on my "To Read" shelf on Goodreads for YEARS. Now that I've finally had a chance to pick up rereading books, I decided to take this novel off the shelf and dive in. 

The summary of this book is captivating and was released during the height of the zombie-apocalypse craze in books and movies in the early 2000s. It's a shame that the summary of the novel was not done justice by the story itself. 

There may be some spoilers in this review. Please stop here if you'd like to read this book spoiler-free! 

The novel occurs in a post-apocalyptic future, where society is stuck behind fences, and the Unconsecrated roam the forests. This small slice of the world is run by The Sisters, who control all aspects of life, including where the villagers find clothing and shelter.

We follow the main character, Mary, from a first-person present point of view. Mary has experienced immense tragedy, losing her father in the forest and struggling to ensure her mother doesn't suffer the same fate. Unfortunately, she shares more tragedy when her mother gets bitten by one of the Unconsecrated at the fence and chooses to live in the Forest of Hands and Teeth instead of being killed once she turns. Her brother abandons her to the Sisters and tells her that no one has spoken for her, even though she had been previously asked to the courtship event held by the village by one of her childhood friends.

Up until this point, I understand the character's motivations, her sadness, and her grief. I understand her want for another life outside the small village she's always lived in. So much tragedy and trauma has been experienced in just a few days. 

I lose my sympathy for Mary when self-pity and selfishness don't disappear. Her constant need to see an ocean she had only ever heard about through stories from her mother, her insistent need to leave the village into the forest to find what's on the Outside. Nothing for Mary could ever satiate that. It would be one thing to start the exploration of the world outside of the fence--there wouldn't be a novel otherwise--but it's another thing to make that the only character facet for Mary. It endangers everyone immediately surrounding her, causing more death and destruction than was caused by the Unconsecrated and their breaching of the fences around her village.

Never once was the full gravity of the situation that she was in or the weight of the lives of the people around her was ever taken into account. The only thing on her mind was the ocean and the tall buildings. There were even multiple chapters where she was mourning the loss of the people she didn't know while simultaneously distancing herself from her brother and the people she did know -- the only people left alive after their village was plundered by Unconsecrated. 

The plotline was flat and one-dimensional. I read through it because I needed to see how it ended, and even the ending felt uneventful. 

I will not be continuing the series.

Review of "Mrs. Sherlock Holmes" by Brad Ricca

Title: Mrs. Sherlock Holmes

Author: Brad Ricca
Release date: January 3, 2017
Rating: 3.5/5
Publisher: St. Martin's Press
Book Summary: 

Mrs. Sherlock Holmes tells the incredible true life story of Mrs. Grace Humiston, the New York lawyer and detective who solved the famous cold case of Ruth Cruger, an 18-year-old girl who disappeared in 1917. Grace was an amazing lawyer and traveling detective during a time when no women were practicing these professions. She focused on solving cases no one else wanted and advocating for innocents. Grace became the first female U.S. District Attorney and made ground-breaking investigations into modern slavery.

One of Grace's greatest accomplishments was solving the Cruger case after following a trail of corruption that lead from New York to Italy. Her work changed how the country viewed the problem of missing girls. But the victory came with a price when she learned all too well what happens when one woman upstages the entire NYPD.

In the literary tradition of In Cold Blood and The Devil in the White City, Brad Ricca's Mrs. Sherlock Holmes is a true crime tale told in spine-tingling fashion. This story is about a woman whose work was so impressive that the papers gave her the nickname of fiction’s greatest sleuth. With important repercussions in the present about kidnapping, the role of the media, and the truth of crime stories, the great mystery of the book – and its haunting twist ending – is how one woman can become so famous only to disappear completely.

Summary pulled from Goodreads.com 

Review:

Mrs. Sherlock Holmes started off as a page-turner that eventually fizzled into a telling of history that didn't include the reason I picked up the book. I was hooked by how Ricca told this story as fiction, but something was lacking that kept me from finishing the book in its entirety. 

Ricca was meticulous in how he told Ms. Grace Humiston's story, and I appreciated how he structured the information. First, it set the scene of the most pivotal case: Ruth Cruger's disappearance in New York in 1917. It provided the early drama and backstory needed once we returned to the case later on.

It then set the stage for why we, the reader, are learning of Mrs. Sherlock Holmes herself, Mrs. Grace Humiston. He showed the reader her character through the types of cases she normally worked on prior to accepting the Ruth Cruger case. We learned that Grace was empathetic and cared for those that didn't have the means or the way to defend themselves. We also learned that she would go to great lengths to solve a case: including hiding in the trees to uncover the illegal work conditions of what was labeled a "white slave" operation. 

Finally, Grace herself on the case synthesizes all the information the reader has grown to know about her and the missing girl, Ruth, and the end to the cold case that had been captivating New York during this period.

I enjoyed how Grace's story was almost presented like a fictional novel, but like others who read Mrs. Sherlock Holmes didn't find the "Holmes" connection to be anything more than an interesting title. Through the story, Grace proved just how great of a detective she was, but it was more through her grit, perseverance, and unwillingness to take "no" for an answer rather than the deduction skills that we know through the Sherlock Holmes stories. 

I admire Grace, not as a Sherlock Holmes-esque character, but as someone who followed her gut and intuition and allowed herself to stand out from the pack.

Review of "The War of Art" by Steven Pressfield

Title: The War of Art

Author: Steven Pressfield 
Release date: April 1, 2003
Rating: 4/5
Publisher: Warner Books
Book Summary:

Internationally bestselling author of Last of the Amazons, Gates of Fire, and Tides of War, Steven Pressfield delivers a guide to inspire and support those who struggle to express their creativity. Pressfield believes that “resistance” is the greatest enemy, and he offers many unique and helpful ways to overcome it.

Review:

Have you ever sat down with one of your best friends, and when you start your rant about your issues, they see right through you? 

I won't lie, that's exactly how I felt with Steven Pressfield's The War of Art: Break Through the Blocks and Win Your Inner Creative Battles. 

The foreword was written by Robert McKee, an author, and lecturer known for his Story Seminar. I remember resonating with the foreword and the candid nature that McKee wrote. In fact, after finishing the book, I returned to the foreword to reread it and found myself nodding with his analysis of Pressfield's work. McKee's synopsis and entry into the book were the perfect fit. 

Throughout The War of Art, I felt "seen" in more ways than one. Not only was Pressfield's description of Resistance the nail on the head, but it personified something that I had personally been experiencing for a long time. Not only had Resistance been whispering lies, but it had also successfully won, more than once, against the need to express my thoughts creatively in music and in writing. 

Through each chapter, I became more aware of the issues contributing to my writer's block. Was it the fact that I had no time, or was Resistance telling me there was no time to focus on my creative outlets? 

I would recommend this to any struggling creative who doesn't feel like there's a light at the end of the tunnel that is their creative block. 

Welcome Back to the Guide

Hello everyone!

It's been quite a long time since the last time I posted on this blog. 

Welcome! 

If you're new here, I am a book reviewer who writes under the penname M.A. Chase. I started this blog back in 2012 and left it behind in around 2014. I intend to bring this blog back to life; albeit, maybe not as active as it once was! 

I look forward to meeting everyone. It's truly been a long time, and I can't wait to have the opportunity to do this. 

If you've reached out to me in the past, and I haven't responded, please contact me! It's going to be a rough start getting everything up and running again, so let me know how you've been and what's changed with you! 

The blog will be under construction over these next few weeks to get everything up to date including links, book cover images, and other broken areas that didn't age well. 

Thank you for everyone's continued support!

M.A. Chase

The Parallax Groove Review

Title: The Parallax Groove
Author: Michael Loughrey 
Release date: May 13, 2014
Rating: 4/5
Publisher: FeedARead.com
Book Summary:

Slip inside The Parallax Groove and revel in fiction free from the straightjacket of realism. Previously published in noteworthy literary magazines, these fourteen short stories are a mesmerizing extravaganza of phantasmagorical fables in which the recognisably realistic is infused with the inexplicable and the unexpected, and deconstructivism subverts the familiar order of perception into exquiste disarray. Singular, surreal, intense, illuminating, incandescent, jocular, offbeat, risque and satirical The Parallax Groove is an exhilarating odyssey for freethinkers and nonconformists who eschew the Disneyfication of literature. 

Review:
 
The Parallax Groove is a collection of short stories written by Michael Loughrey. These stories had been published in other literary works previously, then joined together in an anthology all their own. As the book summary says, these short stories take a turns that you wouldn't expect. They bring reality and fantasy into a world all their own to create characters and plots that aren't normally seen in the writing world. 

My favorite out of the whole anthology had to be Off Road which was the second short story. Off Road was about a man whose car wasn't working properly. The short story takes the reader through fantastical situations like Billy, the main character of this short story, having to walk on his hands because he was losing parts of his brain every time he used a toilet. While Billy's adventures get a little dark and a little twisted by the end, it's one of the most easy to follow short stories. 

My only problem with The Parallax Groove is that there never seemed to be any point in the stories. While I understand the misdirection and crazy surrealism was what set these short stories apart, it was almost distracting. A lot of the language was difficult to grasp and hard to follow. I found myself looking up a lot of the vocabulary being used through the short stories to make sure I understood what was being conveyed and what was being said. 

Despite this, The Parallax Groove has short stories that are extremely well written and thought through. Each character has its own development no matter how crazy or twisted the situation seems. Descriptions, although at times a little superfluous, easily detailed exactly the landscape and the place in which these characters lived and battled. Each story had its own setting and its own rules in the way the physics of the world seem to run. It was truly creative, and I would recommend it with that statement at the forefront of the conversation. 

City of Secrets by Aoife Marie Sheridan

Title: City of Secrets
Author: Aoife Marie Sheridan
Release date: December 5th, 2013
Rating: 4.5/5
Publisher: SynergEBooks
Book Summary:

A war awaits her arrival,
A warrant for her arrest.
She must rise as a princess,
And Darkness shall fall.
But will their love survive this battle?
For Tristan and Sarajane?.

Step back into Saskia. 

Review:

THERE MIGHT BE SPOILERS FROM BOOK 1

Once again we're thrown back into the world of Saskia, though the war has gotten fiercer and battles are being waged. 

In the previous book, we find that Sarajane is wanted by a fallen angel named Lucien. Lucien wants to destroy the world and to do so he needs to rise, which is killing the other three angels. Sarajane must defeat Lucien in order to save Saskia and the three angels.

The main characters make their lovely appearances as well as Jessica (Sarajane's sister), Suraga, Carew, and little Mei.

Tristan could be a little bit overbearing when it came to Sarajane. I understand that Sarajane can't fight well, but she's learning--especially when it comes to her magic.

I have to say, in this installment of the Saskia Trilogy I really fell in love with Carew. If you have read the first book (which I recommend) then you'll know just how surprised I was. Although he can be cruel and cold, Carew is actually a very nice and caring person. He loves his sister Mei and will do anything to protect her. He does the same with Sarajane, helping and fighting with her throughout the book. I just--I love him.

I was glad to meet Mirium's sister Verona. She was very strong, and didn't take anything from anyone. Haha. I really enjoyed her presence, and her power is one of the coolest I've seen in a while. It definitely differed from Mirirum's and that was awesome.

Overall, it was a great book and I'm excited to see how the next installment turns out! (Maybe I'll get to see more of Carew!)

Welcome to Scribeville!

Hello fellow writers, bloggers, authors, etc.!

Have you ever gone to a writing workshop, carrying a few pages of your manuscript to share and receive feedback? Has that ever gone sideways and in order to receive feedback means you'll have to read the portion of your manuscript to the workshop? I'm here to tell you that those public speaking fears are over! You can now create your own workshops and receive feedback and whatever length of manuscript you want.

Are you still interested? 

I'm talking about this new website called Scribeville! It was created by Samuel Odunsi Jr., a fellow writer and author. Find the name familiar? I reviewed one of his novels not too long ago!

So, what's the catch? Absolutely nothing. 

"What?" you ask. "What do you mean there's no catch? Nothing??"

Nothing. Scribeville is absolutely free. All you have to do is sign up and BAM a whole world of authors, writers, reviewers, and all sorts of other people in the writing community are right at your fingertips ready to give you feedback on whatever you want to be reviewed. 

In Scribeville you can create a Workshop that absolutely anyone can join. All you have to do is create a new workshop, set all the details, and upload whatever document you want to be given feedback on! Comments can be made on your piece, discussions can be created in your workshop. These are separate discussions that can only be viewed by those already admitted in.

Don't want just anyone to join your Workshop? No problem! You can make it a Private Workshop. Only people you want to read your Workshop can be given the link. You can't even find it through the Workshop database. 

Do you want people to see it and still want to make it a VIP section? You can add the option to approve or disapprove the people who are applying to join the Workshop! It's that simple!

On site tools make it easy for anyone to highlight, underline, scratch through, make a comment, circle, anything that you put on the page. And like I said before, this website is absolutely free. 

So what are you waiting for fellow writers, authors, etc.? Get onto Scribeville and see for yourself!

Here's the link to my own Workshop if you want to test the waters: Click here.

I hope to see all of you on there. Add me as a friend on there to open the online chat available on the website or send me an e-mail if you have any questions whatsoever about the site that I didn't cover in this blogpost. 

Talk to you soon!

Eden Forest by Aoife Marie Sheridan

Title: Eden Forest

Author: Aoife Marie Sheridan

Release date: November 6th, 2012

Rating: 4.5/5

Publisher: Smashwords

Book Summary: 

Sarajane Anderson is your regular twenty-one year old with family, friends and a normal job. She also happens to be the only person who can save Saskia, a parallel world to earth. 

When Sarajane is taken to Saskia, she could never have imagined the reality of the world that she is stepping into- a world where magical abilities are in everyone's possession. She must face a father she never knew, a world that is beyond her belief, a guardian who captures her heart; and a darkness that wants to take it. On her journey, Sarajane discovers her magical abilities, and realizes too that they come with a price. Sarajane is truly tested as her own loved ones are put at risk- the ultimate question she is forced to ask herself is, how do you choose who lives and who dies?

Review: 

I was really excited when I received the request to review this book. I love, love fantasy novels. They're my favorite to write and to read. 

When I first started the novel, I was very, very confused. I had no idea what was going on. It took me a little bit to get used to the fact that the character in the prologue, Marta, is 25 years old. I kept confusing her as someone older. I have no idea why, because it's quite obvious that she's not older based on events that happen through the prologue. 

Believe it or not, Queen Bellona was one of my favorite characters. She is the villain in this novel, and her character was amazing. I love well written villains (those include Maleficent (Sleeping Beauty), Valentine (The Mortal Instruments), and others), because I hate them while loving them. And to be honest, she didn't even try to get mixed into the things she got mixed into. While she was already terrible and evil to begin with (stealing souls to keep herself young as well as trying to find a way to keep herself immortal), Lucian forces her to join his destruction plan. And to this she's absolutely helpless. 

Kiar and Neve were also characters that became my favorites. They were witty and enjoyable. They made me smile and when times were tough, they were great at cheering things up. ---SPOILERS-- It's been a while since I've cried after a character's death and Neve was about to be one of those characters that I cried for. To the end he protected Sarajane and never once questioned what he was doing for her. Kiar's pain was probably the worst to bare, however, because he was both blaming himself and Sarajane for what happened to Neve. --SPOILERS END--

Later on in the novel, we meet Mei a tiny adorable little girl that I fell in love with the minute she said hello to Sarajane. I won't reveal too much about Mei (I want you readers to get the full experience of her cuteness yourselves), but she reminded me of my little cousin. She was cute and tiny, and just all around adorable. 

Eden Forest as a whole was very well written. Aside from my confusion during the prologue, there were beautiful scenes, and realistic and well-rounded characters. Saskia was a beautifully built world with its own lore and creation stories. I felt like it was a place that I could visit and see with my own eyes. --SLIGHT SPOILER?-- I do wonder: when Sarajane first escapes Tristan and Liber into the desert, does she feel as if a month has gone passed (one day on Saskia = one month on earth) when the day goes on, or does it just feel like one day? --SPOILERS END--

I look forward to seeing how Sarajane moves forward in the next installment of The Saskia Trilogy, and learning about how things are being handled back home since her entrance into Saskia. How is Josh faring? Has anyone else questioned her disappearance? 

Thank you Aoife Marie Sheridan for allowing me to read your novel! It was unexpected and different. I look forward to hearing more from you.

KIERA'S QUEST: PERCEPTIONS by Kristy Brown Review

I want to start of firstly by thanking Kristy Brown for allowing me to continue the Kiera's Quest series this far. 

Title: Perceptions 
Author: Kristy Brown
Release date: May 24th, 2013
Rating: 5/5
Publisher: MuseItUp
Book Summary: 

The Witch Queen has sunk to a new level of evil.

Kiera is helplessly stuck in Zakk’s realm. With the vortex destroyed, she is desperate to find a way home. Her Uncle Tom, her friends and now the boy she loves, are in danger. Will Kiera find the strength and the self-belief she needs to save them?

On her lonely journey she meets new allies from peculiar races. The Prophecy is all falling into place. Will Kiera be able to forgive the people she trusted? Will she be able to save the world from her twisted nemesis? Will she finally believe that she is indeed the ‘chosen one’? 

Review: 


This is the third installment of Kiera's Quest.

CAUTION: THERE MAY BE SPOILERS

After the destruction of the vortex, Kiera is stuck in a foreign world knowing that he friends and family are in the danger of the Witch Queen. While there, she discovers things about herself and her parents, whom she never got to know. She teams up with all the races--human, Zantarian, Narekian, Hershen, and Capetorad--to get herself back home.

This installment has probably been my favorite so far in the series. During its course, it has shown other facets and layers that Kiera, Zakk, and the others have. It's shown their persistence, their bravery, and most of all the care they have for each other as well as others. 

In Perceptions, we see more of the Witch Queen. She is one of those characters whose persistence has really shown in the novel. While she hates affection and love, she deals with the love that Kiera's friends have for her in order to attempt to destroy everything Kiera loves. In turn, she is torturing herself. If that's not persistence and ambition, I don't know what is. 

We also see more of what the Witch Queen is capable of. While in Kiera's body, her magic is limited. Even with that, the Witch Queen is still able to hold her form and use minor magic (though she later receives help from an unsuspected accomplice). 

Kiera's new friends are an interesting bunch: 

The Capetorads are water creatures, who are able to manipulate water as long as they're hydrated. If in water, as long as they're in contact with some part of your body, you are able to use their gills to breathe. 

The only Hershen we meet in the novel is Mason who is able to "rip" himself apart into multiple clones, creating an army made up of one person. He is swift and strong, as described in the novel. It interests me to know more about him and his people. Are they all able to multiply in the same fashion? (Also, I really really hope the Witch Queen doesn't get hold of him or I will cry.)

(THERE IS ALSO SOME JUICY STUFF THAT HAPPENS WITH JOE AND IT'S PRETTY DRAMATIC. I'M NOT SAYING ANYTHING MORE 'CAUSE YOU NEED TO READ  IT TO TRULY SAY OH MY GOODNESS IN A LOUD VOICE.)

The only problem I had in the novel (this doesn't really affect the rating) is the constant insistence by every male in Kiera's life to keep her safe. At this point, (although, I don't recall Kiera receiving any lessons in battle or combat) I feel like Kiera has proven that she can protect herself. She's faced the Witch Queen (with the help of her friends, of course) multiple times. If she wasn't capable of making sure to keep herself alive, the novel wouldn't have continued thus far, because she would be dead. 

That said, I loved Perceptions. The overall idea of the novel was phenomenal. I can't wait to learn more about Kiera and Zakk's family and how she will be when she finally steps into her role as 'the chosen one.'

Thanks again to Kristy Brown!

The next installment of Kiera's Quest is Choices.

Release Day Blitz | Seeress [Runes Series: #3] by Ednah Walters @EdnahWalters

Book Title: Seeress
Series: A Runes Novel #3
Author: Ednah Walters
Release Date: April 28th 2014
Genre: YA Paranormal Romance
Publisher: Firetrail Publishing
Presented by: As You Wish Tours

BLURB

I love Torin St. James...
I need his strength…
But someone from his past wants me dead.

Raine Cooper is certain of two things: her love for Torin St. James and her destiny to be a powerful seeress. But when she starts having premonitions, they are unclear and disturbing. Worse, they involve Torin. With her mother gone, her father dying, and her best friend in Hel, she is not sure who to talk to.

But when the visions become more personal and she foresees her future with Torin threatened by someone from his past, Raine becomes desperate for answers. Just her luck two new students arrive at her school and they seem to have answers. When with them, her powers are enhanced and her visions become clear. There is only one problem: Torin forbids Raine to see the two girls.

Can their love survive without trust? 

Runes Series Books:

Runes (Book 1)
Immortals (Book 2)
Grimnirs (Book 2.5)
Seeress (Book 3)

 EXCERPT

Islands of the Heart by David Stringer Review

Title: Islands of the Heart
Author: David Stringer
Release date: July 27, 2012
Rating: 4.5/5
Publisher:Publicious Self-Publishing 
Book Summary:

What is it like to be a woman so exquisitely beautiful that no one ever really sees her face . . . only the dark emotions it arouses? What is it like to be a man of such physical presence he fears no one? Are these blessings or a curse? Could a woman love such a man? And when his world begins to fall apart, can their love survive the re-ignited violence of his past? Can a man forgive himself for an act that is unspeakable? Can you? Or are their limits to your forgiveness?Islands of the Heart is the story of a tough ex-soldier, Wolf, who has always handled life's problems with his fists. Wolf finds himself drawn into a series of events where that tactic no longer works. Things are mad worse when he cuts a violent swathe through New Zealand and Samoa, desperate to hide secrets from his past.Islands is also the story of the women in his life who love and fear for Wolf, who are damaged by  him yet will not close their hearts; who in the end are part of his salvation. Islands is ultimately however a story of the power of forgiveness--of the fact that we still need to forgive those who have wronged us, or forever live lives stunted by the poison of our hatred.

Review:

I have a warning to those reading this review: this is not for those who don't like foul language or anything kind of mature, I guess. There is a lot of that. Including multiple droppings of the F-bomb. 

There may be spoilers.

Islands of the Heart is an intricately laced story following the lives of characters who have all affected each other's lives in some way. Each of these characters is trying to find something about themselves and each of these characters finds that the old methods of dealing with problems aren't appropriate anymore--things have changed and so have they. 

David Stringer does an amazing job interweaving the stories of all his characters throughout the chapters. They changes of point of view are appropriately made and they always reveal so much about the character it's focused on without giving away too much at a time. Each section reveals a new layer of his characters, further complicating each personality. His descriptions were beautiful and his dialogue was witty and real. 

" 'America Sneezes and we all get the flu ' " (page 100).

One of the issues that I had while reading this book is the fact that I don't know much about Samoa, Australia, or New Zealand, or about Samoan, Australian, or Maori culture. It was sort of distracting because sometimes it was very difficult to follow the history that they were discussing or the things that they were saying. I also don't know about much in politics. If the characters were affected in anyway because of politics, I wouldn't understand why. There was also some language scattered throughout the book. For example, the question and answer given by Pepe and Steven on page 202:

'O a mai?' 
'Ua leilei. . .'

Since I don't speak the language, I have no idea if that's a greeting or just a simple question and answer.

However, aside from that, Stringer brings to life wonderful characters through description and action. It's like I'm watching a movie in my head: They feel so real to me. Their backgrounds are well thought out and the actions they take based on their backgrounds are right on point. The best part is that I can really see when their mindset is starting to change. Honestly speaking, they're a wonderful bunch of characters--they're broken in some degree or another--and I love them all equally. 

As mentioned above, his description is equally wonderful. When he flashes back to Wolf's army days, I feel like I'm there--in the action. My heart broke for Tania, and I felt calm when descriptions of scenery arose. His descriptions make me want to see the mountains and forest he described in person (and it's something that I've added to my bucket list). 


I'm glad to have had the opportunity to read Stringer's novel. It was different from what I've read in a while; it had a different sentence structure, and different way of describing. The difference was much needed and very wonderful. If you like this kind of contemporary literature, then you'll love this novel. 


Thank you David for giving me this opportunity!

Here's a Book Highlight: Grimnirs by Ednah Walters

 If you think that Ednah Walters's name sounds familiar, you must have seen my review for AWAKENED! Check it out if you haven't!

________________________________________________________________

Book Title:  Grimnirs

Series:  A Runes Novel

Author:  Ednah Walters

Release Date:  December 2^nd 2013

Genre:  YA Paranormal Romance

Publisher:  Firetrail Publishing

Presented by:  As You Wish Tours

Banner Made by:  Julia Hendrix

BOOK BLURB

One lost love.

One lost best friend.

One hot soul reaper.

Straight out of the psyche ward, Cora just wants her life to be normal. She doesn’t want to see souls or the reapers collecting them. The love of her life, the guy she’s loved from a distance for years, has moved away without saying goodbye. So yes, she’s nursing a serious heartbreak. It’s no wonder love is the last thing on her mind when Echo storms into her life.

The chemistry between them is mind-blowing. The connection defies logic. It doesn’t help that Echo is the poster boy for everything she hates in a guy—hot, beautiful, and cocky. A general pain-in-the-butt. Being around him makes her feel more alive than she’s ever felt before. But more important, the souls leave her alone when he is around.

Echo is perfect for her. Echo might even be her soul-mate. There is only one problem. Echo is a freaking soul reaper. A Grimnir. The very beings she wants out of her life. Maybe normal is overrated because Cora wants it all. Answers. Love. A life. You see, once you fall for a Grimnir, your life will never be the same again. 

CLICK THE "READ MORE" FOR MORE INFORMATION ABOUT GRIMNIRS AND EDNAH WALTERS!

Currently Reading / NaNoWriMo

Hello, readers!

I'm going to update you on some things!

What I'm currently reading

Right now I'm reading Islands of the Heart by David Stringer and, I've gotta say, so far so good! Although, if you're not into cursing and the dropping of the F-bomb a lot, then you may not like it. (It's really good though.)

NaNoWriMo

So, that's failing pretty epically. (As you can tell from my word count on the right.) I think I have to write 3000 a day to catch up now? I don't even know. I didn't write any words yesterday. Oh well. I'll try my best and see where that takes me. Maybe next year, right? :P

Book of the Week: Tyger, Tyger/ NaNoWriMo

This is a short post today, as I have quick somethings to mention to you! 

This week Tyger, Tyger by Kersten Hamilton is Apple's book of the week! 

What does this mean? 

For this week you can download Tyger, Tyger for free. Just click this link and you'll be taken to the page! If you haven't seen it, I have a review of Tyger, Tyger. It's my favorite book, and I highly recommend you read the Goblin Wars Trilogy!

NaNoWriMo

In NaNoWriMo news, I have my word count on the right side of my blog! I figured that if I made it public to everyone who reads my blog, I would be more encouraged to try to finish it this year. It also helps that I have a technology class this year. It gives me a whole hour (in the case of this Monday two hours) to write for NaNoWriMo. 

I'm working on a Mystery/Suspense story. It's something I've never written before. I hope that I could deliver something decent.

If you want to add me as a writing buddy, find "Roxaslover14" and send me an invite! I'll add anyone back!

 

KIERA'S QUEST: SACRIFICES by Kristy Brown Review

Title:  Kiera's Quest: Sacrifices

Author: Kristy Brown

Release date: August 3rd, 2012

Rating: 5/5

Publisher: MuseItUp

Book Summary: 

After almost beating the villainous Witch Queen, Kiera’s triumph is tainted with sadness for the loss of Joe and Daz.

When the handsome Prince Zakk asks Kiera to re-enter his world in order to save her friend, she does not hesitate.

On their perilous journey Kiera realizes that she is there to save many lives. As she comes face to face with her evil nemesis once again, Kiera comes closer to finding out the truth to why she has been chosen.

Will she succeed? Will this be the end to Kiera’s quest?

Review:

 

As the second installment of the book series Kiera's Quest, Sacrifices dealt with the continuation of Kiera's journey after the horrible events that ended the first book.

 

Back on Earth, Kiera is listed as a missing person along with her friends Daz and Joe; Maddy was left alone to carry the burden of her friends' "disappearances." What made the situation worse is the fact that she knows where Kiera is and why she left and she knows what happened to her boyfriend Daz and Joe. She's forced to keep it secret. Kiera, on the other hand, struggles with Prince Zakk to defeat the Witch Queen and indirectly looking for Joe and Daz.

In this installment of Kiera's Quest, we finally get to see Zakk in action and not as a plastic Ken doll. He was brave and very noble (duh, he's a prince). He always made sure that everyone was safe and didn't leave anyone behind. For his introduction as a walking and moving character, he hit it hard and I really liked him.

I'm not going to spoil anything, but Terrance the dog was probably my favorite character as I was reading. He's so awesome and comes to the rescue at the perfect moments. Read the book, and you'll understand why Terrance is definitely the Character of the Week. (Is that even a thing?)

Again, I could really feel myself as Kiera. She was brave  and yet she had her moments of fear and distress. I think the one thing I don't like about Kiera is that she can rely on the ring a little too much sometimes. She does take care of business when it's necessary with the ring or without it.

The Witch Queen strikes again! Wow, she's a pretty awesome villainess and the way Kiera and the others describe her kind of send chills down my back. The things she does to people just for the fun of it; the things she does just to gain her power back. It's really magnificent. In my scale of villains, so far she's up there with Maleficent, Valentine, and Voldemort. (Maleficent is still my favorite though. She did all that stuff because she wasn't invited to the birthday party.) 

Anyway, there is also a twist that no one expects, though both got me mad and yet I was kind of happy with it. (Unlike THINGS IN DITCHES which just made me mad.) We also meet some new characters: Alex, Mouse, Jamie and others.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book and would love to continue following Kiera on her journey and her battles against the Witch Queen.

A big thanks to Kristy Brown for giving me the opportunity to read the second installment!

   

THINGS IN DITCHES by Jimmy Olsen Review

Title: Things in Ditches
Author: Jimmy Olsen
Release date: December 28, 2000
Rating: 5/5
Publisher: North Star Press
Book Summary:

A murder mystery novel. The story of Phillip "Dutch" Cleland, a man with a hidden past and a future about to explode in his face. A seemingly average man whose love for two women drives him to such extremes that deception, even murder and suicide are not longer unthinkable.   

When a lovely corpse is discovered near Dutch's home town, the nearby ditches begin to yield a harvest of secrets, none of them comforting for Dutch. Soon he is forced to flee for his life, before his past and the police slip a noose around his neck.

Things In Ditches is peopled with small town characters that are so humorous and eccentric, their oddball antics enliven every paragraph and page. A reader can't help but be reeled in by the strange citizens of Willow River, until soon discovering they're really not so different from all of us and Dutch's story is the oldest story on earth; good and evil, betrayal and laughter. And finally, the power of love and friendship, forging one man's determination to overcome all odds, even death.

Review: 

Warning! There are some spoilers!

Marlene came in carrying a candle.
"Ah, Lady Macbeth!" he sighed with great drama. "Whyfore did he kill her now after all these leagues?"
"League is a distance, dope, not a time," she said pouring hot candle wax into a puddle beside him."

Chapter 15, page 159.

Things in Ditches is written in third person past and follows the life of Dutch Cleland, the Butcher of Willow River.

Dutch Cleland is a lying, cheating, sneaky rat, and above everything else, the murderer of his mistress, Vicky Murdock, whom he loved with all his heart. Was it that love that ultimately got her killed?

In a small town like Willow River, stealing is unheard of and murder, even less. Cleland, unable to commit suicide, runs off into hiding, leaving Jean to face the music of his murder of which he detailed in a little note left in the kitchen. But on his way to pick up some food from his butcher shop, he's held up and things for him start getting much, much worse. Whatever Dutch thought he could save of his future was thrown down the drain.

Like most small towns, people start to talk. Gossip circles suddenly have something to talk about and the only name in the mix is Dutch's. He grows into the star of Willow River and news coverage on the little town explodes. What the newscasters don't know, however, is that the body is suddenly missing.

It becomes a race to who can find Dutch first: Len Davis, the lawyer, Carroll Johnson and Murdock, Vicky's husbands, Sherriff Mattson, the Sherriff of the county, or Charlie, the police chief of Willow River.

Who will find him first? Will Dutch ever go back to the home he loved so much?

Jimmy Olsen brings the world of Willow River to life with beautifully crafted sentences and very real dialogue. I felt like I was experiencing what was going on. I was completely lost in this book and would gasp out loud in the middle of class. I had never read a murder mystery before this one, but now I think I may start picking some up. It was humorous, dark, and wonderful. I found myself unable to put it down. Each character was very well-rounded. 

I think my favorite characters may have been Jean. I say Jean, because she was a very strong female character. She didn't let things get to her and she certainly didn't let Dutch destroy her. Jean fought against Murdock and Carroll and although she was shaken up, she didn't let it bring her down. She is an extremely powerful character, that I enjoyed very, very much.

I promise I'm not going to spoil anything, but the ending really made me frustrated and mad. I saw part of it coming, because he does have foreshadowing to it, but I did not see the huge twist that he left behind. I complained to probably every one, and I think that's probably a good thing. I didn't see part of it coming. Then I read the epilogue and I think that made me angrier both because I saw it was coming, and because I didn't see it coming. I really felt involved in this book.

I've even recommended it to my AP Literature teacher!

Thank you, Jimmy Olsen, for sending me a copy of this book!

IN THE BETWEEN Giveaway!

If you're a regular visitor to my blog, you'll know about the book In the Between by May Sinclair, PhD.

Now you can own in the between!

How?

Enter the contest!

Contest starts on 9/20/13 and ends on 10/11/13

What do you win?

A copy of In The Between signed by May Sinclair, PhD!

What do you need to do?

Follow this link to the form, or click the <> button below to fill it out on here:

May Sinclair, PhD Interview!

Here's an interview with May Sinclair, PhD! View my review of her book In the Between here.

______________

Q.  What inspired you to write a novel on reincarnation?

A.  I’ve been attracted to the concept of reincarnation for a long as I can remember.  Especially, after I read The Tibetan Book of the Dead, where the concept of getting to choose our parents is described.  It was all quite intriguing.  Then when I was invited to join a writers’ group and they were all writing fiction, I decided to put aside the non-fiction book I was then working on for a while to write a metaphysical fantasy.  Of course, I also used prior research from other books I’d written, and my personal experiences, along with my imagination, to develop the story. 

Q. What made you decide on those specific places and time periods?

A.  Conversations with various people over the years suggested some places and periods of time that fit into the overall story.  My husband and I used to sit in our kitchen enjoying ourselves as we made up past-life stories about the two of us and people we know. 
My real sister, just like my sister in the book, believed she was buried alive in Egypt and she told me that was why she was claustrophobic.  One of my dearest friends told me she felt she lived in Greece and could picture herself looking out from a set of wide steps to view a columned Greek temple.

Q.  How did you come up with the character of Starry and her traits?

A.  Now that is both psychological and metaphysical.  Psychologically, I, like most people, hear voices in my head that tell me what I “should” do.  Things like: hurry up, you can’t have fun until the work is done, you won’t succeed unless you to this or that.  Those voices come from the pieces of me that I developed throughout my life to cope with it.
 The core of metaphysics indicates there is more to us than our five senses: hearing, speaking, seeing, smelling, and touching, while many religions and philosophies teach that a soul is placed within a physical body to learn—to increase consciousness. 
The Starry character is a creation from those parts of my concept of soul that is both a goad to cope and to evolve consciousness.  She is a blend of instincts that are often automatic and self-protective along with the sense there is something greater than can be comprehended with only five senses alone.  Starry is joyous.  She knows life is infinite and if one choice doesn’t turn out well, there are many more opportunities to choose from again and again.  Still, Starry’s character flaw is that she’s not using the emotional element in the best way to feel compassion and to cooperate with her physical aspect to grow more easily.  Her detachment is necessary yet stressful for evolution of the complete soul.

Q.  Who do you think you were in a prior life?

A.  At one point my life, I experimented with Past-life regression.  Of course, all of it could be from my imagination, but I saw myself during one of the regressions with other young women in the Ambassador’s wing of the palace of Versailles.  I used that as a basis for the parts of the book that took place in Spain, England, France, and the Netherlands.  In another of those regressions I saw myself in a harem where a man (my real husband in this life) was mutilated for some misdeed that could have been attributed to me.  That was a terrible experience and I remember telling my husband after I came out of the trace state that it wasn’t my fault.  He looked at me as though I was nuts and then we laughed about it.

Q.  How much research did it take to write as true to the time periods as possible?

  

A.  The amount of time was lessened because I was able to use my prior research about the sacred marriage rites from Mesopotamia, the medical practices used to produce a son in ancient Greece, and how the throne mysticism of the Kabalah affected temple worship in Jerusalem from another non-fiction book I wrote many years ago: Infamous Eve, A History.

The second book in this series, The Beginning Begins, continues the progression of the soul (two souls rather than one), but it also weaves into the story the mystery surrounding the scrolls that were hidden, along with the Urim and Thummim that were said to be used to get answers to questions from God—by Salome Alexandra in Jerusalem—in this book.
 ______________ 

Thanks to May Sinclair for answering all my questions! The link to my review of her book is posted above. It's an amazing book and it's an interesting concept so please go check it out!