Tag Archives: ebooks

Book Review – Breakers by Edward W. Robertson

BreakersBreakers by Edward W. Robertson

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Although not my usual genre, I found myself captivated by this novel, Breakers. It was like watching the downfall of man-kind in technicolor. In fact, I could see this novel hitting the big screen at some point.

Although (to me) it started a little sluggish, within a few pages I was hooked and I ended up reading Breakers in one sitting. I won’t mention that I completely forgot about a “thing” I was supposed to attend, and instead spent the time deeply invested in the characters and their tribulations.

I found the premise a unique amalgam of the typical apocalyptic books. There’s a pandemic that kills off most of civilization. Aliens come to take over. And both are tied together seamlessly in this novel. So much so, that it was totally believable, and I didn’t even have to worry with suspending my beliefs.

The writing was fluid and sometimes so perfect I had to highlight certain phrases in my Kindle app. I don’t do that often, so that’s saying something. I love how Robertson gives us independent characters without the dreaded author-injection, letting the reader decide what they are thinking or feeling.

Overall an extremely well-done novel and I’d recommend it to just about anyone– not just readers of sci-fi or end-of-the-world tales.

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Quickie Book Review – Children of the Fog by Cheryl Kaye Tardiff

Children of the FogChildren of the Fog by Cheryl Kaye Tardif

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Great book, started off with a bang and pretty much kept up the page-turning pace. With the creepy fog comes danger and something no mother ever wants to have to deal with…she has to let a madman walk out of the door with her six year old son.

Overall the book clipped along at a good pace and was well plotted. It had a few twists that I didn’t see coming, a suspenseful (sometimes too suspenseful) story line, and flawed characters. Tardif has a knack for setting a creepy scene and found myself with goosebumps more than once. I’d recommend this book to anyone who likes suspenseful, twisty novels with great settings and a flawed heroine that just needs to find her strength to come out the other side.
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Book Review – The Eve Tree by Rachel Devenish Ford

The Eve TreeThe Eve Tree by Rachel Devenish Ford

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I wasn’t sure what to expect while reading this book, and it turned out to be a little more literary than I had anticipated (in a good way!)but overall I adored The Eve Tree. It’s a compelling cross-section of familial shortcomings, and how those shape our lives.

Set on a family farm in a time where a crawling forest fire threatens everything, the family converges to make preparations. Three generations of people that grew up on the land, nurtured from and by it, struggle to come to terms with themselves and each other.

The author’s writing style is simple at time and lyrical at others, but throughout the novel her prose is cohesive fluid and I made myself slow down from my normal break-neck speed while reading it because I didn’t want to miss her evocative turn of phrases. Stellar writing and compelling plot made for a A+ novel!

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Book Review on Masquerade Crew (Day 12 – Kill Me Blog Tour)

It’s day eleven of the blog tour and today over on Masquerade Crew is a review of Kill Me! So hop on over there and check out what Mark has to say about the debut of the Blood Chord Series!

4 Star Review: “The biggest thing for me that brought it down to a 4 from a 5 was the amount of sexual material.”

Source: The Masquerade Crew (http://s.tt/1aQfd)

(Blushes… what can I say? I like my vamps with a little bit of heat :-) )

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You can also check out the tour calendar over on the press page of the Blood Chord Series Site or Kill Me on Amazon if you’d like!

And don’t forget to enter to one one of the Fab prizes for the Kill Me end-of-tour Giveaway!!

eFestival of Words Best of the Independent eBook Awards

eFestival of Words Best of the Independent eBook Awards.

eFestival of Words Best of the Independent eBook Awards

Bellmawr, NJ: The eFestival of Words Virtual Book Fair announces the nominees for the first Best of the Independent eBook Awards. The complete list of nominees can be found at www.efestivalofwords.com.

The eFestival of Words, scheduled for August 17-19, 2012, is the first virtual book fair designed specifically to highlight the best of the independent digital publishing community. The awards program is one of many events being ran in conjunction with the fair. Read more of this press release over on the Blood Chord Series site:  eFestival of Words Best of the Independent eBook Awards.

Book Review on Lindsey Gray’s Blog (Day 8 – Kill Me Blog Tour)

It’s day eight of the blog tour and today over on Lindsey Gray’s blog is a review of Kill Me! So hop on over there and check out what she has to say about the debut of the Blood Chord Series! 

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You can also check out the tour calendar over on the press page of the Blood Chord Series Site or Kill Me on Amazon if you’d like!

Author Interview on You Gotta Read (Day 7 – Kill Me Blog Tour)

It’s day seven of the Kill Me blog tour and today I’m over on You Gotta Read with an insightful author interview. Aside from peeking into my twisted inner-mind, you’ll see why I adore Jodi Picoult (even after her atrocious comments on Indie publishing) and how I feel about gratuitous sex and violence in books.

 YouGottaRead.com

So, without further ado… take a gander at the Interview on You Gotta Read!

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You can also check out the tour calendar over on the press page of the Blood Chord Series Site or Kill Me on Amazon if you’d like!

Hetaera–Suspense in Ancient Athens (Agathon’s Daughter) by Susan Tyrpak- Book Review

I just finished another book and it was so good I had to review it immediately~  Hetaera–Suspense in Ancient Athens (Agathon’s Daughter), by Suzanne Tyrpak.

I received a copy of the ebook after entering a giveaway on LibraryThing (I think)-my memory isn’t what it used to be. Some of you may remember that I reviewed Susan’s other novel, Vestal Virgin, some time ago, and after seeing that this novel was historical in nature too (and because Susan writes that sooo well) I just had to read it.

Unlike Vestal Virgin, Hetaera is a bit tamer, and the steamy moments mostly happen off-camera. But this second novel of Tyrpak’s is just as full of suspense, intrique and carefully constructed (i.e. real and flawed) characters as her debut novel. Like any good suspense novel, there are bad guys and good guys, guys that are good but do dumb things, meddlers and other unfortunate obstacles, and of course a heroine down on her luck.

But Tyrpak does more than just craft a page-turning read– she brings ancient Athens to life through her prose. So much so, that I could practically see it in my head. (Ok, so occasionally Spartacus tried to worm his way into my mind-movie too. What can I say, I’m a Blood and Sand fan :-) ) My only gripe is that I have to wait for the next book in the series to be released. Hope it comes out soon!

Five Daggers,uh, I mean Stars!

FROM AMAZON —-> “Agathon’s Daughter is a tale told by a writer who deserves your attention, a writer who certainly captured mine.” New York Times bestselling author, Tess Gerritsen–Foreword, Hetaera

Product Description
Hetaera–suspense in ancient Athens, is Book One of the Agathon’s Daughter Trilogy.

Born a bastard and a slave, Hestia has a gift: the power to read people’s hearts. And yet, the secrets of her own heart remain a mystery. Hestia’s keen intellect makes her a match for any man. But even a literate slave has little control over destiny. Sold to a prominent statesman with sadistic tendencies, Hestia becomes his hetaera (consort). As her wealth and fame increase so does her despair. She dreams of freedom, but she faces enemies at every turn. When Hestia is accused of murder, the mystery of her past unravels and fate takes another turn.

Hetaera: Agathon’s Daughter was awarded third place in the Maui Writers Rupert Hughes writing competition.

More Freebies! Two from Author Gabriel Beyers

In addition to the limited-time FREE promo for my short fiction collection, SKIN over on Amazon, I’ve just discovered that an author I featured here several months back also has FREE books on Amazon today, so I want to help spread the word for him.

Some of you may remember my feature of Gabriel Beyers a few months ago. If not, you can read his post here. Both of his books are Free today over on Amazon!

First up is Guarding the Healer:

Product Description
When Silas Walker is endowed with the power to heal, he soon discovers that no gift comes without a price.

A man possessed by an ancient evil is taunting the healer with photos of victims brutally murdered and marked with the crude image of an angel, and for Silas the slain are growing more familiar.

After he is given an ominous warning and an unbearable ultimatum, Silas sets out to draw his enemy away from those he loves, and discover the true purpose of his gift, which leads him inexplicably to a troubled young drifter named Tommy.

The Stalker is close on the healer’s trail, bringing with him an army of demons. Silas’s only hope rests in the hands of a guardian angel he doesn’t even know exists.

The Guardian is doing all within his power to save the healer, but he is certain Silas is heading into a trap. Time is running out. War is at hand.

But there is no turning back. For even an angel can’t alter a man’s destiny.

And then there is Contemplations of Dinner also FREE today as well!

Product Description
A secret hidden in a freezer. A lonely woman takes solace in an ancient cat. A boy is trapped in a barn with a gang of killers. An open grave awaits an occupant. A man is encouraged to kill by a long lost love. And more.

Here lies ten eerie tales from the mind of author Gabriel Beyers.

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So what are you waiting for? Go get yourself some Free Books why don’tcha!

(Don’t forget to snag a FREE copy of SKIN while you’re over on Amazon too!)

IWU Holiday Hop Blog Tour 2011

Since I’ve been busy moving (right before Christmas! Ack!) and trying to get BLOOD CHORD ready for publication, I didn’t have time to participate in this years Holiday Hop with many other Fabulous Indie Authors. I do want to take a second to share the information with you guys though.

The hop runs from December 15th to December 25th. Winners will be chosen after the contest has ended, and the results will be posted on their websites/blogs between December 26th-December 31st. The grand prize winner of the KINDLE FIRE will be chosen on December 31st and announced on January 1, 2012 on this site.

To begin, go to the HOLIDAY HOP page. You can blog hop in any order you choose. Start with an author and then work your way through everyone. Click on the NAME of the author to be directed to their blog site. Once there, check out their contest and enter to win. Yes…it’s that easy! And that fun.

This year’s hop has some great authors and terrific prizes. I’ll give you a little taste of some of my favorite authors here:

On Guerilla Wordfare with Lizzy Ford, she’s giving away an autographed, limited edition War of Gods trilogy paperback.

Christine DeMaio-Rice (author of Dead Is The New Black) is hosting a Fab fashioned-themed contest on her blog Fashion Is Murder and it’s so yummy I might have to participate in that one!

Danielle Blanchard is running a contest to promote her new book Death Wish over on her blog.

Kate Danley is giving away book copies and some cool swag too! I want The Woodcutter!

So what are you waiting for? Hop to it!

Indie Authors and Novels: Updates 11/7

Thought I’d take a few minutes to share with you some interesting, and movin-on-up Indie Author/ Novel news. First, the winners of last months Indie Author Rockstar have been announced and it was a tie! Getting some well deserved recognition for the month of November is KATE AVERY ELLISION with The Curse Girl and DAN HOLLOWAY with The Company of Fellows. Both of these winners were voted on by a panel of peers and were selected because they are both exceptional books that should def. be checked out. So what are you waiting on—-> go check!

Also, our very own short story collection SKIN has been chosen for the current collection over on Indie Author Rockstar, so while you’re over there looking around, why not check out the current nominees as well?

The book I reviewed just a few days ago, The Temple, is featured over on Pixel of Ink today. Go Temple, Go!

One of my favorite Indie Authors is Michelle Muto (you may remember I reviewed her Book of Lost Souls a while back) and I just realized I missed her latest release, Don’t Fear The Reaper. Looks like a very interesting novel, and I’ve already added it to my TBR stack on my Kindle app.

One of my favorite Indie Authors regularly updates her blog, and every time I get a notification I have to read it right then and there. I’m addicted. Really. I simply adore her posts and I’m positive you will to. Head over to Shea’s site and subscribe to her updates. I dare you not to love them! (On a side note, Shea also has a new long novella/ short novel out- Dragon Warrior -  and the cover alone is very, uh, exciting.)

That’s all for today! If anyone knows of any killer new releases, Indie Authors making a name for themselves etc, please do let me know :-)

Book Review – The Temple by Heather Marie Adkins

I was looking for a good, witchy, paranormal read over the Halloween Holiday, and boy did I find it. Admittedly, life sidetracked me a little and I didn’t get around to reading The Temple until after Samhain, but that hardly matters.

The story kept me sucked into it until the very end, leaving me tired and with a stiff neck this morning. Not only is the plotting in The Temple original and well-paced, but the writing is tight and clever, with just the right amount of snarky wit. The witch/ Wiccan details throughout the book never feel homogenized or stereotypical, and that is very hard to accomplish these days.In addition, I was particularly enamored with the sections pertaining to The Goddess and the descriptive way the author handles things.

Author Heather Marie Adkins is a practicing Wiccan and Independent author (Indies Rock!) so I’m not surprised at how polished and authentic the novel is. And the life she breathes into each and every character… very impressive! Equal parts mythology and mystery, with a dash of romance– The Temple is a stellar fist novel and I’m excited to read more from Adkins!

Product Description From Amazon:

Vale Avari has a mysterious past and a laundry list of super-powers, but that’s nothing compared to what she finds upon moving from small town U.S.A to jolly-good England.

A chance dart throw lands her in Quicksilver, an off-the-map place with a big problem – people are dying, and word is, it’s supernatural.

At her new place of employment, a temple dedicated to the ancient Mother Goddess, Vale learns something even more shocking – women guards are disappearing at an alarmingly patterned rate; women who possess special gifts like her own.

Supernatural powers aside, Vale isn’t ready to believe in the Wild Hunt as the culprit, and she’s determined to prove the deaths are acts of human violence.

Plagued by a brute with a history of domestic violence and lusting after a dark-eyed man with a secret, Vale has a limited amount of time to discover the killer before he strikes again. In the process, she’ll learn things aren’t always what they seem and the supernatural might not be so extraordinary after all.

The Hunt could ride for her.

Book Review – Diary of The Displaced by Glynn James

I wasn’t exactly sure what to expect when I downloaded this book, but whatever my preconceived notions were, Mr. James blew them out of the water.

Reading this novel felt a bit like falling down Alice’s portal. Given the nature of the plot, it couldn’t have been written any other way. As the main character, James Halldon, wakes up in a strange foreign place, the story begins. We learn more about his predicament as he does. Of course I had to keep reading to figure out where he was and if he’d ever escape.

Diary of The Displaced is a well-written, uniquely crafted, one-of-a-kind book. Part horror, part sci-fi; totally entertaining. On a side note, I’m already reading book two of the series, Chasing Spirits now!