Last Off (A Novella)

by Laughton Chandler

Paperback, First Edition, 152 pages

Published April 15th 2013 by St. Ambrose Press (first published January 1st 2013)

Provided by the author in exchange for an honest opinion.

Four young stowaways — illegal passengers, below even the 3rd class — find themselves on the R.M.S. Titanic, the grandest ocean liner in the world on her maiden voyage. At first unknown to each other, hailing from four different countries, they begin to learn about each others’ pasts as they bide their time in the bowels of the ship, united in their hopes of making a new life in America. When disaster strikes, what will become of them? Who, if any, will be able to escape the epic tragedy Walter Lord described as ‘the death of a small town’?

***

I really like the idea of this book.  There have been so many stories about the Titanic that have focused on the upper class.   It was interesting to hear the story from the perspective of one much lower down- as far down as a stowaway, hidden away in the depths of the ship.  I really enjoyed the reading historical aspect from a different view.  The stowaways each have their story which helped bring them to life.  Some of the writing seemed a bit stiff to me which is why I couldn't quite give the book 4 stars.  That having been said, I think this book would be enjoyed by readers of all ages.  It's a great story!

3.5/5 stars

ASYLUM

Asylum
by Jenny E. Miller

ebook

Published March 25th 2013

This book was provided by the author in exchange for an honest review.

June Foster’s summer is limping along. Her life on a 1950′s farm in eastern Washington is boring–full of milking cows, picking apricots and tending to the chicken coops. Her only friends are her record player and her books. But when gorgeous, turquoise-eyed Frank falls into her world, her life becomes anything but ordinary.

June falls for Frank hard and fast–he’s beautiful, impossibly strong, and capable of things ordinary humans are not. But she’s wary about his father Jonas, a creepy man with an agenda. She should be. Suddenly June is deathly ill, falling in and out of consciousness. When she recovers, June and Frank discover Jonas’s deadly plans for her–and June takes revenge.

Convicted of murder, declared insane and sentenced to life at Washington Pines Sanitarium, June is stuck. Jonas’s plans are reaching her beyond the grave, and she suspects that there’s a lot more going on in the sanitarium than group therapy and electric shocks. Something evil has followed her here, or maybe it was waiting for her all along. If Frank doesn’t break her out soon, she’ll lose her mind–and her life.

***

I wasn't sure what I was going to think of this book.  I thought I would like it but I didn't expect it to consume me the way it did.  I also didn't expect to wind up thinking about people, life and circumstances in different ways.   The story is interesting and unique.  I loved how June's perception slowly changes as she begins to question everything in her life.  As she discovers how different reality can be from perception, she also learns how circumstances can be manipulated to change reality.  There's a bit of everything in this book- humor, love, heartache, and more.  I really enjoyed it!

5/5 stars

Tears of War

Tears of War (Dragon's Call, #2)
by A. D. Trosper

1,456 pages
Published September 12, 2013

This book was provided by the author in exchange for an honest review.

"Old things come again and new things surface."

Faced with a looming war, the riders have no choice but to leave the safety of Galdrilene and reach out to the nations for help. But the Shadow Riders are doing the same and not all nations are opposed to their rule.

New discoveries are made, old wounds are reopened and betrayal hides among welcoming smiles.

As one nation begins to unravel it's clear that some choices, even those made with the best of intentions, can have devastating consequences.

* * *

After reading the first book of Dragon's Call, perhaps my expectations were a bit high. While Tears of War was interesting I felt it didn't quite live up to Embers at Galdrilene.

One of the reasons for this is that, with the introduction of even more characters, it got hard to keep straight who was who. I found myself getting confused more often than not. Perhaps this could have been helped if there had been the customary summary at the start of the book that reminds readers what happened in the first book. However, I think a character glossary at the beginning of the book would have been ideal.

Now that I've gotten my big negative out of the way . . .

The characters in this series are very interesting, and it's fun to get to know them even better. There's clearly - just from the title - more of a war coming, and we get a great battle scene near the end of the book where we learn just how serious this is, and that no one is guaranteed to make it through to the end of the series.

Obviously, the rest of this world is going to have to learn of the good dragons, as a war between the black dragons and the colored ones will be loud and obvious. One village in particular befriends the colored dragons and their riders, and I enjoyed watching these people (especially the children) interact with them.

There's one "mystery" in this book that I wish had been resolved. One of the riders is kidnapped, and it's more than hinted that there's a traitor in the midst of the Dragon Riders. Now, to me it felt very glaringly obvious who this traitor is (although it's always possible I'm wrong!), but it didn't come to a head in this book. Hopefully in the next installment, that will be gotten out of the way quickly.

If you enjoy fantasy, or dragons, or magic, this would be a good book for you to check out!

4/5 stars

Rory

Rory (The Ghosts of Palladino, #1)
by Ciye Cho

344 Pages
Published August 10, 2013

This book was provided by the author in exchange for an honest review.

Far beyond heaven, earth and hell is a city known as Palladino, a place ruled by ghosts and filled with demons, magic, and all sorts of darkly beautiful things. A city where no one can ever escape.

Eighteen-year-old Rory is a cake decorator who makes stunning confections. But no amount of frosting or miracles can save her when a demon kidnaps her—and carries her to Palladino. Here, Rory ends up in a deadly charm school where young women are forced to become companions for the Ghost Lords. And for her to survive, Rory must become everything that she isn’t: graceful, elegant... and perfect.

But nothing is what it seems in Palladino. Not the magic. Not the ghosts. And definitely not Martin Marius, the bizarre Ghost Lord-slash-inventor who is drawn to Rory. For amid a thousand machines and a hundred cats, Martin holds a secret that could change everything. A secret that could either free Rory... or destroy her.

* * *

As always, Mr. Cho's imagination shines brightly in this new series. As with his previous books, he takes us on a fascinating ride.

That said, I have to admit that while there are some really fantastic sections of this book, there are some that I could have done without. Although there are probably plenty of people who love the parts that felt to me as if they were dragging their feet.

One of the mysteries we're presented with at the start of the book - Rory's mother insisting Rory wasn't safe in the dark because of the monsters who come to spirit away young girls - was never explained. We have no idea exactly what her mother knew and how she knew it. I'm hopeful this will be resolved in the next book and is one of those tidbits meant to draw us on to the next chapter of the story.

This is a bit of a quirky read, and I mean that in the best way possible. And I really enjoyed the way Rory wasn't able to abandon who she was and fall in line with the other girls, it made her more realistic. Also, I loved the cake decorating talent!

3.5/5 stars

Moon Child

Moon Child (By Blood, #2)
by Tracy E. Banghart

Published February 18, 2013

This book was provided by the author in exchange for an honest review.

Before Emma's adventures in Oxford, her best friend Diana came face-to-face with a killer...

Diana Calvert is so over high school. Who cares if Olivia hates her? And David needs to forget about having a crush on her STAT. Even Emma’s crazy fashion choices can’t keep Diana entertained. All she can hope for is a dance scholarship to a college as far away as possible from too-small, too-boring, too-nothing-ever-happens New Freedom, PA.

Then Diana meets Nicholas Woodhaven. He’s pale, angry…yet weirdly charming. The more time they spend together, the more she wonders who – or what – he really is. Because he isn’t anything like the other guys she knows. Not with the whole only-going-out-at-night thing. And living with his creepy aunt. And not going to school.

Just when Diana thinks she’s got Nicholas all figured out, people in her small, nothing-ever-happens town start dying. She has to wonder – can she trust him? And even more alarming – could she be next?

A murder mystery with a paranormal twist, Moon Child is best read under the covers with a flashlight...if you dare!

* * *

While this is the second book in the series, it's not necessary to have read the first book before this one! In fact, since this book falls chronologically before the first book, some people may prefer to read this one first.

I have to say, I really liked Diana. I enjoyed the fact that she had much more of a healthy, typical family than so many characters in books - I found it rather refreshing. I say typical, but really the family has enough quirks to keep them interesting. . . .

Now, from the blurb, I'm guessing you jumped to the vampire conclusion. Well, it had been a while since I'd read the blurb when I picked up the book, so I got to the part where things were leaning in that direction. My response: Seriously, another vampire book? But then there was a fun twist that made it more interesting, and kept it from falling into the way-overdone same-ness that so many books these days have.

That said, I'm not big into spoilers, so I'm not going to say much more. I will say this: while Moon Child isn't one of my all-time favorite books (that list is very hard to crack into), it was interesting, and there's a decent chance I'll read it again. Ms. Banghart is a great storyteller, which means she could probably write a good book with any theme. I'm interested to see what she does next!

3.5/5 stars

Dawn of the Knight

Dawn of the Knight
by Robert Beck

248 Pages
Published August 10, 2013

This book was provided by the author in exchange for an honest review.

"One honorable young man can make all the difference..."

In this thrilling and suspenseful action/romance novel, a fatherless Canadian high school boy, Lance Rock, has been raised and trained by the United States government’s former top operative. For his senior year, Lance decides to travel to California in the hope of finding a girlfriend as well as freedom from his regimented life. Once there, he inadvertently ends up in the home of a mother and her two teenage daughters. He is forced to use his skills to defend them and himself from the woman’s ex-husband—a crime lord who has been terrorizing the family for over a decade!

* * *

 This almost felt like two books: The one it wanted to be, and the one it actually was.

It took me a while to get into this one. I felt the opening was extremely weak: The first big chunk of the book happens while the MC sits in an airport. That's right, he's sitting still in an airport. He's looking at a scrapbook, and it sends him into all sorts of recollections. Yes, the info we learn is good, we get to know the character, etc., but NOTHING is happening to progress the story. It's all backstory that could be learned in other ways.

Once we get to the "main" part of the story, I hoped things would be a whole lot better. But the MC, Lance Rock, is beyond clueless (this is part of his backstory, and he has no experience in the "real" world beyond what one friend can offer) - so much so that it's extremely unbelievable.

Lance, as a character, wants to be a good guy, looking out for those around him and protecting those who are "weak." The last 1/4 (maybe) of the book actually became enjoyable for me.

This is a no-thinking-required book, and if I'd gone into it with lower expectations, I think I could have liked the corniness. But I do think said corniness was unintentional.

2/5 stars

Order of the Seers Highlight

  

Order of the Seers FLASH Bookblast!!  

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What would you do if you held
infinite power
in the palm of your hand?

Order of the Seers begins with the journey of Liam and Lilith Knight, a brother and sister who are hunted by The Guild, a ruthless world organization that seeks to capture and exploit Lilith's unique ability as a Seer to envision the future. Soon after they are forced to leave their home, Lilith and Liam discover that she is not alone. Other Seers like Lilith are routinely kidnapped and enslaved by the Guild for the purpose of consolidating wealth and power around the world... see more on Goodreads

In The Red Order, Book II in the Order of the Seers Trilogy:

The Lost Seers embark upon a world-wide mission to save their kind from the tyranny of the Guild and unveil their greatest weapon -  Developed in secret, The Restoration Project has the potential to awaken the supernatural ability within every man, woman, and child on earth and bring down the very foundation of the Guild’s power and authority.

But the Guild has other plans. Driven by the necessity for control, Crane Le Dieu creates The Red Order... see more on Goodreads.

Buy: Direct from Author * Amazon * Barnes & Noble

Order of the Seers

Chapter 1: The End

Sunday, June 22, 2008 

Liam was losing his patience. “Aw, come on! Are you serious? You can’t
want to ride this thing again!”

Instead of answering her older brother, Lilli remained in her seat as
the Ferris wheel conductor looked on expectantly, hand outstretched and
waiting for another two tokens.

The way Lilli’s skinny arms hugged her book bag while she stared
blankly at the pressed metal floor of their “Fairy Land Caboose” made it
hard for Liam to stay angry. The sight of her looking so dejected softened
him enough to give the conductor his fifth set of tokens in less than 45
minutes. Liam settled back into his seat just as the lap bar clamped down
uncomfortably against his thighs.

“Lilli, say something. Why’d you drag me out here if you were just gonna
sulk? I hate the carnival, you know that.”

“I know something… okay? Just… trust me. We have to stay here.” Her
voice was so low he could barely hear her over the wind-up music that was
blaring from the overhead speakers.

“Did Mom say something to you?”

Lilli responded to his question with silence and a barely discernable
shake of her head back and forth. He tried again.

“Lilli! Did Mom…?”

“Yes,” she snapped.

They both fell silent again as Liam took in the latest weird thing of the
day. Lilith Knight, or Lilli as she preferred to be called, had always been
strange. Even when she was five, she could beat Liam at chess lazily, without
even thinking about it. She would find things and give them to you before
you asked for them. Before you, or even she, knew why. Up until recently,
he thought she was just a freak. No biggie. All little sisters are like that, he told
himself.

It was only in the past few months that his perception of her began
to shift, after her prediction that he would catch his new girlfriend, Krista,
kissing his teammate Lance in the locker room after their championship
game. At the time, he’d brushed off her premonition as meddling. Krista
wasn’t even his girlfriend and his team was 1-1 with the whole basketball
season ahead of them.

He’d forgotten her warning completely until two months later when he
ran back into the locker room after winning the championship to get the
jacket he’d left behind and immediately smelled Krista’s perfume. When he
found them, two thoughts overshadowed the scene unfolding in front of
him. The first was that what they were doing wasn’t really “kissing,” though
he could see how a sheltered thirteen-year-old would describe it that way.
His second thought was that Lilli was right; she was exactly right. He was so
stunned by Lilli’s accuracy that he didn’t even bother to disturb them, leaving
his new ex-girlfriend and her new boyfriend to their business. From that
moment, Liam understood that Lilli wasn’t just a freak, or more accurately,
that she wasn’t a freak at all. She was special…gifted.

The sound of Lilli’s sniffling followed by the trembling of her body
as she began to cry uncontrollably broke the long silence that had fallen
between them. What the…, Liam half-mumbled as his mind swung from
irritation to absolute bewilderment. Slowly and deliberately, Liam moved his
palms down the front of his face as he fought the urge to shake the truth
right out of her and end whatever this was. But he couldn’t. She’s so brittle
already, he thought, without any idea as to why. So instead, he reached out
to envelop his sister in his arms, trying to soothe her and comfort her from
some unknown force.

“Lilli, it’s all right. I’m sorry, okay? Don’t cry. Just… tell me what’s going
on. Why are we here?”

Continue Chapter 1 of Order of the Seers HERE.  Read Chapter 1-2 of The Red Order HERE.

My name is Cerece Rennie Murphy, but, among my 5 siblings, I am known and teased by my superhero name, Wonder Worry, (and yes, I am a little worried about your reaction to what I just said). While in my youth, I used my superpower to whip minor setbacks into epic tragedies in 60 seconds flat, I no longer have the time to hone the skills I once possessed, which were handed down to me VERY CAREFULLY by my mother and her mother before. 

Instead of spending my days imagining worst case scenarios, I am now on the front lines of true disaster prevention – treading the fine line between boo-boos and permanent brain damage, fighting crimes of curiosity, omission, absent-mindedness and sleep deprivation. I carry others down the winding, bumpy road of youth that starts out at the nexus of unique and brilliant but intersects with narcissistic serial killer at some distant point I hope fervently to avoid. As you might have guessed, I am a wife and mother of 2 small children. Luckily, my family lights up the sky so I never stumble too hard or lose my way.

I would lament the luxury of needless worry, but alas, I don’t have the energy. As I write this, I am losing a battle fought between my trusty sponge and a hardened glob of half-eaten cheese that traveled from the kitchen to the living room rug in the palm of a very small, but mischievous hand. Its stronghold on the fibers suggests occupancy of at least 2 days, but I’ll never know for sure. Rather than despair, I’ve chosen to retreat to my keyboard, noting that I have won the war - most of the rug is un-cheesed. 

Before I worried. Now, I write. 

I look forward to slowly, quietly, in my own shy way, becoming a part of this community. If you would like to get to know me and my work a bit better, you can visit me... 

Website * Facebook * Twitter * Blog * Google + * LinkedIn * Pinterest * Goodreads

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