GUEST REVIEW BY ENA - HOLD ME BY BETSY HORVATH

BLURB taken from Goodreads
Katie McCabe's life is going nowhere fast when FBI Special Agent Lucas Vasco jumps into her car at an intersection. Luc, his undercover guise blown, is on the run from the Mafia and expects to be killed at any moment. What he doesn't plan on is finding himself attracted to the firecracker beside him. He feels compelled to protect her when her life is threatened, and insists she stay with him for her own safety.

After learning she has become the target of a psychotic hit man, Katie is whisked off to Luc's house to hide. Once there, she's shocked to discover that she and Luc have an unexpected connection—a connection Luc already knew existed, but withheld. Will their intense attraction reach flashpoint despite their misunderstandings and the pain of the past?

The pace of this book was quite a medium steady one that kept my interest all through the book and plot. Luke is an FBI agent who is being chased by gangsters, to escape from them he jumps into Katie's car. Unfortunately this then puts Katie into great danger, so Luke takes her to his home where he can better protect her from the gangsters. I liked the characters of Luke and Katie, I enjoyed reading how their unlikely meeting eventually turned into a relationship with them becoming boyfriend and girlfriend.

Available from Amazon.com, Amazon.co.uk £3.49 on Kindle.

THE GIRL IN THE BOX BY SHEILA DALTON

Two women must overcome a shared tragedy. A mute Mayan girl held captive in a crate in the Guatemalan jungle, a bigcity psychoanalyst with a rescue complex, and a journalist with a broken heart are the characters in Dalton's second literary novel. 

In places, this book has a surreal quality, though the issues, civil war in Guatemala, Mayan genocide, and professional misconduct among big city psychoanalystsare real and gritty. The themes range from the clash of cultures to the many forms love can take, and how we confuse and abuse them. The Girl in the Box is a psychological drama of the highest order and a gripping tale of intrigue and passion.

To be totally honest I was unsure as to how I would get on with this book, but I was almost instantly drawn in to the mystery of the tragic life of Inez. Jerry is on a trip, a journey of discovery, however what he actually discovers ends up changing his life forever and ultimately leads to his death.
I am trying not to give away spoilers as such but I will say things are not always as they seem in the book. People are also not always what they seem either. Jerry's death ends up turning the journalist love of his life Caitlin into a type of detective. The first thing Caitlin has to do is accept the death of her lover. Next she has to slowly piece together what she knows, and what information she can glean from others until all the pieces fall into place. During her fact finding she comes up against officials some corrupt,others that turn a blind eye and those who are true to their professions as jerry had been to his very end. I couldn't help but love the character of Inez and when you learn her full story your heart breaks for her, she has seen so much and been through so much in her relatively short life. Its such a shame she start out being locked in a box and ends up being "locked up" again, though in different circumstances. I wish to thank Sheila for sharing this book with me, and her instinctively knowing even before I did myself that I would enjoy this book immensely. I truly wondered at the end of the book if this was actually a true story?

Available Amazon.com, Amazon.co.uk £14.39 in paperback and £4.59 on Kindle. Also available as an ebook from google books Canada & US http://books.google.ca/ebooks?id=tq4igPq...

AUTHOR INTERVIEW - TONY PASSARELLI

1. What is your name, where were you born and where do you live now?

I’m Tony Passarelli and I was born and raised in Nottingham, England.

2. What is the name of your latest book, and if you had to summarise it in less than 20 words what would you say?

Nash of the Thieves’ Guild. It is a short, slightly rude, fantasy comedy.

3. Who is your publisher? or do you self publish?

I self publish. The potential of the internet is just starting to be realised I suppose. Now it is no longer a case of ‘not what you know but who you know’. Sites such as Lulu and Create Space have opened doors to millions of independent authors all across the globe. The power of publishing has shifted in favour to the author.

4. Which of your books were easier/harder to write than the others?

My novelette Strength of a Giant was the hardest to write. I was dealing with central characters such as Emanuel (the Son of God) and the Archangels, all of whom had mental abilities far superior to my own. It was a challenge to write for such extraordinary personas.

5. Do you have plans for a new book? Is this book part of a series?

Yes, it is called The Book of Biden. It is a fantasy series. The book itself will be broken down into individual novels.

6. What genre would you place your books into?

With the exception of Strength of a Giant which is Science Fiction, I write Fantasy.

7. Do you have a favourite character from your books? and why are they your favourite?

That’s a tough call. I imagine that most authors have a varying degree of affection for all of their characters. You know you cannot have Dumbledore without Voldemort...

I’m fond of the boy thief Nash. He’s at an age where I can throw him into the dangerous adult situations but still young enough to get some humour and comedy out of his naivety.

8. Where do you get your book plot ideas from?

I try to write a truthful story. It doesn’t matter that it is fantasy fiction as long as the truth is visible. What would the character do next? How does he or she get from location A to location B? I find that if I give the character their own voices then they begin to tell the tale themselves. I as the author am just the channel or vessel.

9. Do you gift books to readers to do reviews?

Both of my short stories are available from Smashwords for free downloads.

https://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/Tone

If anyone would like to receive a hard copy of Strength of a Giant for review, then they should contact me in private message on Goodreads and I will post out a paperback version for them, free of charge.

10. What do you think makes a book a really good/bestseller ?

Reviews! Just take a look at the best sellers lists on Amazon. They have hundreds and hundreds of reviews! The only way for a book to get noticed and get the sales is to have a good batch of reviews from the early days of publication.

11. Have you ever suffered from a "writer's block"? What did you do to get past the "block"?

You’ve got to bottle the inspiration when it crops up. Pen and paper in every room of the house so that when an idea pops up you can write it down.

Know when to walk away...

Sitting at a computer screen with writers block can drain your morale. Never get disheartened by it, if the writing isn’t happening then go and do other things. When the inspiration does come, you can get writing, because you have got all those other chores out of the way.

12. Which format of book do you prefer, ebook,hardback, or paperback?

A good paperback. I guess I am still old school.

13. What are you currently reading? Are you enjoying it? What format is it?(ebook, hardback or paperback)

Birthright, Book one of Ilona the Hun by Erika M. Szabo. It is a romantic fantasy by a new and upcoming independent author.

14. Do you think ebooks will ever totally replace printed books?

No, but in future I can imagine that the hard copies will be sold to customers with a free digital download of the online version. A bit like the digital copy of a film that is supplied with the DVD version.

15. What do you think about book trailers?

It’s a good idea to have one if you can, extra advertising and publicity.

It will be interesting to see if the video reviews take off. Amazon has the option already available to customers.

16. What piece of advice would you give to a new writer?

First and fore-most, write a great novel. Then proof read and edit. Take a book off your bookshelf and understand the layout of the text and how paragraphs are set. When you are confident that your book is of equal quality to the mass paperback editions then you can self-publish.

Where can readers follow you?

Goodreads Tony Passarelli

http://www.goodreads.com/tonypassarelli

Amazon Tony Passarelli

http://amzn.com/e/B004CA39J8

Thank you Tony for taking the time out of your busy schedule to take the time to do this interview for my blog!

101 THINGS YOU THOUGHT YOU KNEW ABOUT THE TITANIC BY TIM MALTIN

Please note; This cover is from a previous addition of the book, there is a new addition due 29/11/11 Blurb is taken from Goodreads and added to from Netgalley Information.

The sinking of the Titanic has long aroused debate, mysticiation and disagreement. This book presents the facts behind the fictions.

Ever since that night, fact has merged with fiction about what really happened. Now, for the first time, Titanic expert and author Tim Maltin gathers together all the key elements surrounding the disaster and presents a fascinating, compulsive and accurate account of what really happened. Taking as his lead one hundred and one oft-quoted theories about the fateful night, Maltin uses eyewitness testimony to rigorously examine each one in chronological order, and in so doing tells the true story of the Titanic and the night she sank with the loss of 1,500 lives.

(At the request of the publishers my review for this book has not be published more than 30 days prior to its publication date of 29/11/11)

I found this book very interesting, I am kind of interested in the Titanic anyway and this was brilliant, first of all it listed 101 facts about the Titanic, then the book went through those facts, told you if they were fact or fiction and then went on to tell you the story behind each fascinating fact.

For anyone who collects Titanic memorabilia or is interested in the story of the Titanic this book is a must. It would also be suitable for people who are interested in ships as there is a lot of information in the book about how the Titanic was built etc.

AUTHOR INTERVIEW - DEVYN DAWSON

What is your name, where were you born and where do you live now?  

My name is Stefanie Dawson - I write under the name Devyn Dawson.  I am from Oklahoma City, Oklahoma and I live in coastal North Carolina.

What can we expect from you in the future?  ie More books of the same genre? Books of a different genre?  

In the very near future, I will be releasing a novelette The Seduction.  It is a diary of Allie Casey from The Legacy of Kilkenny.  I’m currently working on Malevolence which is the sequel to TLOK, crossing my fingers and toes it will be out by Thanksgiving.  I have outlined a book that will target 10 - 14 year old girls.  It is a story about one girls quest to fulfill her friend’s final wish as she is dying from cancer.

 

Do you gift books to readers to do reviews? 

I am very happy to gift books for reviews.

 Do you read all the reviews of your book/books?  

At this point in the game, I have read every review both public and private.  I find they are a good learning tool.  I am surprised how many people want to experience more dream walking in the future books.  I have rearranged some story lines in the second book to include dream walking.

What are you currently reading? Are you enjoying it? What format is it?(ebook, hardback or paperback) 

 I am currently reading an Amanda Hockings book - Switch.  I have never read any of her books and wanted to experience it myself.  I am enjoying the book, I find that even though there are mistakes, I can overlook them and fall into the story.  I say kudos to her, she has a wonderful future ahead of her.  I have a Nook Color that I love and use every day.  I’m still a book hoarder (I work part time in a book store….I spend more than I make)

What do you think about book trailers?  I love book trailers, I find it cool to get the vibe of the book from the trailer.  I also enjoy having a visual on the characters.  My book trailer can be found at http://youtu.be/dchkwF1Jb8E

Where can readers follow you?
I love to hear from followers!

Your blog details?  http://devyn-dawson.blogspot.com/
Your web site ?  www.devyndawson.com
Your facebook page?  http://www.facebook.com/pages/Devyn-Dawson/145383098868553
Your Goodreads author page? http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4966012.Devyn_Dawson
Your Twitter details? devyndawson

Thankyou for taking the time out of your busy schedule to do this interview for my blog!

THE LEGACY OF KILKENNY BY DEVYN DAWSON

This book is the story of Abel Casey, an ordinary boy until the stunning Pru Phelan came to town and introduced him to his destiny. Pru has had a vision that the Great Wolf has been born and he can be found in Piedsville, Oklahoma and his name is Abel Casey. Pru's main assignment? To kill Abel... at least that is make his own family believe he is dead. The Great Wolf is expected to become the leader of all the packs.Abel starts training and he begins to have the abilities of a werewolf, but he hasn't shifted and he doesn't want his family to believe he is dead. Will Abel be able to convince the pack that he can protect his own family? Just when everything seems to be going okay, Abel's sister Allie meets a new guy named Arien. Arien isn't just any guy, Arien is a vampire and he knows the Phelan pack has found the Great Wolf. Arien wants to know who it is and he is threatening to turn Allie into a vampire if they don't tell him. Allie is already moody, will she contract the Human Vampiric Virus (HVV)? Abel wants a relationship with Pru, but Pru only has eyes for her bodyguard, Oakley. The story will have you cheering for the good guy.... hating the bad guy... dreaming of the sexy werewolves and loving to hate the vampire bad guy Arien. 

The multiple scenarios may be too much to bear for our newly unshifted werewolf Abel, can he save his sister? Will he find love? Will Pru be able to fulfill her assignment? Will Allie really end up becoming a vampire? Who will be brutally murdered? 

This book I feel had its own story yet it has also set the scene and introduced us to the characters of what could be a very promising series. At first I though the book was going to go somewhere along the line of being like Twilight however that didn't last long, I would compare this more to the Rachel Vincent Shifter series. This is more aimed at the YA market however is still very readable and enjoyable by adults in my opinion. I enjoyed how the story is told from Pru or Abel's points of view.I loved the characters, Dolly and Prudence who are both strong, no nonsense females who can stand up to the males in the pack. I initially had my suspicions and doubts about the character Parker and his role in events but warmed to him as a character as the book progressed. The book has Weres, Witches, Shamans and Vampires so for me the plotlines seem endless and the possibilities exciting!

The cameraderie the pack has is well described and the whole love elements in the book of will Pru and Abel become an item? Will Pru and Oakley get together? etc keeps you guessing well into the book. the whole pack, imprintinng, rogue/stray wolves and mates for life themes have been done in books I have read before so where easy to follow and grasp. I did enjoy the dream walking, and shaman aspect which I hope will be explored further in forthcoming books, there has to be more books surely! The book ends in a way that "business has yet to be taken care of. There were many threads running through the book to keep track of and keep you interested such as the question of would able have to fake his death so that his family would have a safe future, in the end (and I think I can say this without revealing spoilers) the decision is taken out of his hands, and everyone else's that were planning it too. I will definitely be looking out for book 2 which I think maybe even better as in a way book 1 ended at the begining of

journey on his new life path.

Available Amazon.com, Amazon.co.uk £0.86 a brilliant bargain not to be missed!!

AUTHOR INTERVIEW - STEPHEN GRAFF

1. What is your name, where were you born and where do you live now? Stephen Graff.  I live with my wife and daughter in Woodbury, NJ.
2. Did you always want to be a writer? If not what did you want to be? Since I can remember, I wanted to be a writer.  
3. When did you first consider yourself as a "writer"? When I was a kid, I would create comic books by cutting up brown paper bags.  My mother read a few of them and thought something was wrong with me.  That's when I first considered myself a writer.
4. Did it take a long time to get your first book published? It took me over a year from first starting the novel to its final publication.  Probably closer to 2 years.
5. Do you work another job as well as your writing work? I'm a full time public school elementary teacher. 
6. What is the name of your latest book, and if you had to summarise it in less than 20 words what would you say? The name of the book is RIVER DAWN.  A teenage girl takes a harrowing journey down a flooded river with her family after an environmental deluge. 
7. Who is your publisher? or do you self publish? I self-published the novel.
8. What can we expect from you in the future?  ie More books of the same genre? Books of a different genre? I'm thinking of writing a sequel to RIVER DAWN.  But I'm also thinking through a story about a family of crows and their relationship to a troubled boy and his abusive father.  The working title is THE FLOCK.
9. What genre would you place your books into? I like dystopian fiction, but I'm interested in pre-dystopian fiction: looking at how characters become despots and how societies fall.  That's the type of setting described in RIVER DAWN.  Ruthless egomaniacs are creating their own enclaves along the shores of a once great river.  Fifteen year old Alice is moving through this world and she's more aware of what's going on than her scientist father.
10. Do you have a favourite character from your books? and why are they your favourite? I try to find something positive or at least interesting about each character.  Even a villain has to have layers that make him or her more complicated than just simple black and white.
11. Do you have anybody read your books and give you reviews before you officially release them? Yes.  I have a number of people, including a good friend who is a long-time playwright, to give me feedback on my work.
12. How do you come up with the Title and Cover Designs for your book/books?Who designed the Cover of your books?  I designed the cover for RIVER DAWN.  I wanted to convey the idea of a young girl remaining positive despite the growing darkness that surrounds her.
13. How do you market/promote your books?  I've used facebook and google ads, but I'm trying a more laid back approach by joining social sites and getting involved in conversations with writers and readers.  Also: requesting reviews.
14. What do you do to unwind and relax? I play guitar and do some songwriting.  I spend time with my family.  And I started bee-keeping this past year.
15. Are there any hidden messages or morals contained in your books? (Morals as in like Aesops Fables type of "The moral of this story is..") I'm a Christian.  Though I'm interested in writing stories that present characters of all types as honestly as possible--and I don't shy away from having characters behave badly if that is what they would do--there are always moral/ethical underpinnings to my writing.
16. Is there a certain Author that influenced you in writing?  The writer I admire the most is Flannery O'Connor.
17. What is your favourite book and Why?  Have you read it more than once? My favorite all time novel is The Brothers Karamazov because it is so many things that a great novel should be: a great story, a powerful allegory about family and society, a satire, a comedy, and a tragedy.
18. Do you think books transfer to movies well? Which is you favourite/worst  book to movie transfer? Most books don't transfer to movies very well at all.  I think the older British classics fair the best in the transfer.  But I've never read a truly great book that was better as a movie.  I'm a bigger fan of original screenplays--like CHINATOWN and CITIZEN KANE--that read like good books.  The great screenwriters are not married to a novel with trimming being the only option.  They can conceive a story that takes 118 pages to tell, and they don't have to excise the good parts.
19. What are you currently reading? Are you enjoying it? What format is it?(ebook, hardback or paperback) I'm reading two books.  One is THE HIVE by Bee Wilson.  No joke: that's her name, and it's purely coincidental that her first name is Bee and she wrote a book about honeybees.  The other book is a young adult classic: THE GIVER.  I've always loved good young adult fiction.
20. Do you think ebooks will ever totally replace printed books? No.  And thank goodness that they won't.  We need to hold onto past traditions like printed books.  Giving them up is like giving up photographs, movies, and oil painting.
21. Do you think children at schools these days are encouraged enough to read? and/or do Imaginative writing?  Yes.  But they're discouraged by the cookie cutter approach that is the obvious but unfortunate translation of the American education agenda.  I think the rest of the Western world has its priorities in much better shape. No matter what, though, children still read and still utilize their imagination.  In fact, they're born with the innate quality of using their imagination.
22. Is there a book you know you will never read? Or one you tried to read but just couldn't finish?  I'll never read a book written by a despot like Hitler or Mao.  I know I probably should because such reading fosters better understanding of the minds of these men.
23. What piece of advice would you give to a new writer?  To find as many avenues as possible for your writing so that if one avenue doesn't allow you a sense of accomplishment, you're hopefully finding that another avenue is more fulfilling.
24. Do you or would you ever use a pen name?  I don't have a pen time at the present time, but there's always a possibility of having one in the future, although I never understood why writers needed used pen names.

Where can readers follow you?

Your blog details? google+: https://plus.google.com/102979851392584471030/posts
Your facebook page? http://www.facebook.com/pages/River-Dawn-A-Novel/189519061111772
Your Goodreads author page? http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5140128.Stephen_Graff
Your Twitter details?And any other information you wish to supply? amazon site: http://www.amazon.co.uk/River-Dawn-ebook/dp/B005DHYS80

Thank you for taking the time out of your busy schedule to take part in this interview, I am looking forward to reading your book!

SATURDAY SNIPPETS! 29/10/11

This weeks Saturday Snippets are from Confessions Of A Wedding Planner by Imogen Edwards and The Gathering by Kelley Armstrong.

CONFESSIONS OF A WEDDING PLANNER

 BY

IMOGEN EDWARDS

Keeley and Danni sit on the sofa drinking their various beverages, staring at the bunch of grapes, whilr Bernard suggests weekends for the wedding. Keeley has suggested the end of July and Bernard is persuading otherwise. "The first week like Posh and Becks, is fine," he says " The fourth of July was their date."

"Around then," nods Keeley. "Should be good." 

"Great," says Bernard "Any other ideas? Food? What's your favourite dinner? Your favourite meal?"

"Oh it's got to be Christmas Dinner with all the trimmings,"she replies

I look at Bernard and I can see him wince..............

THE GATHERING

BY

KELLEY ARMSTRONG

I was ready to pay a visit to Mina Lee. Daniel wanted food. Now, I know teenage guys like to eat.

Teenage wrestlers really like to eat. Well unless they're trying to get into a lower weight class, but Daniel never does that. So it wasn't surprising that he'd want to grab food.

"I feel like fish" he said "lets swing by Pirate Chips,"

"Hard to eat fish and chips while you're driving,"I said.

"We'll dine in."

He started toward the sidewalk. When he realised I wasn't following, he turned.............

I have purchased both these books so reviews for them will be appearing on my blog at some point in the future.

AUTHOR INTERVIEW - ISIAH HURTS

What can we expect from you in the future? ie More books of the same genre? Books of a different genre?

I’m working on another poetry book I’m planning on releasing in 2013. I’m also getting ready to start work on my second.

How long have you been writing?, and who or what inspired you to write?

I been writing every since 15. My teacher made me write a poem for a class assignment. I knew I had a gift for writing, but it wasn’t until after I won an award for my poem life. That I knew I had a gift. I was inspired to starting writing full time after I won a couple award for poems I have written.

What genre would you place your books into?

I’m going to have to say poetry and self-help cause a lot of my poems have messages in them, that we all can learn from.

Where do you get your book ideas from?

I get my ideas from things that I am inspired about, or feel empowered about. Such as social issue. A lot of the ideas usually comes to me. Whenever I thinking or have a lot on my mind.

Have you ever suffered from a "writer's block"? What did you do to get past the "block"?

I usually don’t suffered from writer block cause I usually write when ideas, and thoughts starts coming to me. I don’t like my poems to feel rushed. So I just let it come to me.

Is there a certain Author that influenced you in writing?

I would have to say Maya Angelou is one person I’m influenced by coming on she’s a legend. But the person who has the biggest influence on me. Is Lady GaGa and Ashanti. I like Ashanti cause she has the ability to go deeper then what most poets are willing to go, and she follows her own rules when it comes to writing poetry. And don’t follow the rules that most poets. Which she got a lot of flack for when she wrote a poetry book. But her writing reflections more on emotion then story telling. And that something I want to carry on in my writing

Do you think ebooks will ever totally replace printed books

? No. There are always people who are going to like the touch, smell and fell of the book. And theirs always going to be somebody who is not tech savvy. Their always are going to be people who like to search for new authors on the book shelf.

Are there any New Authors you are interested in for us to watch out for? and Why should we watch out for them?

Poet Michael J. Burt. I think he is very gifted . I think he got a lot more in stores for us, he's very creative and ahead of his time. Hannah Faye the author who wrote a rappers college. Yes I love that book.

Is there anything in your book/books you would change now if you could and what would it be?

When it comes to my first book. I think I probably would have stuck to my own writing style instead of trying to be Maya Angelou. I was 18 and it was my first book and I was writing the type of poems my peers was encourage me to write, but hey it was a learning experience. That’s why I stuck to my guns on this book.

What piece of advice would you give to a new writer?

Be original find your own style. You really have to love writing in order to stay in this game. You have to be consistent with your book promotion. You have to really believe in your talent. Think about the message you are trying to get across with your book. Connecting with other authors is very important. Learn from others. Read! Read! Read! It surprises me how many authors don’t really read that much. Reading perfects your writing talent. It keeps the creative juices flowing. Read in various genres as well. And lastly, always keep perfecting your craft.

Where can readers follow you?

Your web site ? www.isiahhurts.webs.com
Your Goodreads author page? Goodreads.com/isiahhurts
Your Twitter details? www.twitter.com/isiahhurts