My Sparkling Misfortune / Laura Lond

Reviewed by: Corina

Genre: Fantasy

Approximate word count: 35-40,000 words

Availability    

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

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Author:

Laura Lond holds a bachelor’s degree in history, and has published eleven books in addition to My Sparkling Misfortune, including its sequel, My Royal Pain Quest. She has worked at a literary museum and in international business, and she has lived in Europe and the United States.

Description:

A villain binds the wrong sort of magical creature to his service – instead of an evil gormack, he binds a sparkling, who by nature only helps heroes. Despite his dastardly intentions, he becomes misunderstood and is unofficially dubbed “The Lakeland Knight,” much to his chagrin.

Appraisal:

I enjoyed this book as a quick, light read with a lot of uncomplicated humor involved. The story was sweet and the villain turns out to have a good heart. It is not a novel that breaks new ground, but I did enjoy the irony of the villain having so many heroic tendencies, when things happen in just the right way.

The only thing I didn’t like about the book was the way Lond broke the 4^th wall repeatedly during the first chapter, speaking directly to the reader and taking me out of the story. Those digressions from the story could be removed to good effect.

I would recommend this book to any reader of light fantasy, and especially to young readers.

FYI:

This book is safe for work or for your child (of any age) to read.

Format/Typo Issues:

A handful of minor typos. Nothing too distracting.

Rating: **** Four Stars

Girl Power – War on Women / Dee Dawning

Reviewed by:  BigAl

Genre: Chick Lit

Approximate word count: 60-65,000 words

Availability    

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

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Author:

During the day, Dee Dawning works his day job, designing and building homes. Then he comes home to his wife of twenty-eight-plus years, heads for bed early, and wakes up in the wee hours of the morning to write. Dawning’s many novels and shorter works span many genres; the only sure thing is that the action will take place in contemporary times and have a possibility of really happening. You won’t find any vampires or werewolves, although you’ll definitely find sex, and lots of it – erotica is Dawning’s most frequent genre choice. For more, visit the author’s website.

Description:

“Fed-up with politics and the sudden right wing war on women, a group of determined women take matters into their own hands and form a women's political party. Initially laughed at by the established political parties, they soon change their tune when women and some men begin signing up in droves.”

“ … a tongue-in-cheek Political Chick-lit set in an alternate reality. It is a mainstream story, based loosely on the Republican ‘War on Women' that would not appeal to right of center readers.”

Appraisal:

As the author indicates in the description, this novel is unlikely to appeal to readers whose politics are “right of center.” Its premise is that a group of women, upset over what the US press is calling the Republican “war on women,” decide to combat this by starting their own political party. Quotations at the start of each chapter are well chosen and set the stage for each chapter. Two of my favorites might also summarize the book as a whole. The first identifies the problem, political corruption and partisan politics, with the second hinting at a solution.

Politics is supposed to be the second oldest profession. I have come to realize that it bears a very close resemblance to the first. - Ronald Reagan

In politics, if you want anything said, ask a man. If you want anything done, ask a woman. -  Margaret Thatcher

The description describes this tale as “alternate reality,” and it may stretch some readers’ ability to suspend disbelief, but approached with the right attitude it is a fun story. One that I wish really could happen. Many of the names of the characters and some organizations are thinly disguised stand-ins for actual people and organizations from the real world. Talk show host Winfred Opry and the right-leaning Wolf News are two of the most obvious.

While overall I enjoyed the concept of the story and the actual implementation of the concept, I had two significant issues. One was with copy editing and proofing, which was substandard, with many issues in this area. The other was the credibility of one particular piece of the story, where I found suspension of disbelief impossible. Unfortunately, this was a significant error that happened at the climax of the story. I’m being vague, to try to avoid spoilers, but it turns on a quirk in how US Presidential elections work, and in order for the story to happen as told it requires several experienced politicians and political operatives as well as every major media outlet to not be aware of how US Presidential elections are different from most elections. This alternate reality wasn’t far enough from our real world to make that credible. While still largely an enjoyable read to imagine “what if,” this marred the ending for me.

FYI:

Some adult language.

Format/Typo Issues:

A large number of proofing and copy editing issues. These run the gambit from homonym issues (you’re/your and were/we’re) to extra and missing words, typos, and capitalization errors (for example Democrat and Republican were  consistently not capitalized).

Rating: ** Two stars

Fearless / Christine Rains

Reviewed by: ?wazithinkin

Genre: YA Fantasy

Approximate word count: 17,000-17,500 words

Availability   

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

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Author:

Christine Rains loves to lose herself in paranormal romances. Her writing covers all genres of dark fiction and she has published several short stories. A stay at home mom, a writer, and a geek, Rain’s is a member of RWA and has four degrees which do not help at all with motherhood, but all that knowledge makes her a great Jeopardy player. Find out more at her website and her blog. 

Description:

Abby White was seven years old when she killed the monster under her bed. That is when she became a member of the Fearless, a person chosen by the gods to protect the children from their fears made real. With the help of her guide, Tawa, who resides in her beloved stuffed hippopotamus, she is trying to make the world a safer place. The nightmares are spreading and the monsters are getting stronger. Abby needs to find out why things have changed. When she saves the life of a wild fae during one hard fought battle, he joins her quest.

Appraisal:

Abby is one of the Fearless, she slays nightmare monsters turned real by the frightened imaginations of children. After a brief prologue, Rains starts chapter one in the middle of a battle in which Abby saves the life of a fae imprisoned in a trunk bound with iron. Demetrius is a fae from the Darkwood clan and now refuses to leave Abby’s side. According to the blood debt, his body and soul are hers until the debt has been repaid. So, with his shimmering bad boy tattoos and his devastating good looks, he joins Abby’s mission to slay these monsters.

Abby, Demetrius and Tawa, the witty and wise ancient spirit guide that resides in Abby’s childhood stuffed hippopotamus, set out to discover why children are disappearing and nightmares are turning into real monsters at an escalating rate. Abby works as a tutor to keep in close contact with the children who need help when their nightmare monsters become real. While parents tend to write off these nightmares as imaginary, Abby knows better. She has been chosen and given blessed weapons, magical sight, and superior strength to protect children from their fears. She is one of the Fearless.

I found it easy to suspend my disbelief with this well written story. The unique plot unfolds into an action packed monster slaying mystery with a little romance. I found the characters well rounded and their dialogue believable. It was entertaining to watch Abby try to ignore her growing feelings for Demetrius. She will not let herself be distracted from her monster slaying mission, and he doesn’t make it easy for her. The banter between the three main characters was full of sharp wit and innuendos. I found the protagonist ingenious and have to give the author kudos with the way she brought closure to the problem. Fearless is a fun, unique novelette filled with action packed monster slaying and a light-hearted romance.

Format/Typo Issues:

No significant issues.

Rating: **** Four stars

Elemental / Tiffany Dominguez

Reviewed by: Christina O'Neil

Genre: Paranormal Romance/ YA

Approximate word count: 95,000- 100,000

Availability    

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

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Author:

Tiffany Dominguez is an author of Paranormal Romance and Young adult fiction. She currently only has one book out, Elemental, but has another book coming out soon and also one she is working on. She has a blog with information about her upcoming books.  

Description:

A private school trains students born with the Elemental powers of Earth, Air, Fire, and Water. Luke Huntington, an Earth Elemental, is not in control of his growing powers, and seems to be the bad boy of the school. He especially can't control these powers around Eva Sarantos. An Air Elemental and a grade A student, she has trained for years for the chance to prove herself to everyone, even Luke. These two high school seniors are paired together on a covert mission for the ruling body of the Elemental world. The two students fly to Italy, pursued by an army of mysterious men in black cloaks. In Italy, they discover Luke’s ancient legacy, and many secrets, and try to overcome their tricky past to team up against a secret society.

Appraisal:

Elemental is an adventure with lots of paranormal aspects, and a love story. It's the classic opposites attract setting. The book is in third person, with each chapter alternating between Luke and Eva's point of view. It was an interesting way to do it, as you get both perspectives. Who doesn't love two enemies forced together? There are plenty of fights, supernatural and verbal, and it was amusing at times, but at other times, it seemed a little ridiculous. The reason for their fighting seemed a little silly to me, and a little overboard but it still made for good tension.

You really get to see Eva and Luke's relationship change from hatred, to dislike, to a grudging friendship and then finally more. It seems very natural. Luke and Eva are both likeable characters, and Eva is definitely no Damsel. There are a lot of Mission Impossible style gadgets, with a supernatural twist, of course. It was an exciting part of the story when these two first get their mission from their advisors.

There was a lot of action in this story, especially when the two have a fight that nearly ends in death and narrowly escape by Eva's Air elemental abilities, as she can pilot a plane. They both have assets in each of their fields, and you find out more about them later on. While in Italy, Luke also discovers about his heritage, and more about the elusive Lux Crystal that everyone in the secret society are after. The story wraps up very well, with a little left open for more stories later. I found many parts of the story interesting and enjoyable, but I think a lot of the story could have benefited from editing out the unnecessary parts that seem to slow the story down.

I think the story is well written and different., It is geared more towards teenagers, but also suitable for adults. With some editing and a little bit of faster pace, I would have enjoyed it more, though it is still an enjoyable read, and you really develop connections with the characters.

Format/Typo Issues:

Very few, that doesn't take away the enjoyment of reading it.

Rating: **** Four stars

Apologies Not Included / Angela S. Choi

Reviewed by: BigAl

Genre: Thriller/Suspense/Coming-of-Age

Approximate word count: 50-55,000 words

Availability    

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

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Author:

A lawyer turned novelist, Angela Choi lives in San Francisco. She has one other novel available, Hello Kitty Must Die. For more, visit her website. 

Description:

“Eighteen-year-old Abigail Lin is smart, talented, and utterly miserable. Her everyday life is scarred by a crippling and secret compulsion. But Abigail is not alone in her unhappiness among the best and brightest. Her classmates Sophia Santos and David Wendler have demons of their own. Sophia is lost halfway between wakefulness and sleep, while David wrestles with a food addiction and a lethal erotic obsession.

Except the handsome, privileged, and successful Ethan Lambert seems to have it all — until his behavior takes a bizarre and disturbing turn. Disillusioned and disappointed, these four students are drawn together just as their lives are about to spiral out of control. Will their friendship be enough to guide them through the turbulence of their college years? Or will they succumb to the pressures and neuroses that threaten their sanity and their very lives?”

Appraisal:

The coming-of-age story can work in almost any genre, since a story, if it is to be interesting to the reader, has to have conflict or challenges, and the coming-of-age story is all about overcoming and learning from difficulties while transitioning to the next level of maturity. Set in college, which is a natural location and time of life for this story type, I found Apologies Not Included a fun and entertaining read. The four main characters, two of whom drive the story lines that justify calling this a thriller or suspense novel, are vastly different in background and attitudes. Each has qualities both sympathetic and not, with the protagonist, Abigail, having plenty of chances to watch, experience, and learn. If you like coming-of-age stories, this is a good one.

One minor nit I had was that the college in the story had some qualities, including location, that led me to believe I know what school it was. To be fair, there are multiple colleges and universities in New Haven, CT. Maybe my guess is wrong. But the author avoids giving the school a name, referring to it as “the college” or other generic terms. Avoiding giving the name of the university she was thinking of (going so far as to not name it in her bio while mentioning she went to college in the same town) seemed silly and contrived.

FYI:

Some adult language and mild sexual content.

Format/Typo Issues:

A small number of typos and proofing errors.

Rating: **** Four stars

Our Summer of Discontent / S.L. Baum

Reviewed by: BigAl

Genre: YA/Paranormal

Approximate word count: 55-60,000 words

Availability    

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

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Author:

A former high school math teacher, S.L. Baum now works as a substitute elementary school teacher, chauffer for her kids, and novelist. She lives with her family in the Southwestern United States. This book is the fourth in Baum’s The Immortal Ones series. For more, visit Baum’s website.

Description:

“Summer. A time for travel, relaxation, and above all - fun. But for Charity, her family, and her friends, this summer holds more in store than any of them anticipate.

While Charity learns to harness her newfound powers, others around her discover their own surprising abilities. And a vacation to New York becomes a catalyst that has their paths crossing with the unexpected, yet again.

Emotions run high as life-altering games taunt and test them all. Who will win and who will lose, during their Summer of Discontent?”

Appraisal:

Since getting my Kindle, I’ve read a lot of YA books and this series is one of my favorites. One of the main reasons is the main character, Charity. As an “immortal one,” Charity stopped aging at a point where she appears to be in her late teens. While she’s much older and has experienced much more in life than an average teen, Charity has to maintain the illusion of being the age she appears. This tension, between the older, more mature woman inside, and how Charity has to appear to most of the world, is an uncommon twist that gives her character more complexity than the average teen. I think it also makes Charity more likeable because she shows all the positive attributes of someone of her physical age, without many of the faults someone of that age might have. Baum continues to put Charity and her cohorts in more and more difficult situations, and I continue to care and root for her.

One thing that is different in this volume is the use of several different point-of-view characters, seven if my count is correct. This could be confusing for some people, although Baum attempts to minimize the confusion with an explanation in a note to readers at the beginning, maintaining a consistent point-of-view character within individual chapters, and identifying who that character will be as part of the chapter heading. Some readers will love this (the disparate points of view add to how the reader views and interprets what is happening), while others may struggle keeping track in spite of the contextual cues provided.

FYI:

This is the fourth book in the series. I would advise reading the first two books in the series, A Chance for Charity and My Link in Time. The third book, Of Fire and Brimstone, is not needed to understand the back-story of the characters featured in this volume, but may be needed for understanding in future books in the series.

Format/Typo Issues:

I reviewed based on a pre-release beta copy and am unable to comment in this area.

Rating: ***** Five stars

The Sable City/M. Edward McNally

Reviewed by: SingleEyePhotos

Genre: Fantasy

Approximate word count: 180,000 – 185,000

Availability   

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

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Author:

M. Edward McNally has a master’s degree in English Literature from Iowa State University and Russian/Eastern European history from Arkansas State University. The Sable City is the first of 4 books of the Norothian Cycle. He has a blog dedicated to these books. 

Description:

Swords. Sorcery. Dragons. Hard-headed and practical, Matilda Lanai is the child of a merchant culture. But she is also a Guilder, dedicated to the protection and support of the rulers of her House. And if they get themselves mixed up in the aforementioned Swords, Sorcery, and even a Dragon, there’s not much she can do about it.

Appraisal:

In my younger days, I was a big fan of fantasy, but I feel I’ve moved on and no longer enjoy the genre, or maybe the genre has changed, and left me behind? I was asked to review this particular book, and although I was a bit leery at first, I’m glad I did. This is the kind of fantasy that makes me remember why I enjoyed it growing up. There’s plenty of action and adventure; swords and sorcery; politics and intrigue, but it’s ultimately a character-driven story. While I’d never want to meet any of the characters that populate this author’s world (especially not in a dark alley) I found myself interested in them, in their lives and their quest. Even though I started with some trepidation, I continued to read eagerly.

It’s very difficult to summarize a long book in just a paragraph or two. The main character is Matilda Lanai, a trained Guilder, sworn to protect and support the ruling members of the merchant House of Deskata. She is brought along as companion and guard on a secret quest to find the last blood member of her ruling family, who was exiled from their island country many years before. Along the way she meets many people from many countries who have quests of their own – some good and some selfish – and finds that their paths lie together.

There is the requisite Sword, but the battles are not over-emphasized and gory. There is the requisite Sorcery, but the Wizard of the Circle that Tilda meets is not particularly adept. There is a Dragon, but she is not evil. There is a Legionnaire, a deserter, but there’s more to him than meets the eye. There are good guys and bad guys and some guys you aren’t sure about until the very end, and even then, you can’t quite make up your mind.

No review of a fantasy book would be complete without mention of the world-building. This author has done a very good job of that. His world is different from ours, but the same rules (generally) apply. His characters, even non-humans, are ‘just like us’, so the reader can relate. Disbelief can be suspended easily and willingly, and remain suspended. My only quibble is that some things, particularly place descriptions and names, feel derivative. I was able to identify echoes of many well-known fantasy or science fiction books that I had read. Nothing overt, but there was a sense of familiarity, of déjà vu. The same with the names – I believe the author took common English names and changed them just a tiny bit – enough to be different or non-English, but familiar enough to ring a bell in the reader’s mind, faint and far away. In some ways, that familiarity of place and name is a good thing, in other ways, it isn’t. I enjoyed trying to track down that sense of déjà vu, but others may feel differently. I also enjoyed the familiarity of the names which felt fully grounded in English rather than being a ‘made-up’ language. 

FYI:

Even though this is not advertised as a YA fantasy, I think it would be appropriate for mid-teens and up. There is almost no explicit violence or bad language, and there is a subtle humor underlying many scenes that lightened the story even further. Although this is the first of four books, it can stand alone.

Format/Typo Issues:

There were no major formatting issues that I noted. However, there are many instances of homophones incorrectly used, frequent enough to be noticed, but not to actually impact reading.

Rating: **** Four Stars

Hull’s Landing / James Melzer

Reviewed by: JA Gill

Genre: Horror

Approximate word count: 40-45,000 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:

Author James Melzer lives in Pennsylvania. He is the author of several other novels, all available for your e-reader.

Description:

Rita Clemens is leaving her post with the Philadelphia Police Department to start life over in a small town. She thought she’s seen it all, but even in a town where time slows down she discovers one secret as old as time itself.

Appraisal:

There’s at least one Tumblr account and a few websites dedicated to collecting opening passages from novels. I’m a fan of these gatherings of words, and with hours spent sifting patterns emerge. “The sky above the port was the color of television, turned to a dead channel.” “I was born twice: first as a baby girl, on a remarkably smogless Detroit day in January of 1960; and then again, as a teenage boy, in an emergency room near Petoskey Michigan, in August of 1974.” “It was a pleasure to burn.” The opening sentences of a story are a summary, a tease, a throat-clearing, a stage-setter, and a quick measure of the author’s talent. So what to make of James Melzer’s latest work, Hull’s Landing, opening with an extended scene of a girl being gang raped? This is horror fiction after all, where delicacy and subtly run the other way, and Melzer wants to remind us incase we forgot.

The significance of the opening passage is the objectification of unadulterated evil—as if an Exhibit A tag would stick to its oily black surface—and a graphic scene of prolonged suffering, one that continues relentlessly for the majority of the book, is as unsettling a depiction as any. However, grand abstractions beg for archetypes, or at least a structure of metaphors, as cantilever over what might otherwise become a senseless plunge into depravity and gore. It is clear that Melzer is aware of this. Unfortunately, he comes up short in the telling. At Hull’s Landing divine reckoning has a habit of poofing onto the mise-en-scène in the form of a near literal deus ex machina—all bright and shiny—iterating a thoroughly unsatisfying Sunday school solution to the problem of evil. 

Once one gets past the rickety plot and tired clichés, in James Melzer’s novella there is never a dull (read nonviolent) moment or lack of quirky descriptions, such as “he stopped cold, and the blood drained from his face like noodle water going through a strainer over the sink.” And “…Rita just about fell off the steps as it shook her on the inside like a rattlesnake in her belly.”

FYI:

Graphic violence

Format/Typo Issues:

No significant issues

Rating: ** Two stars

BOOKS-a-FIRE Giveaway

This fall get ready to load your Kindle with great books by 13 awesome authors in the Books-a-Fire Giveaway! During the entire month of September, you’ll have the opportunity to win a New Kindle Fire and weekly prizes of Amazon Gift Cards.

Here are the details:

• There is NO PURCHASE NECESSARY to enter the contest to win a New Kindle Fire and Amazon Gift Cards. You may enter once at the Books-a-Fire website and enter again at the websites of each of the authors listed. That gives everyone additional free chances to win! Winning a gift card does not affect your chances of winning a Kindle Fire.
• The contest starts Sept 1, 2012 and ends at midnight Pacific Time Zone on Sept 30, 2012.
• The winner will be notified by e-mail and we will post the results on the Books-a-Fire website.
• Although buying a book does not increase your chances of winning, we encourage you to browse the books of the authors who are sponsoring this contest and buy the ones you like. Choose from a variety of genres, sure to please everyone on your list. Head on over and kindle your reading fires! Links to purchase the books are included with each book on the list.

There are plenty of ways to enter the contest and lots of good books by talented authors for you to buy. So head on over to the Books-a-Fire contest today!

Sale, sell, or sail (I can never get it right)

Seventeen books on sale (I think that's right) over the long holiday weekend in the US. Several I've read and, if you check the reviews, you'll know I'd recommend them.