J159 by Renee Logan ~ 2017


I thought, hell, jury duty never sounded so good, but ...

When Eddie was taken by the system, he thought he was doing his civic duty, not being indoctrinated into a maddening isolation that would leave him fighting for his very breath.





Author: Renee Logan
Publisher: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform; 1 edition (April 29, 2017)
Publication: April 29 1, 2017
Pages: 248
Language: English
ASIN: B071NKN2QC
Author photographer: A friend who enjoys quiet recognition


"This book was provided by Renee Logan in exchange for my honest review alongside my proffered thank-you for asking."



4  Stars


Renee Logan
Could you imagine having to report for jury duty?  What a drag everyone says it is.  Right?
Sure there are those who feel civic duty is the stand-up thing to do so they jump on it; to each their own ~ it's jury duty.

Here in Renee Logan's novel J159 - some of you might wear a smile.  Some folks finish this jury duty wearing one of those smiles and tapping their back pocket as they get on with their lives.

Could you imagine reporting for jury duty - knowing you have no need to worry about making your mortgage payments, nor utilities, nor any monthly premiums - even personal.  Your property will be maintained and all (including Acts of God) repairs will be done promptly.

Sometimes the duty calls for months at a time right?  Your job is in the back of your mind?  No worries.  After you complete your jury duty, you will have your same job at the same level as you were, and where applicable - better.  Plus folks, you are are going to be paid for your services - cash.

Dr. Joyce Wyndham, creator of the Pure Juror System thought - The point is making sure the juror has no worries at all so his/her concentration is completely in the case at hand.  There will be no communication with the outside world.  All of your entertainment are movies and shows and the like that are reruns from years past.  No news or anything that could relate to the case at hand.
Sounds like a good idea for all around and you might be saying to yourself - there is always 'a thing'.  Here's the thing, jury duty is not less than three, not more than five years.

Did your smile go away?  Well, some smile, some frown, and some just shrug their shoulders and say hey, gotta go.  You see it happening around you in your daily life.  Folks coming out and getting back to what they were doing - hell, some even move away and start anew.  The court cases?  Exactly folks! pure justice - no if's and's or rebuttals.  The truly guilty go to prison.  And the truly innocent will do their job ....

This read folks will get you going right off the bat.  And if you are anywhere near the definition of curious, you'll be turning the pages.  Ms. Logan captures the isolation you might feel you should be going through.  Yet, what slowed the read down for me - but first a prelude - what else would you write about - was the constant talk of food.  No, I didn't get hungry, I was stuffed.  I was hoping (wishing?) for an enigmatic twist with the food.

A lab rat waiting for lights named Eddie is the protagonist of this tale.  Folks, when I started this read I was feeling as if the main character was a female - he is not female.  As the story went on ... Delighted by discovery, my face glowed with warmth, is one example that made me feel the character was from our species - feminine; there were a couple here and there that were peppered through the beginning of the tale that made me root for her.  Eddie, he's a he.  I still felt a feminine tone/air for this character as the tale went and I loved how this tale went.  Okay, maybe homosexual?

Lab rat?  Yeah, poor Eddie had to do exactly as the lights indicated.  Red - Wait. Green - You're good. From eating to getting some fresh air to having to get inside in a hurry to ... Eat. Wait. Wake. Wait.
Poor Eddie was living a life of complete isolation - even from other jurors.  No tainting of your decision on the case on hand.

Eddie, I mean Ms. Logan, was describing great inter-monologue as I read.  Major despair riddled off the pages.  Pulled me right in there with Eddie.  A lot of what was going on in his head had set my atmosphere and setting for me - the isolation is a killer.  The sub-plot was excellent, Renee.  The court cases that came and went, time itself and all the background for the tale was moving.

Talk about moving, your pace Ms. Logan was spot on coinciding with Eddie's growth into his nightmare.  It dug my rooting for Eddie a little deeper.

I was hoping for the friends of this tale were actually Eddie's foe and then a super nice twist for Eddie in the end.  The plot was excellent, though, I knew all along whom the ending was in favor for, so, that's why there was that hope for a twist. Some mystery-meat, twisty twist in the end, and more problems for Jack.  That's what I needed.  Folks, Jack is one of the most courageous men you will ever meet.  Pick this read up ~ All in all, this is a really good read folks ~



I needed more twist.  Recommend you ask?, Well yeah, of course, because listen, you really will enjoy getting isolated with Eddie.  I'll go ahead and say you're welcomed.



J159

✒ ✒ ✒

Here's where you can get your fingers on J159:
  •  Amazon ~ Kindle $2.99 ~ Paperback $10.95 USD
✒ ✒ ✒

About the author  ~


Renee Logan is an Australian born writer, artist, and photographer.  She has lived in Europe and traveled the world, but proudly calls Texas, USA her home.

Renee has written and illustrated children's books and continues to do so in parallel to her love of writing thrillers, science-fiction, dystopian, mysteries, and general fiction.

With a predilection for oil painting and a vast array of photography interests, Renee's artistic works can be found among both private and commercial collections, as well as print media and advertising.



Connect with Renee














✒ ✒ ✒

Reviewed by No comments:

The Iron Line by L. M. Merrington ~ 2017


“There’s a ghost train that runs along here at night.
They say it carries the souls of those bound for hell.”



Author: L. M. Merrington
Publisher: PAC Books (December 4, 2017)
Publication: December 4, 2017
Pages: 177
Language: English
ASIN: B077S3T7MM
Cover design: Raewyn Brack
Author photographer: James Walsh


"This book was provided by L. M. Merrington in exchange for my honest review alongside my proffered thank-you for asking."



5 Stars



L. M. Merrington
What a terrific weekend mystery read folks!

This story was incredible. 

The Iron Line is a Gothic murder mystery set with secrets nestled within the rural fictional town of Tungold, Australia in the late 1800's.

A newly widowed young lady by the name of Jane Adams will take you on a journey to hell and back.

Becoming the new gatekeeper from Goulburn, she was capable of handling one daily train that ran through town - and then she deemed herself capable of settling her curiosity of the train that rumbled the tracks every now and then, deep in the middle of the night.

 Locals call it The Ghost Train and it be best to run home and jump in bed and cover your head 'til its gone - lest you die.  Happenings before you know.

 Curiosity killed the cat, yet she had to spy the train and once she did, she didn't die. Though she spied a sight she might've not should've -

yet again, not sure what happened exactly in town there with that murder too, but teaming up with Constable Ward seemed like a for sure plan.  'Even though being a woman', Jane is vibrant and outspoken and after seeing the logic, Ward concedes that two views are better than one.  Off they set to investigate a mysterious ghost train and a murder to them making no sense.

Constable Ward reminded me of Pierce Brosnan with his suave demeanor and I felt Jane looking at him with a cautious female want through the read.  Now she's thinking hold on here, hold on, slow the hell down.  Still wearing mourning threads.  Slow.  It.  Down.  And there were the spots in the read she did halt all, then, the rekindles, then ....

 Both of these characters will wrap you with life in the 1800's - detailing for you the life one would expect back then.  I appreciated the temperament Ms. Merrington, all the characters were distinct with their garb and demeanors, and their patois was accented audibly for me  - thank you. 

The Iron Line is speckled with a bit of history of the land and times along with a handful of issues facing women since time started really.  Tip of my hat for voicing the violence of where one should feel the safety of tranquility at it's fullest Ms. Merrington.  Along with other issues peppered here and there that are alive and kicking and happening today right now as you are reading my review here.

 As I was reading, Jane becomes more lovable by the page.  Stands her ground as her backbone is made of impenetrable granite at times.  She can't stand bullies.  Many of us probably could relate to Jane, not only for her perseverance, but as you read, for her other ingredients that make up her character.     

As the mystery of the ghost train and the murder - and the attempted killing! - continues, you are enveloped in the Victorian Gothic genre for the weekend.  Now folks, I'm down here on Earth, just as the lot of  you - Ms. Merrington pens a sentence that pulls the next one right afterwards and then the sentence pulls the next paragraph right after turning that into the next page which in turns a smile as you close the back cover.  Take my word for it.

Now I would venture to say the question of whether or not that I would recommend this read for your weekend pleasure is naught, eh?
Yep. Thought so.

Folks, you won't see the end.  This is a great mystery with the end having a twist - oh, twisting right around the corner ... and down the hill ~ you can't possibly see it  ~  however, you will absolutely love it!


~ enjoy!


✒ ✒ ✒

Here's where you can get your fingers on The Iron Line:
  •  Amazon ~ Kindle $2.99 ~ Paperback $14.99 USD
✒ ✒ ✒

About the author  ~


L.M. Merrington is an Australian author, freelance writer and consultant.  Her books include two Gothic mysteries, Greythorne and The Iron Line, and a non-fiction communications handbook, Communications for Volunteers: Low-Cost Strategies for Community Groups.  She is fascinated by the Victorian era and particularly enjoys writing Gothic stories and steampunk.

Join Ms. Merrington's mailing list on her site & receive a free short story, Reset.

You'll also get access to exclusive behind-the-scenes content, first-look book excerpts and more.
  




Connect with Ms. Merrington










✒ ✒ ✒



My Review


✒ ✒ ✒

Reviewed by No comments:

Three On A Match: The Terror Project, Volume 2 by Kristi Petersen Schoonover / g. Elmer Munson / Melissa Crandall~ 2017


Three on a match: 
 (also known as third on a match or unlucky third light)
is a purported superstition among soldiers during the Crimean War to World War II
The superstition - if three people light their smokes off of one match, one of them will die.






Author: Melissa Crandall / g. Elmer Munson / Kristi Petersen Schoonover
Publisher: Books & Boos Press
Publication: September 5, 2017
Pages: 252
ISBN-10: 0997932929
ISBN-13: 978-0997932928
Language: English
Cover design: Ana Lucia Cortez
Foreword: David Daniel


4 Stars, 3 Stars, 5 Stars - respectively


"This book was provided by Stacey Longo in exchange for my honest review alongside my proffered thank-you for asking."



Stacey Longo
What a project Stacey Longo has going on around her; The Terror Project - 3 books, 3 novella's per book, 3 different authors per book - each heading for your dreadful and ghastly reading pleasure.

I would say this read was gripping, peopled with vivid characters and pulsed with suspense.  Loved it!

Her project starts with Triplicity: The Terror Project Vol. 1 by Stacey Longo / Tony Tremblay / Rob Smales ~ 2016.  In this read you will find, right along with Stacey, two gentlemen that puts terror rightfully in its place - in your mind.

Triplicity: The Terror Project: Volume 1 sets the stage for introducing part 2 on her terror project and I cordially invite you to read my review on Triplicity.


✒ ✒ ✒

Kristi Petersen Schoonover
Three On A Match: The Terror Project, Volume 2 starts with Splendid Chyna by Kristi Petersen Schoonover describing not all the dead rest in peace.

CeCe, the main character, is the vehicle for setting justice? and entering her own personal Twilight Zone?

Departing the abuse of her old man, whom is now in prison, and trading it in for the abuse of the Florida humidity with her loving new beau, Art, CeCe is starting afresh and wants to go through that good-vibe feeling one should go through when you start again.  The day she moves into her new home - it's raining.  Go figure, right?

She has a daughter of thirteen years, Eliza, whom is usually hushed and waved politely away in a sense during this read for me, (loved her small part), has an older brother, Devon, who is the dark and mysterious sixteen-year-old skateboarder.

CeCe is introduced to the ladies of the cul-de-sac, - gossip congregating at the pool -  while enjoying their drinks and planning a progressive dinner, they do a job filling her in with the history of the neighborhood.

As CeCe grasps the idea of their home is built upon an amusement park that never became, her life is not what she was expecting.  She tries to mend a broken teacup of Devon's from the move and from there on out the read explodes into a great ending.  From the relationship between her son and Art, the music she keeps hearing, all the ladies, her daughter Eliza, and Chyna - the story crescendos into an ending from out of nowhere.  Relief, did come, at least for

Kristi's atmosphere was penned for the reader to feel the eeriness throughout and her pace was wrote in a way you want to turn the page in hopes of relief will be there.  She made you feel CeCe's anxieties and who wouldn't love that in a read?  What slowed me was the gossip around the pool.  Not sure if it was the dialog or the setting or, the events surrounding the scene or maybe the whole mix, or ... sure can't pinpoint it, but, a great read folks, rest assured.


✒ ✒ ✒


All's Well That Ends
g. Elmer Munson
g. Elmer Munson

Cops.  Banks.  Clowns.

Had a blast trying to envision the scenes and I ducked my head here and there, yes.  But the story was too rushed for me to really enjoy the read.  I had to reread a few sentences here and there to understand who did what and when, and who shot who, and where did you pop up from?, and ... so forth.

Folks, depicting chaos and all the action is exciting when using these clown characters.  Crazy scenes were jumping out of the pages as the complete chaos told a story.  Some of you are really going to enjoy this even though I felt rushed.  I did feel the 'change of air' between outside events and inside events.

This is one bank-job you gotta read if you like grinnin' while you read.


✒ ✒ ✒


Melissa Crandall
Thicker Than Water
Melissa Crandall

When you start reading, Melissa will tell you a tale absolutely hooking you from start to finish.  And afterwards? one decent smile of satisfaction.

This was my favorite of the three.  Melissa has a way with prose.  Seasoned.

This tale reminded me of the debut novel Burial Rites (2013) by Hanna Kent.  Thicker than water is a witch story where the hoi polloi's view is thicker than the actual facts the accused is accused of.

All Cora Coleman is actually doing is waiting for husband Brendan to come back home, safely, from his whaling trip.  She gets accused of bewitching Owen at the social to make him come after her, even though he is engaged to another.  As all the trials and tribulations of Cora Coleman's days were unfolding, the ending I gasped as I read who was going to witness what.

The setting and atmosphere - I was there - thank you Melissa.

The character's in this tale were my vehicle for my enjoyment.  Owen, or I should say, smug Owen (boy, I'd like to take him outside and have word or two with him) and his lady Grace Ellison  were depicted exactly who they were.  In fact folks, every character had their own temperament which made them stand clearly apart from one another.

Tension, surprise, heartache, and disappointment play throughout, and you will enjoy yourself as you read how an innocent remark marks a most excellent read - "Mam, What's a succubus?"




Three On A Match: The Terror Project, Volume 2


In back of The Terror Project, there are the stories behind the stories.  A little back-drop of where the authors got their ideas.  So cool.

✒ ✒ ✒

Here's where you can get your fingers on Three On A Match: The Terror Project, Volume 2:

  •  Amazon ~ Paperback $12.99 USD
✒ ✒ ✒ ✒ ✒ ✒
About the authors  ~

Melissa, Elmer, Kristi

Connect with them:

✒ ✒ ✒

 Melissa describes herself as a “tea snob” and loves being outdoors and around animals. A proud native of Upstate New York, she currently lives in Connecticut with her husband Ed and their pets, a lovable Australian shepherd named Holly, and a “damn fine” cat named Ruby.


✒ ✒ ✒

 g. Elmer Munson is a New England writer of the strange and unusual as well as the horrors of everyday life. He lives with his family and a posse of various critters in a creaky farmhouse older than America herself.


✒ ✒ ✒

 Kristi lives in the Connecticut woods with her housemate, Charles, two cats--Poe and Mikey--and her husband, paranormal investigator and occult specialist Nathan Schoonover of The Ghostman & Demon Hunter Show (www.ghostanddemon.com).
She has a passion for ghost stories, marine life, and Tarot cards and still occasionally sleeps with the lights on.
 ✒ ✒ ✒
Stacey Longo
 Writer, creative wit, and beauty to boot. What more could you ask for in your favorite author?
 ✒ ✒ ✒







✒ ✒ ✒


Reviewed by No comments:

Pigeon-Blood Red by Ed Duncan ~ 2016


Engaging multi-twist crime noir



Author: Ed Duncan
Publisher: Ed Duncan (September 2, 2016)
Publication: August 23, 2016
Pages: 238
Paperback
ISBN-10: 0692769471
ISBN-13: 978-0692769478
Language: English
Jacket design: Voyage Media
Author photographer: A friend who likes quite recognition


 "This book was provided by Kelsey Butts in exchange for my honest review alongside my proffered thank-you for asking."


4 Stars


Ed Duncan
On this hard-boiled tale of organized crime, Ed Duncan captivates the reader into a twisted thriller that will fill your afternoon with suspense.

Robert McDuffie, is a failing business man / addicted gambler who owes a substantial amount of money to a loan shark, has a two-week notice to pay his debts.  Knowing he probably won't make the deadline, he sees an opportunity - seizing a pigeon-blood red ruby necklace that is priceless while being driven home one evening.

This three part story starts off in Chicago where Rico Saunders, Frank Litvak's goon, has been assigned with getting back his bosses precious ruby necklace.  And teach Robert a lesson for stealing.

After introducing the characters with vivid color and background, the story leads to Honolulu where the story gets twisted with the suspense you look for in a read.

Robert's wife, Evelyn - a college professor in mathematics, has had enough of her husband's story 'things will get better' but decides she will give the relationship a chance.  After trying for a couple of years to get Robert and herself on a vacation to get things out in the open and get that spark back in their relationship, she books a flight to Hawaii and gives Robert an ultimatum - You're coming or I'm going alone!

Well, you're going alone then.  Evelyn talks her best friend Rachel Gatlin (who has her own secrets) into taking Roberts place.  And, now at the last minute, Robert decides to tag along.

Litvak's henchman tags along too.

Here the story folds into a web of twisted coincidences.  Rachel and Evelyn decide to take in a luau one evening and during the day Evelyn runs into an old college flame. Paul Elliott, who had lost his wife, Jo-Anne, a year earlier was dumbfounded when he saw Evelyn.  Smiles all around, Paul decides to ask Evelyn to a luau.

"What a coincidence!  Rachel and I are going to a luau tonight and Robert thinks he's taking us to dinner, so I guess he's officially horned in.  Why don't we all go together?"

The luau turned into a night they would never forget.

Murder and mayhem breaks out - Evelyn and her newly found protector run and try to hide on an island in paradise.  The scenes of the cat and mouse chase need applaud.  Their thinking on trying to out-think the killer was pretty damn good.  Ed Duncan's description of mayhem in paradise gave the story the great atmosphere you would be expecting.

There are numerous characters I have not mentioned, but, each one adds to the loose ends and clarification you need to settle your anxieties during the read.

With a killer on their ass, a marriage that is over as far as Evelyn is concerned, a best friend? with secrets no longer, an old flame who becomes a protector, a priceless ruby necklace, a crime boss who could reach across an ocean to get things done, Ed Duncan wraps the story up back in Chicago with the loose ends tied neatly together giving this story closure with an approval nod from the reader.

The priceless pigeon-blood red ruby necklace - whose was it anyways?  Where did it go?
Even bad guys have heart?  No, they have their own code of ethics.  What's fair is fair, right Litvak?

There were explanations to the technical verbiage about rubies and precious gems that gave clarification on why this necklace is the star of the show.

Even though the ending wraps up the loose ends it seemed a bit rushed for me.  In some circumstances you could foresee what was going to happen, so, I wished there was a bit more enigma to the end.  This is the first book in his trilogy - it's only going to get better as the next two are penned.



Recommend?  Hell yeah, with many twists and many turns - a great quick-paced afternoon would be in store for you.  Yep, take my word on it.




 Here's where you can get your fingers on Pigeon-Blood Red:
  •  Amazon ~ Kindle $4.99 ~ Paperback $14.73 USD

 ✒ ✒ ✒ ✒ ✒ ✒

About the author:


Connect with Ed






Ed Duncan is a graduate of Oberlin College and Northwestern University Law School. He was a partner at a national law firm in Cleveland, Ohio for many years. He currently lives outside of Cleveland, OH and is at work on the second installment in the Pigeon-Blood Red trilogy.

✒ ✒ ✒ ✒ ✒ ✒

Reviewed by No comments:

A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman ~ 2012


Fredrik Backman's debut novel is about unexpected friendship, love and the importance of surrounding yourself with the proper tools, centering on an ill-tempered, isolated retiree who has finally given up on life just as an unlikely friendship develops with his boisterous new neighbors.

It is a thoughtful insight of the profound impact one life has on others.




Author: Fredrik Backman
Publisher: Washington Square Press; Reprint edition (May 5, 2015)
Publication: Published July 15th 2014 by Atria Books (first published August 27th 2012)
Pages: 337
Paperback
ISBN-10: 1476738025
ISBN-13: 978-1476738024
Language: English
Translation copyright © 2014 by Henning Koch
Interior design: Paul Dippolito
Jacket design: Alan Dingman
Jacket photographs: Getty and Shutterstock
Author photograher: Linnea Jonasson Bernholm/Appendix Fotografi


a Book Clubbin' read


5 Stars



Fredrik Backman
Wow.  One of the best reads I've read in quite the while.

Ove is 59.
He drives a Saab.

People said he was bitter.  Maybe they were right, but, he is the most grumpiest man you will meet.  And with good cause.

Told in alternating chapters, Fredrik Backman's bestselling and humerous debut novel, tells of a grumpy yet loveable man having his self-inflicted solitary world being invaded by 'clueless' neighbors.

Ove is a man who has a short fuse and yells at his 'incompetent' neighbors, does not like Cat Annoyance, and there is no way he will pay a three kronor surcharge.  This lonely old grump who even punches Beppo the volunteer hospital clown for trying to trick him over a five kronor coin is actually hilarious.  After you understand why he does what he does, you'll put a grin on your face for sure.

I personally loved this guy, a man of strict routine.  He gets up everyday, almost for four decades at the same time and makes his inspection rounds through the neighborhood.  As the chairman of the Residents Association, he makes sure there are no cars parked where they're not supposed to park, no vandalism through the night, checks the trash room, checks the traffic signs giving the metal poles a good kick - he checks the status of all things with a good kick.  Even checks door handles by tugging on them three times.  Principled.

Six months after his wife’s death, he’s planning to commit suicide.  Sonja was the world to him.  People said Ove saw the world in black & white.  But she was color.  All the color he had.  It's Tuesday night and he's cancelled his newspaper subscription, switched off the radiators, and turned off the lights.  And tomorrow he's putting up that hook.

But if anyone had asked, he would have told them that he never lived before he met her.  And not after either. 

Suicide and Ove - they didn't mix, time and time again.  The reasons why were actually quite practical and the reasoning behind his thinking was so logical, you grin as you go right along with him.  From bicycles, to radiators, to trips to the hospital, to having to do the most basic things as back up trailers, to even saving a gent's life - these were all hilarious scenes.  Ove just wants to die in peace.  Is that really too much to ask?

The neighborhood is filled with vivid characters, some new and some old, that gave the story depth.  Life is changing around him and when an Iranian immigrant, Parvaneh and her husband Patrick and their two daughter's ages three and seven, move in next door - life definitely had changed.

Her children smile at Ove's grumpiness through the story and I smiled right along with them.
Maybe, in some way the children saw this old bellyacher having a heart of gold.  The pictures they drew for him were very heartfelt, folks.

Here, the story unfolds into a heartwarming and humorous satire tale of a sadness, heartfelt memories, and a love that will always be.  You will be glad to have met Ove.


 ✒ ✒ ✒

Here's a reference I found:


Mr. Backman got the idea for “Ove” five years ago, when he was freelancing for the Swedish magazine Cafe.  A college dropout, he once worked as a forklift driver at a food warehouse, taking night and weekend shifts so that he could write during the day.

A colleague at Cafe wrote a blog post for their website about seeing a man named Ove explode with rage while buying tickets at an art museum, until his wife intervened.

“My wife read the blog post and said, ‘This is what life is like with you,’” Mr. Backman said.  “I’m not very socially competent.  I’m not great at talking to people.  My wife tends to say, your volume is always at 1 or 11, never in between.”

Mr. Backman started writing blog posts for Cafe about his own pet peeves and outbursts, under the heading, “I Am a Man Called Ove.”   Mr. Backman realized that he had the blueprint for a compelling fictional character, and the novel began to take shape.  “There’s a lot of me in him,” he said of Ove.  “When we get angry, it’s about a principle, and we get angry because people don’t understand why we’re angry.”


✒ ✒ ✒


How do you say Ove?

  ✒ ✒ ✒



A Man Called Ove

 ✒ ✒ ✒

 Here's where you can get your fingers on A Man Called Ove:
  •  Amazon ~ Kindle $12.99 ~ Hardcover $15.57 ~ Paperback $9.74 USD
  •  Barnes & Noble ~ NOOK $12.99 ~ Hardcover $16.40 ~ Paperback $10.66 USD
✒ ✒ ✒

About the author  ~



Connect with Fredrik










Fredrik Backman, a blogger and columnist, is the New York Times bestselling author of A MAN CALLED OVE and MY GRANDMOTHER ASKED ME TO TELL YOU SHE’S SORRY. 

Both were number one bestsellers in his native Sweden and around the world, and are being published in more than thirty five territories. His latest novel is BRITT-MARIE WAS HERE. 

He lives in Stockholm with his wife and two children.


✒ ✒ ✒ ✒ ✒ ✒

Reviewed by No comments:

The Woman in Cabin 10 by Ruth Ware ~ 2016


She believes there has been a murder, everyone thinks she's crazy





Author: Ruth Ware
Publisher: Gallery/Scout Press; Reprint edition (July 19, 2016)
Publication: July 16, 2016
Pages: 384
ebook
ASIN: B019DKO5BM
Language: English
Interior design: Jaime Putorti
Jacket design: Alan Dingman
Jacket photographs: Alamy and Arcangel
Author photograher: Nick Tucker


a Book Clubbin' read


3 Stars


Ruth Ware
I was expecting too much from this read.  All the hype and a NY Times best seller?

It opened up with the protagonist, Lo Blacklock, being burgled.  Lo, a journalist who suffers from childhood panic attacks, works for a travel rag and she has landed her dream assignment that would put her back into being noticed as a legit and unbelievable reporter – a week on the maiden voyage of the luxurious cruise liner the Aurora in the North Sea.

After you try to feel for Lo and her shortcomings, I had to give up on her and wished she was the one thrown over the side.  Being burgled in the beginning of the tale, this I believe, sets the stage for her neurotic behavior.  Her constant repetitive petulant dialogue was unnerving and her character did not grow through the tale.  She whined, complained, always drank too much even when she knows she shouldn’t, and her decision making was immature for an adult.

The story was pretty much about the protagonist rather than the woman in cabin ten.  Sure there is a mystery – one night Lo had seen something or someone being tossed over the side from cabin ten’s veranda.  She tells security and the ship still sails – why?  Well, after inspection all passengers are accounted for.

She tells security she did see a woman in cabin ten and actually talked with her, even borrowed some mascara.  When security opens cabin ten, there is no one there and no belongings in sight.  What?

Okay the mystery begins.  From here on out the story needed all kinds of cliff-hangers and excitement, but, to no avail.  This tale was written with a  monotone level of drawn out whining from the protagonist, a pace that was slower than the tortoise in that infamous race and a plethora of one-dimensional characters that contributed pretty much nothing for the tale.  And, a plot that can only be describe as simple.

I am surprised this read had accolades.  The story could have been better as a short-story and then I could see those accolades.  No, on second thought, the tale was too boring and repetitive with Lo.  The read kept me for a couple of reasons:  One, I hoped for intrigue that was going to be on the next page (never happened); Two, had to find out if those accolades were resourceful (they were not); Three, after ¾ of the read what’s a few more yawns?  And four, had to finish it to see how it ended.

The ending did not satisfy me.  There was some excitement I should say with the chase and how that ended and without giving the ending away, I will tell you it does not matter how rich you are and/or what kind of strings you can pull to have your way, happiness will not be found in a dollar bill when it illegally comes floating your way.

✒ ✒ ✒

As an avid reader, I am disappointed in this tale.  Maybe her next one, The Lying Game: A Novel (2017) will be better for my tastes.  Love debuts, maybe - in a dark, dark wood (2015).  At any rate folks, I'd read her work again.





 Here's where you can get your fingers on The Woman in Cabin 10:

  •  Amazon ~ Kindle $11.99 ~ Hardcover $16.48 ~ Paperback $10.03 USD
  •  Barnes & Noble ~ NOOK $11.99 ~ Hardcover $17.41 ~ Paperback $10.55 USD
✒ ✒ ✒ ✒ ✒ ✒

About the author  ~



 Connect with Ruth






Ruth Ware grew up in Sussex, on the south coast of England. After graduating from Manchester University she moved to Paris, before settling in North London. She has worked as a waitress, a bookseller, a teacher of English as a foreign language and a press officer, and is the internationally bestselling author of In a Dark, Dark Wood, The Woman in Cabin 10, and the forthcoming The Lying Game (July 2017). She is married with two small children.

 ✒ ✒ ✒ ✒ ✒ 

Reviewed by No comments:

Feral by Holly Schindler ~ 2014


It's too late for you.





Author: Holly Schindler
Publisher: HarperTeen (August 26, 2014) HarperTeen is an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers LLC
Publication: August 26, 2014
Pages: 437
ebook
ASIN: B00H1UDZ2M
Language: English
Cover art: © 2014 by Mark Owen / Trevillion Images
Cover design: Laura Lyn DiSiena
Author photograher: John Schindler II


Read for my curiosity and a review for Ms. Schindler



 4 Stars




Holly Schindler
Last weekend I picked up a tale that I have been wanting to read for quite some time.  I dove into my been-wanting-to-read-pile and pulled out something, well since its been awhile, something a bit Feral.

Holly Schindler spins a tale from Peculiar, Missouri of two girls meeting under some very strange and horrible occurrences. Some by happenstance? and maybe some by foggy paranormal appearances that happens to the best of us.

Claire Cain is the main character and her journey through this tale takes you on a trek, with Holly's writing making you almost a part of her as she gets to the bottom-line of this mystery.  Ms. Schindler will absorb you into the main character, a bit hypnotically, don't know how, no need to to question it. Just silent thanks to her as you read.

Pace is comfortable and engaging, things are moved along with an outstanding air of mystery through each event.  A few of the scenes were depicted quite vividly, so the pace she has set might want to be picked up bit for a few of you readers.  Maybe not.  Holly has a flair describing gore.

Claire and her dad Dr. Cain arrive in Peculiar from Chicago in a '72 Gremlin on the onslaught of an ice storm.  Her father is on a Sabbatical and she is on one herself from a very personal event she rather would keep covered if all possible.

Claire discovers Serena Sims, the young missing girl.  Dead and surrounded by feral cats shortly after arriving, but, long before this bad feeling she was living through at the 'Bout Out when they first arrived.  'Bout Out is the general store in these Peculiar parts folks.

Old man, the fueling scene, the warning Claire thought she heard; I perked my ears up on the old man ... not as in the bad guy, more as a Stephen King innocent by-standing character coming off his pages visiting yours Ms. Schindler, and Claire.

As the investigation gets under way, local Sheriff Holeman whom hasn't even as much as written a speeding ticket for quite the few years, so ... small town USA, did he overlook a few things?

Here's where the story spins for Claire as you can imagine, a junior in high school and has an innate ability to see pretty much right off the bat, 'Hey, somethin' wrong here' - so she sets off to set things straight, again.  She finds herself taking a different look at her surroundings.  Her senses start talking with her and its always a good thing to listen to your gut.  Right?  Here we go ~

Fighting inner turmoil and going on instinct - it was not, what they thought the death was of Miss Serena Sims.  Claire needs to find out what really happened to Serena before she becomes the next victim.

Filled with great flow to the plot and character development, especially right at the end with the characters.  Sure, I enjoyed the hell out of Becca Holeman's character, she has this air of royalty with - she pretends she doesn't want to be adorned and admired.  What a snoot.  Chas, Casey, and Owen, ordinary high school kids.  Each owning their own and, owning their part in the story.  Ms. Isles reminded me of my high school poetry teacher to the T, other than ending up with an abuser.  Mm.  Moving on ~

Here we have a tale of suspense and mystery flowing pretty damn good, there were parts that gave me a speed bump with me imaging the scenes.  For example, when Claire was asked to approach Mavis' desk, I was there with only those two, then R was there.  Huh?, where did you come from?  I understand its a classroom, yet the writing made me feel there where only two people by her desk.  There were a few spots like that which made me feel like I should be the one looking over my shoulder to see who is all there with me at the scene.

Ice taking the stage with fog taking center rolling around in the story, my vivid imagination enjoyed the eerie coldness.  Juxtapositions filled the atmosphere with this read.   From Claire and Serena, Becca and Chas, boilers producing heat next to icy surroundings, fog, screams, silent screams producing 'This-can't-be-happening-to-me-right-now-oh-but-it-is' bestows for nothing but great reading folks.  So what happened to Serena?  Ms. Schindler is taking you into the woods and, and, well, you're coming along.  And nothing else matters - it's Feral.



Enjoyable for the suspenseful mystery lover



Here's where you can get your fingers on Feral:

  •  Amazon ~ Kindle $3.99 ~ Hardcover $11.01 USD


✒ ✒ ✒ ✒ ✒ ✒


About the author  ~

Author Holly Schindler

Connect with Holly









Holly Schindler is a hybrid author of critically acclaimed traditionally published and Amazon bestselling independently published books for readers of all ages.  Her work has received starred reviews in Booklist and Publishers Weekly, has won silver and gold medals in ForeWord Reviews Book of the Year and the IPPY Awards, respectively, has been featured on Booklist's Best First Novels for Youth and School Library Journal's What's Hot in YA, and has been a PW Pick of the Week.

Schindler is also owned by a Pekingese named Jake, and is currently consuming large quantities of coffee while working on her next novel.

Readers can keep up with the latest or get in touch at HollySchindler.com


 ✒ ✒ ✒

Enjoy my  Spotlight with Holly

✒ ✒ ✒ ✒ ✒ ✒

Reviewed by No comments:
Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)