The Ribs and Thigh Bones of Desire / Sandra Hutchison

Reviewed by: BigAl

Genre: Contemporary Fiction/Coming of Age

Approximate word count: 90-95,000 words

Availability    

Kindle  US: YES  UK: YES  Nook: NO  Smashwords: NO  Paper: YES

Click on a YES above to go to appropriate page in Amazon, Barnes & Noble, or Smashwords store

Author:

A native Floridian, Sandra Hutchison moved north during high school and has remained there. Currently she lives in Troy, NY with her family and teaches writing at Hudson Valley Community College. She has once other novel, The Awful Mess, available.

For more, visit Hutchison’s website.

Description:

“It’s the summer of 1977 in a small town in Western Massachusetts. Physics professor David Asken has just lost his young family in a plane crash he somehow survived. Sixteen-year-old neighbor Molly Carmichael used to be the babysitter, but now will be keeping house for him while he recuperates. He’s quietly planning to end his life just as soon as he can drive again, but may not be willing to wait that long after he comes across his dead wife’s journal and encounters more hostility than he had ever imagined. Molly is trying to cope with being known as Tampon Girl, thanks to a sculpture by her notorious artist mother, but she will have to deal with much worse after a drunken teenage party.

Both man and girl are going to have to grow up the hard way, and it’s their unexpected connection — fraught with potential scandal — that may just help them do it. This provocative coming-of-age novel asks: Is there ever a time when doing the wrong thing might be exactly right?”

Appraisal:

The reasons people read fiction and what they expect or hope to get from the experience varies, not only from reader to reader, but sometimes from book to book. For some, it is purely entertainment or vicarious experience of some kind. Others want something deeper whether it be a message, a thought-provoking story, or a trigger to consider the world and their place in it. A good story will work on both levels, entertaining all readers while providing grist for the mill to those who are looking for something deeper.

The Ribs and Thigh Bones of Desire has the entertainment part down with a coming of age story set in the late 70s. If that’s your era, you might find it evokes a few nostalgic feelings, but regardless of age, if you’ve ever been a teenager you’ll relate to the struggles of that time in life.

However, odds are if you’re a reader who prefers to be entertained by the surface story, that you’ll find yourself dragged deeper against your wishes. Depending on your thoughts, beliefs, and opinions on some subjects, the direction the story takes may anger you or challenge your beliefs. Thought provoking might be too mild a term as you’re forced to ponder many things including the reasonableness of social norms, whether artistic expression should have limits, and parental responsibility.

FYI:

Adult themes and some adult language.

Format/Typo Issues:

A small number of proofing and copyediting issues.

Rating: ***** Five Stars

Five Star Theme Week

This week we're featuring only books we've given five star reviews.

The Deepening Shade / Jake Hinkson

Reviewed by: BigAl

Genre: Crime Fiction/Short Story Collection

Approximate word count: 40-45,000 words

Availability    

Kindle  US: YES  UK: YES  Nook: NO  Smashwords: NO  Paper: YES

Click on a YES above to go to appropriate page in Amazon, Barnes & Noble, or Smashwords store

Author:

Chicagoan Jake Hinkson writes crime fiction. In addition to this short story collection, he has three novels available. For more, visit Hinkson’s website.

Description:

In this short story collection “desperate characters grasp for moments of grace: A lesbian couple running a homeless shelter try to save a young woman controlled by a self-proclaimed prophet. A stripper commits a terrible crime to protect her sister from going to jail. A Pentecostal snake-handler avenges his daughter’s murder only to find himself tormented by his own unbelief. An alcoholic cop, drunk on duty, attempts to stop Dick Cheney from robbing a gas station. In these stories and more, which range from the heartbreakingly tragic to the bizarrely funny, characters struggle violently with each other, and with themselves.”

Appraisal:

A fun and different kind of read. As the full description on some retail sites mentions, Hinkson’s first novel, Hell on Church Street, combined religious fundamentalism with crime fiction. Many of these stories do the same to varying degrees. This is a strange juxtaposition and prior to reading I was curious as to whether the stories would slant towards a positive or negative portrayal of religion. While every reader is going to view the answer to that question through his or her own personal lens, to me the collection as a whole didn’t do either. Instead, religion was an integral part of the characters or setting. Not likely to offend or please either non-believers or the more faithful, while still adding to the story. A varied collection that should please fans of crime fiction.

FYI:

Adult language and situations.

Format/Typo Issues:

No significant issues

Rating: **** Four Stars

The Deathtaker / S.L. Baum

Reviewed by: BigAl

Genre: New Adult/Paranormal Romance

Approximate word count: 75-80,000 words

Availability    

Kindle  US: YES  UK: YES  Nook: YES  Smashwords: YES  Paper: NO

Click on a YES above to go to appropriate page in Amazon, Barnes & Noble, or Smashwords store

Author:

A former high school math teacher, S.L. Baum now works as a substitute elementary school teacher, chauffeur for her kids, and novelist. She lives with her family in the Southwestern United States. Her The Immortal Ones series has four books, thus far. She is the author of two series for the YA audience, The Immortal Ones and the Lush series (actually a serial with novel size installments). The Deathtaker is the first of what appears to be a new series aimed at a slightly older audience.

For more, visit the author’s website.

Description:

“Krista can smell disease and decay. She walks through life being able to pinpoint what is wrong with the people around her, and can tell whether or not they have long to live. She’s spent the last few years moving from town to town, looking for someone to help, someone who needs a second chance at life. But she didn’t plan on staying in a small town, and she didn’t plan on finding someone to love… in fact, she didn’t plan for anything that Cedar Creek had in store for her.”

Appraisal:

I’ve read all of S.L. Baum’s books and liked most of them. The Deathtaker is my new favorite, taking over that position from Baum’s first book, A Chance for Charity. Part of that is I like being introduced to new characters, what makes them special, and the intricacies of the new story world. This book grabbed me immediately when the prologue gave us a sample of what makes Krista special and a glimpse of that quality at work. I quickly became invested in Krista, the difficulties her life’s work created for her, and saw what the main difficulty or conflict she was going to have to deal with in this story was going to be. How that played out was both satisfying and a setup for what I expect will be an ongoing series.

FYI:

Some mild adult content.

Format/Typo Issues:

Review based on a pre-release beta version, so I can’t judge the final product in this area.

Rating: ***** Five Star

A Spy Came Home / HN Wake

Reviewed by: BigAl

Genre: Thriller

Approximate word count: 80-85,000 words

Availability    

Kindle  US: YES  UK: YES  Nook: NO  Smashwords: NO  Paper: YES

Click on a YES above to go to appropriate page in Amazon, Barnes & Noble, or Smashwords store

Author:

An ex-patriot for more than twenty years, HN Wake finally came home. She lives with her husband on the East Coast of the US. This is her debut novel.

For more, visit her website.

Description:

“Today, the United States faces unprecedented levels of gun violence. Massacres are taking place in communities on a regular basis. In schools, lockdown drills are now as commonplace as fire drills. Politicians on Capitol Hill, impotent in the face of one of the most influential lobbying powers, have failed to pass gun legislation since 1994.

Mac Ambrose, a twenty-year veteran of the CIA, is recruited by her closest friends to run a domestic operation: bring down the gun lobby by any means necessary so the Senate can pass a new assault weapons ban. In four weeks.

From the hearing rooms of Capitol Hill, to the rolling hills of Kentucky and the wealthy suburbs of New Orleans, Mac flawlessly sets the traps of a multi-pronged strategy to ensnare a lawmaker, a lobbyist and a gun manufacturer. From a safe house in Philadelphia, she rediscovers relationships forsaken in the name of national security.”

Appraisal:

I knocked a star off for falling short in applying the final polish on this novel with an overabundance of copyediting and proofing misses. (A couple issues that happened multiple times were confusing, such as ‘led’ and ‘lead’ as well as ‘road’ instead of ‘rode.’) But for those able to overlook or who just don’t notice those things, there’s a good story here. One I found interesting because it takes on one of today’s hot-button political issues.

That issue (“common sense” gun laws) is one that (sorry, I can’t help myself) gets people up in arms, especially those on either extreme. Some would outlaw all guns except for possibly military and law enforcement while there are those on the other end of the spectrum who think it’s their absolute right (given to them by God and the constitution) to have a veritable armory complete with missiles and tanks in their front yard if they desire. Most of us fall somewhere in the middle with many polls indicating a majority of Americans believe that some moderate additional restrictions on gun purchase and ownership makes sense. For those on either extreme, this story isn’t likely to appeal. For those in the middle, it might.

What I liked about the approach Ward took to telling her story is that while I had no problem suspending disbelief while reading it, there was never any doubt when I put it down that it was fiction. Nothing turns me off faster than a story with a political point to make that sacrifices story for preaching, even when I’m generally in agreement with their point. While A Spy Came home has a definite slant that would turn off extremists, the “good guys” weren’t always perfect and at least some of the “bad guys” have redeeming qualities as well. I found the story fast-paced with enough nuance to keep me interested.

FYI:

Some adult language.

Format/Typo Issues:

A large number of proofreading and copyediting misses.

Rating: *** Three Stars

Selling Dreams / Susanne O'Leary

Reviewed by: BigAl

Genre: Women’s Fiction

Approximate word count: 65-70,000 words

Availability    

Kindle  US: YES  UK: YES  Nook: YES  Smashwords: NO  Paper: NO

Click on a YES above to go to appropriate page in Amazon, Barnes & Noble, or Smashwords store

Author:

Swedish born, Susanne O’Leary is the author of at least fifteen novels in a variety of genres. After living around the world as the wife of an Irish diplomat, she now writes full time from their home in Ireland.

For more, visit O’Leary’s website.

Description:

“The pristine blue waters and sun drenched shores of the French Riviera provide a stunning backdrop to the story of two women, Chantal and Flora, both struggling with the heartache of a lost love.

Chantal Gardinier runs her real estate agency in Antibes with an iron fist. A tough businesswoman on the surface, Chantal is hiding a tragic home life and a secret love affair. When faced with a moral dilemma, she is unsure which path to choose.

Flora McKenna arrives in town with high hopes of finding happiness. When she immediately lands a great job, she decides that this exotic paradise might be just the place to help her heart heal. Selling houses to expats looking for a dream home in the sun would be the ideal existence if it weren't for her demanding boss, Chantal—a woman with no scruples when it comes to bending the rules.

But Chantal’s personal life catches up with her, and she is forced to ask Flora to run the agency.

While trying to cope with French property laws and red tape, Flora is thrown into a love affair that threatens to break her heart.”

Appraisal:

The main character, Flora McKenna, flees her native Ireland after a break up and finds herself unemployed. As a long time Francophile, what better place to start a new life than the French Riviera, right? What Flora experiences is a rollercoaster ride of ups (she aces the final interview of the job she was aiming for) and downs (her new position may require ethical compromises she’s loathe to make). On the romantic front, Flora has multiple potential beaus, but the front runner who at first blush seems ideal, has baggage that may be more than she can handle. An entertaining read set against an exotic backdrop.

FYI:

A small amount of adult language.

Format/Typo Issues:

A small number of typos and copyediting misses.

Rating: **** Four Stars

Kid Nitro and the Sinister Slorp / Rusty Sherill

Reviewed by: Michael Thal

Genre: Science Fiction/Fantasy/Children’s/Middle Grade

Approximate word count: 55-60,000 words

Availability    

Kindle  US: YES  UK: YES  Nook: YES  Smashwords: NO  Paper: NO

Click on a YES above to go to appropriate page in Amazon, Barnes & Noble, or Smashwords store

Author:

Rusty Sherill started out his professional career as a graphic artist in the clothing industry. Since then, he has free-lanced for the movie industry, comic book companies, and advertising agencies. Today, Mr. Sherill lives in Big Bear City, CA with his wife, Cathy. Kid Nitro and the Sinister Slorp is his first novel.

Description:

Rusty Palmer is a precocious little boy who perceives himself to be an imaginary super hero straight out of comic books. This week he thinks he’s Kid Nitro about to battle “mutant brain-eaters from the planet Ploog.” When he witnesses a meteor streak through the sky and plop near his backyard, Kid Nitro soon finds out he’s about to become the focus of a real battle for the survival of Earth itself.

Appraisal:

Author Rusty Sherill has created a very entertaining novel for kids: Kid Nitro and the Sinister Slorp. The protagonist, Kid Nitro, imagines himself to be a super hero. However, soon he encounters an alien sphere from outer space. Quickly, the sphere takes over the boy’s life, to Kid Nitro’s glee. Along the way, readers will meet Kid Nitro’s nemesis, Catherine, a fellow third grader whose only flaw is her feminine gender. Then there’s best friend B4U who sees himself as a rapper who speaks only in rhyme.

Kid Nitro encounters aliens in space, weird monsters, and the indestructible Slorp, a planet eater with a bottomless pit for a stomach.

Parents will enjoy reading this book to their children, for some vocabulary and concepts may be too advanced for elementary age children to understand. Kid Nitro and the Sinister Slorp could provide entertaining hours for parents and kids to bond as they laugh and bite their nails over Kid Nitro’s exciting adventure.

Rating: ***** Five Stars

Joey 22 / Matt Gryta

Reviewed by: BigAl

Genre: True Crime

Approximate word count: 75-80,000 words

Availability    

Kindle  US: YES  UK: YES  Nook: NO  Smashwords: NO  Paper: YES

Click on a YES above to go to appropriate page in Amazon, Barnes & Noble, or Smashwords store

Author:

A veteran crime reporter who spent forty years on staff at the Buffalo News, more recently Matt Gryta has been reporting on cases he’s covered on E! Entertainment Television and the Investigation Discovery cable network.

Description:

“The first comprehensive nonfiction account of the killing spree, investigation and trials of notorious serial killer, Joseph G. Christopher. Reporter Matt Gryta, who covered the case as a news reporter, provides a detailed history of the 22 Caliber Killer, who terrorized unsuspecting victims in Buffalo, Rochester and Manhattan during his 1980 murder campaign.”

Appraisal:

True crime books are an interesting genre in that they can cover different aspects of a crime or series of crimes: the actual crimes and community reaction, the investigation and identification of the culprits, or the legal battle from arrest to ultimate resolution, and sometimes the aftermath. Which parts get covered or the most focus varies and different readers will be drawn to different approaches. (An especially notorious crime spree can even generate multiple books with many of them selling well; for example, the plethora of books about Ted Bundy.)

Joey 22 is the story of serial killer Joseph “Joey” Christopher, who targeted black men in New York State in 1980. As the author explains in the prologue, there were multiple serial killers targeting blacks across the country in this period and for a time it wasn’t clear whether they were related. (The mention of one of these who killed two black men just a couple blocks away from my home that same year grabbed my attention early.)

While the crimes and investigation get some coverage, the majority of what is covered in this book is story of Christopher’s post-arrest trip through the legal system. For those who enjoy reading about legal maneuvering (yes, I’m one of those), it was an interesting read in that regard with some unique aspects to the case, specifically how he related to his primary attorneys in Buffalo and how that played out over time.

However, there were also several technical issues that bothered me with this book. Although each one minor, the number of issues I saw that weren’t caught during proofreading and copyediting was enough to irritate me as were some random hyphens that shouldn’t have been in the ebook version. There was also a tendency to repeat background information that we’d already been told about earlier as well as give us background that arguably did nothing to enhance the story at hand. One example was a story about a judge who had been arrested. Although not important to the main story, it added a bit of color or characterization, so the tangent might be justifiable. However, later in the book one of the judge’s former employees who was arrested over the same incident made an appearance and we were treated to a repeat of the same tangent.

This book will possibly appeal to some true crime fans, especially anyone from New York who remembers when these murders were happening. For others, it depends on your patience with tangents, repeats, and minor technical issues.

Format/Typo Issues:

Too many proofreading and copyediting misses for me. These were exacerbated by an issue with randomly hyphenated words in the ebook version. Near the end of the ebook version I received there was also a long section of text near the end that was repeated verbatim three times in a row.

Rating: ** Two Stars

The Body Market / D.V. Berkom

Reviewed by: BigAl

Genre: Thriller

Approximate word count: 70-75,000 words

Availability    

Kindle  US: YES  UK: YES  Nook: YES  Smashwords: YES  Paper: YES

Click on a YES above to go to appropriate page in Amazon, Barnes & Noble, or Smashwords store

Author:

 “Raised in the Midwest,” DV Berkom “received her BA in political science from the University of Minnesota and promptly moved to Mexico to live on a sailboat. Many, many cross-country moves (and several years) later, she now lives just outside of Seattle, Washington with the love of her life, Mark, an ex-chef-turned contractor, and writes every chance she gets.” She is the author of two thriller series.

For more, visit her website.

Description:

“Former assassin Leine Basso is hired by a wealthy Beverly Hills power couple to find their missing daughter, Elise, last seen partying with her boyfriend at a club in Tijuana. At first, police believe the two teenagers are the victims of a carjacking. But when Leine finds their missing vehicle with the boyfriend’s mutilated body inside, and the local cartel warns her away, she knows if Elise isn’t already dead, she will be soon, or worse.

In the lethal world of organized crime, there’s always a worse.

As Leine races to uncover the reason behind Elise Bennett’s disappearance, she must also battle the powerful interests fighting to keep her from the truth.”

Appraisal:

As I was pondering what to say about The Body Market beyond the obvious (fast paced, blah, blah, blah) I was comparing and contrasting Leine Basso, the protagonist in this series, with Kate Jones, the protagonist in DV Berkom’s other series. (This is the third in this series while Kate Jones has seven volumes thus far.) Both can rightfully be described as kick-butt females, able and willing to mix it up with the bad guys as much as any man while still clearly being a member of the fairer sex. Each has a past that creates issues for them. However, these issues are much different. Kate Jones is the former lover of the leader of a Mexican drug cartel. Her ex and those associated with him keep popping up, causing problems. Leine’s situation as a retired assassin is much different, with her issues being largely internal, primarily guilt associated with her past, not only the things she did, but how it affected those around her.

However, in this book Leine’s past seemed to be haunting her slightly less than in the first two books. Maybe she’s working past that and, since what she is doing now is definitely fighting evil, she’s feeling better about herself.

The plot of The Body Market is easy to see as plausible with two older teens stretching their wings beyond what is prudent and having it backfire in a big way. When Leine tries to discover what happened, it makes for a fast-paced story (yeah, I know), that the more it developed, the more I wondered how it could ever come to a happy resolution.

FYI:

Some adult language.

Although the third book in the series, this book can be read as a standalone.

Format/Typo Issues:

My review is based on an advance reader copy. I’m unable to judge the final product in this area.

Rating: ***** Five Stars

This is How You Disappear / Allen Miles

Reviewed by: Keith Nixon

Genre: Short Story Collection

Approximate word count: 95-90,000 words

Availability    

Kindle  US: YES  UK: YES  Nook: NO  Smashwords: NO  Paper: YES

Click on a YES above to go to appropriate page in Amazon, Barnes & Noble, or Smashwords store

Author:

Allen Miles lives in East Yorkshire with his family. He spends his time watching films and listening to music. He has written a number of articles and had short stories published.

Description:

A series of eleven dark short stories.

Appraisal:

If the subject matter of these stories is anything to go by then the author lives in a constant state of angst at the world and himself. He also seems not to be a fan of people in the way he treats his characters.

If you are a fan of character led, dark (gloomy, really), highly descriptive narrative, then this is the collection for you. If you prefer plenty of action and events to drive the story, then it’s not. It’s seedy, moody and, at times, challenging to read, very much like Allen’s previously reviewed novel 18 Days. Don’t expect sweetness and light, in fact just the opposite.

It’s well written with plenty of attention to detail when it comes to people and their motivations.

FYI:

British terms and descriptions.

Format/Typo Issues:

None.

Rating: **** Four Stars