The Dreamt Child / Yvonne Hertzberger

Reviewed by: ?wazithinkin

Genre: Epic Fantasy / Historical Fantasy

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:

Yvonne Hertzberger is a native of the Netherlands who now resides in Stratford, Ontario with her spouse in a 130 year old brick cottage. She is an alumna of The University of Waterloo, with a B.A. in psychology and an Hon. B.A. in Sociology. She has always been an avid student of human behavior and this is what gives her insights into the characters she develops in her writing.

This third book in her Earth's Pendulum series completes the original trilogy. Ms. Hertzberger is also a contributing author on the staff of Indies Unlimited. 

Learn more about her at her website.

Description:

“Liannis, the goddess Earth’s seer, can no longer deny the meaning of her recurring dream. She must join with Merrist, her devoted hired man, and bear a child – one with great gifts. Earth has decreed it. But the people resist the changes, bringing danger to the pair and strife to the lands. Both Liannis and Merrist must face tests, sometimes without each other, to fulfill their destiny and bring The Dreamt Child forth into safety. They must succeed if they are to initiate the new era of peace and balance so desperately needed.”

Appraisal:

At last the goddess Earth speaks more directly to Liannis and she has to come to terms and acknowledge her feelings for Merrist!  I was so ready for this, but Merrist is the one who has to broach the subject because Liannis is still reluctant. I suppose she has just cause because it will be their job to gain acceptance for their relationship with all the inhabitants of the One Isle. To help Merrist the Earth goddess bestows him with a gift that Liannis does not possess. Which works out rather nicely when they are visiting Gharn and a tragedy befalls Lady Sienna. But I'll be darned if no sooner than they are together they are both summoned by Earth to different dioceses, what rotten luck!  So Merrist heads to help Lionn track down a notorious traitor and appoint a new Lord in Catania, while Liannis is sent to Leithe to assist a transitioning lordship there.

The plot moves steadily forward and there is a lot of traveling between the different kingdoms as our players deal with treacherous political posturing, treason, terrorism, and tragedy to start, then eventually triumph, celebrations and much joy. It seems the One Isle is finally achieving some balance, and Liannis and Merrist are allowed a reprieve. They move back to Liannis's childhood home to await the birth of the dreamt child, along with Brensa who is still desperately mourning Klast.

There is a nice twist at the end of this story that I wasn't expecting after the trials and tribulations of these dioceses. It seems that the Earth goddess is very happy and things are changing for several of One Isles inhabitants. However we all know the pendulum will never stop swinging. This is quite an epic. Well done, Ms. Hertzberger.

FYI:

I think reading the first two novels of this trilogy will enrich your enjoyment of this story.

Format/Typo Issues:

A small number of editing errors.

Rating: ***** Five stars

Time Trick / Nick Wisseman

Reviewed by: Michael Thal

Genre: Science Fiction/Fantasy

Approximate word count: 4-5,000 words

Availability    

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

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

Author:

Nick Wisseman lives in Bear Lake, Michigan with his wife, daughter and animal menagerie of a dog, 5 cats, and 2 horses. Besides his family, Nick loves writing speculative fiction. His short stories have graced the pages of such magazines as Allegory, Bewildering Stories, and The Cynic On-Line.

Description:

Jim had a wayward eye, and when wife Rachel went off on a business trip for the weekend, he picks up a hooker. However, Claudia isn’t a normal girl of the streets. When a man makes love to her, he is transported back in time to a previous romance.

Appraisal:

Writer Nick Wisseman appropriately titles this short story, Time Trick. As readers get glimpses of Jim’s previous lives they will wonder why this guy can be such a jerk. Jim soon realizes his actions in the past influence outcomes in present time causing drastic consequences. Time Trick is a crazy rollercoaster ride that has a few confusing scenes, but holds together nicely in this fun read for time travel fans.

Format/Typo Issues:

No significant issues.

Rating: *** Three stars

Strange Academy / Teresa Wilde

Reviewed by: ?wazithinkin

Genre: Paranormal Romance/Mystery /Urban Fantasy

Approximate word count: 95-100,000 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:

By day, Teresa Wilde is a mild-mannered technical writer, but by night (and lunch hours, and weekends) she's a digital Sheherezade, weaving tales of strange and wondrous places and people. Strange Academy is her third first novel. She is currently working on a Regency Urban Fantasy, plus the sequel to Confessions of a Teenage Demon Magnet and the next book in the Strange Academy cycle. Check out her Blog. Ms. Wilde also publishes erotic romances under the pen name Teresa Morgan.

Description:

“Determined to uncover the secret behind her eccentric aunt's mysterious death, Sadie Strange, a quirky substitute teacher with a Master’s degree in comic book superheroes, takes a job at isolated private school Strange Academy. Her biggest obstacle? Haughty hottie Lorde Gray, the chemistry teacher who looks down his Roman nose at her as he tries to get her fired.”

Appraisal:

This book caught me a little off guard; I assumed by the cover it would be a light-hearted funny read. And it was that, but it was also so much more. Ms. Wilde did a wonderful job building her characters and exploring their backgrounds so we understood why each one was the way they were. Knowing the psychological makeup gave her characters depth and a more human quality making it easier to identify with them. 

Sadie has denied who she really is her whole life because she wanted to fit in and be normal, unlike her strange Aunt Pippa, her witch mother, and her psychic older sister. She also has no idea why Aunt Pippa has recommended that she take over Pippa's classes at Strange Academy after her death. However she is determined to find out how and why Aunt Pippa died so unexpectedly. The whole campus is on alert to keep anything magical from Sadie as long as she is there and she seems more than willing to turn a blind eye or find logical, mundane reasons for anything she cannot readily explain. She is smart, logical to a fault, strong-willed, and witty. Sadie has also built walls around her heart after falling for the wrong type of man one too many times. So when she meets Lorde Gray at Strange Academy she instantly dislikes him because he is exactly the type she is known to fall for.

Lorde Gray was a character that was hard to like at first. He was egocentric, overbearing, and controlling. The perfect alpha male type. But as the story develops and we get to know more about his history he becomes quite swoon-worthy. However he has a lot of pride and Sadie becomes quite adept at challenging his pride which was fun to watch.

Most of this story deals with the teachers and administrators of Strange Academy instead of the students, so the theme is more adult oriented. Although two of the students in Sadie's class have a larger role than most. Sterling, Lorde's eleven year-old nephew, and Carmina, a Non (a human without a talent/power) who may never have talents, develop an interesting friendship that challenges the House of Gray. Sadie and Carmina also develop a relationship being the only two Non-talented humans at Strange Academy.

Woven through this story of challenging relationships is the mystery of Aunt Pippa's death which twists and turns with every clue that Sadie follows. It is an important element of the story and impacts Lorde Gray and Sadie's relationship in ways that will surprise you. Their dialogue is entertaining and believable. I loved taking this journey of self-discovery with them and found the book hard to put down until the wee hours of the morning.

FYI:

The story contains adult language and sexual situations that some may find offensive. I found the sexual situations tastefully written and enjoyed them. 

Format/Typo Issues:

No significant issues with editing or formatting.

Rating: ***** Five stars

#Free for your #Kindle, 11/28/2013

The author of each of these books has indicated their intent to schedule these books for a free day for the Kindle versions today on Amazon. Sometimes plans change or mistakes happen, so be sure to verify the price before hitting that "buy me" button.

Midnight Guests and Other Weird Stories by Amy Michelle Mosier

Amazon US

Amazon UK

Dead(ish) by Naomi Kramer

Amazon US

Amazon UK

Author's interested in having their free book featured either here on a Thursday or a sister site on a Monday, visit this page for details.

For more details (and a giveaway with some great prizes) click this link.

One More Body / Josh Stallings

Reviewed by: Keith Nixon

Genre: Crime

Approximate word count: 60-65,000 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:

Josh Stallings has had many occupations in life – from criminal, to taxi driver to club bouncer. On the creative front he has written and edited prize winning films, some in partnership with leading writers such as Tad Williams. More recently Josh turned to novels. One More Body is his fourth book. He currently resides in Los Angeles with his wife and several pets.

Description:

Moses McGuire is lost, staying hidden in Mexico with the ghosts of his past. Until he’s approached by Rollens, a detective who claims her niece has been taken and sold into a life of child prostitution. McGuire reluctantly returns home to help. But all is not as it seems and McGuire is drawn into a messy world of crime and desperation.

Appraisal:

This is the third installment comprising anti-hero Moses McGuire, after Beautiful, Naked and the Dead and Out There Bad. It opens with McGuire in a bad way, existing in Mexico, riddled with guilt, talking to a ghost and pelting back prescription drugs and alcohol in equal measure.

In effect, the story takes up where Out There Bad finished (although each of the books operate as standalones). Once Rollens appears on the scene McGuire slowly begins to take a grip on his life through helping others. He’s a bad guy with a big heart, an excellent character who’s as frail as he’s strong.

The story moves along at a fast pace, flipping between first person (McGuire) and third person (the kidnapped girl, Freedom). As McGuire rises from the depths he’s cast himself into, Freedom sinks down into a grim world of child prostitution, exploitation and murder. It’s here the writing is at its most graphic - Stallings takes no prisoners when he describes scenes of abuse. The pill isn’t sweetened in the slightest.

What is very interesting and incredibly well done is how the writing style reflects McGuire’s mental state. At the outset he’s lost, guilt ridden and off his face on narcotics and the prose matches it. Then he’s drawn back to LA and begins to find a degree of purpose, but his world is still confusing, he’s not sure which way is up. The writing tightens, but still has a vague quality running through it. Then McGuire comes off the drugs and is entirely focused so the style shifts with it – to clipped and direct sentences. It’s clever and very well done.

Here’s an example of the writing:

I fired a second shot into the windshield. The concussion sent a million chunks of glass spilling back. It tore a three-inch hole through the seat before ripping out through the trunk. The safety glass bloodied up the bangers pretty good, but they showed good form, not a wail or a moan.

A thoroughly enjoyable, cracking read of knuckleduster prose.

FYI:

Plenty of swearing and graphic scenes.

Format/Typo Issues:

None.

Rating: ***** Five Stars

Grumpy Old Menopause / Carol E Wyer

Reviewed by: BigAl

Genre: Humor/Non-Fiction

Approximate word count: 20-25,000 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 writer of humorous works, both novels and one previous humorous non-fiction book, Carol E Wyer lives in the UK. She is also a regular contributor at Indies Unlimited.

For more, visit her blog or website.

Description:

What to expect from menopause with practical advice on how to deal with it, heavily spiced with humor.

Appraisal:

For women of “a certain age” (or sympathetic men who live with one and would like to understand what they’re going through a bit better), Grumpy Old Menopause is both a practical guide and a treatment − humor to induce laughter is one of the book’s recommendations for surviving this time of life.

Those who have read Wyer’s prior book aimed at this same demographic, How Not to Murder Your Grumpy, will feel right at home reading this book, as it is organized in much the same way. Every chapter focuses on a letter with almost all represented (Wyer “cheated,” once). Each chapter discusses a combination of menopausal symptoms with treatments and activities to alleviate them that start with the letter for that section. I guess you could call the book “Menopause from A to Z.” Each chapter is chock full of humor with most having a joke or several midway through to keep the mood light, while also imparting plenty of practical information.

FYI:

Use UK spelling conventions and slang.

Format/Typo Issues:

Review is based on an advance reader copy. I’m unable to comment on the final production version in this area.

Rating: **** Four stars

The State of Indie Publishing, A Guest Post from Victoria Danann

Last month I was the featured author at the first ever Indie Romance Convention where I was privileged to give the keynote speech on opening night and moderate a panel discussion for authors on Indie marketing.

The Indie Rom con is a convention with separate events (workshops, panels) for authors and readers. I didn’t attend any of the reader events because the con organizer had me busy working with other authors. During those exchanges I was able to discern a lot about the current state of affairs.

First, as I’m sure you’re aware, Independent Publishing includes a variety of approaches to book distribution such as self-publishing, small press, and independent imprint digital. I don’t usually cite my own case because it’s unique. When I began publishing my works of fiction, I did so under 7^th House Publishing, which is a small press and was owned by me at the time. For about fifteen years its focus had been strictly calendars, planners, New Age niche books, and sidelines.

As a person who began as owner/operator of a small publishing company, I was fortunate to have many of the skills necessary to running an Indie fiction business before I began writing the fiction I would sell. For the vast majority of Indie authors, that equation is the other way around.

In other words I was familiar with marketing principles, time management, and had acquired useful tech skills so that I can manage my own website, do my own graphics (including covers), and format my books for publication in various e-versions.

Not every Indie author has or is going to want to acquire that specific skill set, but that’s okay. There are people who can be hired to perform those tasks. What every Indie author does need to understand is that an independent writing career is not only a business, it’s an entrepreneurial business. It’s a leap for risk takers and scramblers.

If the voice in your head says, “But I just want to write,” Indie publishing is not for you. Sadly, there may not be any place for you because, while traditional publishing may survive in some form, the days of authors contributing nothing more than manuscripts are over. Even big names are now expected to spend time on social media and engage readers, contribute earnings to various promotions, and participate in marketing activities where their predecessors were simply left alone.

For a time traditional publishing tried to deny that the gate was open for good. For four hundred years nothing much changed in the world of publishing, but the Kindle created a revolution that upended the stranglehold the New York gatekeepers had over which things did or did not get published. Don’t get me wrong. I understand investing. The people who are putting up the money get to say how it’s used, where, when, and why. I have no problem with that. It’s only right.

On the other hand, there’s something truly noble about having a global forum that allows anyone with something to say to put it out there and let the reading public – rather than book investors – decide what they want to read.

As to the fate of traditional publishing, let me paraphrase Mark Coker of Smashwords. “They’re like the Titanic. They know they’re going to sink, but they’re too big to turn. All they can do is brace and wait for impact."

Meanwhile, a lot of authors like myself are benefitting from a readership with whom contact would have been possible. My books would never have been published – too different, too much of a risk. So I owe Amazon a lot. If they dropped the props that are holding traditional publishing up, so that we were on a level playing field with those authors, I would owe them even more. (Are you listening, Amazon? We, Indies, are your future.)

Indie Rom Con will be held in Nashville next year, September 11-14 with outstanding small events for both authors and readers. http://indieromancecon.com/

-------------

Victoria is releasing a Box Set of her series, The Order of the Black Swan. The details are below. She's also sponsoring a giveaway of an autographed archival print of the Black Swan covers for a lucky Books and Pals reader. A Rafflecopter to enter the giveaway follows the book release details.

Black Swan Collected Tales (Volume 1, Books 1-6)

The Order of the Black Swan is a serial saga including My Familiar Stranger, The Witch’s Dream, A Summoner’s Tale, Moonlight, Gathering Storm, and NEVER BEFORE RELEASED Book 6, A Tale of Two Kingdoms.

Once upon a time a girl lost everything familiar. She escaped death by being forced into an experiment that left her in another world where modern day knights, elves, vampires, werewolves, witches, demons and fae became her allies, friends and family. She discovered a place where adventure intersects fairytales, where honor is more than an ideal, and she learned that love can find you in the strangest places, when you're least expecting it, even when you're far, far from home. This is the story of Elora Laiken's strange and wonderful journey. It is also the story of those whose lives she touches along the way.

If you love romance, paranormal, science fiction, fantasy, urban fantasy, contemporary, this series is right for you. 17+

ISBN: 978-1-933320-94-6, 523,000 words

The entire box set, which will retail after December 15^th for $18.99, will be available during release week for $0.99 and can be preordered at that price from either Smashwords or Kobo.  Buy links to Amazon, B&N, and Apple (iBooks, iTunes) will be available release week. Subscribe to the mail list for a reminder.

PREORDER LINKS:   SMASHWORDS    KOBO

FIND THE BUY LINKS HERE on December 9^th.

ONLINE RELEASE PARTY:  https://www.facebook.com/events/582284305179828/

Appropriate for 17+

Victoria Danann

WEBSITE: http://www.VictoriaDanann.com

BLOG: http://VictoriaDanann.me

FACEBOOK: www.facebook.com/vdanann  

TWITTER: @vdanann

JOIN THE MAIL LIST FOR NEWS & GIVEAWAYS

Best-selling ROMANCE with Paranormal, Sci-fi, and Fantasy Flair.

AUTHOR BIO:

If you’re looking for something new and different in PNR, you’ve come to the right place.

I write unapologetic romances with uniquely fresh perspectives on paranormal creatures, characters, and themes. Add a dash of scifi and a flourish of fantasy to enough humor to make you laugh out loud and enough steam to make you squirm in your chair. My heroines are independent femmes with flaws and minds of their own whether they are aliens, witches, demonologists, psychics, or past life therapists. My heroes are hot and hunky, but they also have brains, character, and good manners – usually – whether they be elves, demons, berserkers, werewolves, or vampires.

I have authored and illustrated Seasons of the Witch calendars and planners for fifteen years and teach magickal arts for Seasons in Avalon. I live in The Woodlands, Texas which is why I sometimes joke about being the witch in the woods.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Self-Published Kindling: Memoirs of a Homeless Bookstore Owner / Mik Everett

Reviewed by: BigAl

Genre: Memoir

Approximate word count: 45-50,000 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 of Wichita, Kansas, Everett currently splits her time between Kansas and Colorado. She has two other books available, both novels.

Description:

“A young family opens a unique bookstore to help independently-published authors tell their story. But as the traditional publishing industry begins to fall, e-books dominate the book market, and the economy slows, the family winds up homeless-- a big secret to keep, as business owners. While some authors struggle with addiction and others struggle to tell their story, a young family struggles simply to survive.”

Appraisal:

Self-Published Kindling … exceeded my threshold for proofing and copy editing issues, which significantly impacted its rating. However, for readers who aren’t bothered by such things, it has a lot going for it.

I enjoyed the glimpse at the challenges of running a bookstore, a job made even tougher given the author’s focus on self-published books. However, the part that I got the most out of was the insights into what it is like to be homeless. This was a family who didn’t fit the preconceived notions many people have about those who find themselves on the streets. Since it is a story about specific people and their situation it is much harder to write others off as either an anomaly or a situation they deserved.

FYI:

Some adult language.

Format/Typo Issues:

Too many copy editing and proofing issues.

The Kindle version I read had an issue where what appeared to be compound words were missing the hyphen. I verified that this was the issue using look inside on Amazon. It is not a problem with the print version.

Rating: *** Three stars

The Tipping Point / Walter Danley

Reviewed by: BigAl

Genre: Suspense

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:

Walter Danley is a retired investment executive.

Description:

“When Tom Burke dies skiing Aspen Mountain, his business partner, Garth Wainwright, must find his killer. Burke was murdered and he seeks the reason. Cautioned to leave the investigation to the authorities, Wainwright won’t let go. His two closest partners, Tom Shaw and Robert Keating don’t believe his suspicion of foul play. Searching for the killer, Wainwright uncovers a conspiracy within the company of millions of dollars embezzled from investors… and some partner involvement is probable. Whom can he trust?

Suddenly, a second partner is murdered. The fraud and the murders are connected and Shaw and Keating become believers and join Wainwright’s search for the killer. The Tipping Point will be the exposure of the fraud to the SEC, which will destroy the company; will shut it down. The company’s investors are not the only ones that will lose. Wainwright is concerned for his personal net worth and his safety because he knows that one of his partners is a killer.

Wainwright adds spice to an already flavorful mix when he falls in love with Lacey Kincaid, a former Boston criminal prosecutor. They devise a plan to smoke out the guilty partners, without exposing the fraud to the SEC or triggering an FBI investigation of the interstate homicides. A perilous dance of deception implements the complicated strategy. The plan forces the killer to surface … and then … another partner dies.

From the ski slopes of Aspen to the corporate board room in Seattle, murder and mayhem follow ten business partners who succumb in four assassinations, one suicide, and three bankruptcies, leaving Wainwright and Shaw to exorcise greed, complicity, and fraud in order to restructure the company to its former acclaim.”

Appraisal:

As I was nearing the end of The Tipping Point and considering what my final verdict was going to be, I thought the answer was clear. It was an okay story with a lot of problems in execution. Then while reading the acknowledgements I read a section that for lack of a better word I’ll call a disclaimer. It said:

If you found errors of fact or location, I would like to hear about them. As for any errors you might imagine in spelling, punctuation or capitalization, please accept this as the variance permitted with the existence of many conventions and styles of writing. There are also times my characters may use incorrect grammar, abbreviations or misspelled words in their speech, but know this is intentional whether it is to assign an accent or a way of expression.

The last part made sense. Sometimes characters do use incorrect grammar and if it fits the character it shouldn’t be perceived as an error. It was the first part that threw me, especially since one of the issues I had was what I saw as a borderline job of proofing. For example, there was the line that started “THE ASSASSIN HAD been in chicago for less-than ninety minutes …” or the one that began “THE CAB RIDE to wainwright’s condominium …” These lines start in all capitals because they are the first line of their respective chapters which is an acceptable style decision. But what purpose is served by not capitalizing the proper names (Chicago and Wainwright)? Are there legitimate conventions and styles that would say this is okay? e.e cummings might say yes, but if so, shouldn’t Wainwright be sans capital everywhere, which wasn’t the case? I don’t buy it.

But the issues I found went well beyond issues of proofing and any disagreements about what is and isn’t an error in grammar or capitalization. I’ll mention just some of them. First is repeating back story about a character. One example was repeating the rationale a character, usually referred to as The Assassin, used as justification for his career choice. While different wording was used, it communicated the same thoughts. Another example is a character named Barbara (or BJ). The reader already had her pegged from previous back story, but then the author spelled it out for the reader too dense to get it, saying, “She always managed to be with successful men. Men who thought she was beautiful and took care of her.” Way too often I’d read a line and say to myself, “I already know that.”

There are some of those errors of fact, too. One minor example was saying Lake Tahoe was in the Mountain time zone (of course, the character may have just been making a mistake). Another instance is a police detective saying this:

For instance, when we run DNA, we almost always get a hit. Unless the guy is an alien and just dropped in for a blowjob, his DNA should be in the system, someplace in the world.

In the US, databanks of DNA profiles (especially those that are available for searching in a criminal investigation) are limited to those convicted of certain crimes or at least arrested for one of those crimes, depending on state law. The laws in a number of other countries are similar. Chances of a random person or even a random criminal being in the database are well shy of “almost always.”

Then there were the things that just didn’t make sense. For example, The Assassin met face to face with a client. He’d done work for him before and hoped he was going to turn out to be a “franchise client” (one who provided him enough work to keep him busy). Then, after the meeting, he decided since the client could identify him, that he needed to be killed. Part of the justification is that the person he met with was “only a messenger” acting as a go between with the actual client. But even if it had been the client (which is who he thought he was meeting) wouldn’t the same rules apply? It seems illogical that he wouldn’t have thought of this problem before the meeting.

I could continue, complaining about rough transitions between some scenes, pointing out where the wrong character name was used, or nitpicking on other items. But hopefully I’ve given enough examples to make my case.

FYI:

Some adult language.

Format/Typo Issues:

A moderate number of proofing and copy editing issues.

Rating: ** Two stars

Devil in the Details / Tamara Hickman

Reviewed by: Brandon

Genre: Supernatural Thriller

Approximate word count: 85-80,000 words

Availability    

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

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

Author:

Tamara Hickman has written numerous poems, a few short stories, one published novel and has one in the works. Hickman is a middle grade math and science teacher, and is married with three girls.

Description:

After the death of her estranged grandfather, Atlanta city girl Riesa Grimshaw is the only surviving member of her family. She returns to Salem, Alabama to get the house her grandfather left her ready for sale or rent and finds clues (including a demon familiar) that not only is the past she remembered not what really happened, but also there is a curse on her family. She has enough on her plate with missing memories, an accidental demon familiar, and a family curse, but when her feelings for her demon familiar and her boyfriend get tangled, cryptic messages and slaughtered animals start showing up in her path, she knows that this is only the beginning.

Appraisal:

I found this book to be a very enjoyable read. I was captivated by the second or third chapter, and did not feel as though I had to “force” myself through it. I enjoyed the storyline and connected as a reader to the main characters, although I found a distinct lack of supporting characters. Due to that, I found the end fairly predictable, although the motives of the antagonist put a spin on the ending that I didn’t anticipate.

FYI:

Mild Adult Content

Format/Typo Issues:

No significant issues

Rating: **** Four stars