Author
Loved this book. Easy for my level 2 reader to read in a cinch. 5 stars for sure. Will buy more
#IARTG THE DRAGON DREAMER by J.S. Burke, #YA #Sci #Fantasy
Everything a sequel should be
By Joshua Blum
“Dragon Lightning” is everything a sequel should be – a story that draws from the world previously created and deepens it while adding more to the characters we’ve grown accustomed to in the first volume. In that novel, Arak, the dragon whose dreams formed the basis for the title of the first book and its plot, is now a proper adult, with a family of his own and more responsibility in his clan. While the first book was really his story, this volume is really about Drakor, a wounded ice dragon that Arak and his dragon and octopus companions discover during their travels. He is questing for a new home for his clan after having a vision of a volcano eruption that would destroy their land. After learning about the way of life Arak and his clan have adopted, Drakor learns about new techniques to not only enrich their lives but to challenge the stubborn leader of his clan who refuses to acknowledge the impending eruption and the danger it might pose.
There is much within the pages of this fantasy story on diplomacy and open mindedness in the face of new customs that is always worth discussing no matter the age. I also especially enjoyed the glossary of (both real and fantastical) terms, the author’s note at the end, and the author’s illustrations, which begin each chapter. While I think this would be an ideal book for an elementary school teacher teaching multiple subjects (e.g. biology, social studies, reading, and history) and looking for a book to tie together themes from multiple subjects, it can be equally enjoyed by adults – I was one of them!
#COZIES #MYSTERY, #LAURAANDGERRY, #SHERLOCK/HOLMES
Daytona Dead Will Run You Off the Road!
By Dellani Oakes
Laura Hamilton and Gerry Fitz are at it again – only this time these amateur sleuths are taking their act on the road and across the border – to America. These super Canadian crime fighters have finally tied the knot and have headed to Daytona Beach, Florida for some sun and fun – and murder.
Shortly after their arrival, the Fitz’s find themselves in a pickle. Someone left a body on the road, and they hit it with their car. When it turns out to be the dead body of Laura’s ex-husband, Lou, suspicion naturally falls on them. These two never do anything by half measures, and this time it’s no different. Join the Canadian couple as they track down the perpetrator of a series of hit and run killings.
Karen Vaughan’s newest book will thrill and delight you. Her unlikely pair of amateur sleuths has a nose for crime and a penchant for trouble. As always, Vaughan’s mystery is layered with humor and witty dialogue.
Of course, the setting is close to my heart. His is my hometown, folks! In fact, if you look closely, you might spot a familiar name on the pages of this snappy novel.
Karen always gives us a great villain and this time is no different. In fact, she has not just one, but two creepy crawlers after Laura and Gerry.
Killer T. Ford is a conceited, egotistical maniac with a history of violence and deceit. He will stop at nothing to keep himself out of prison, even if it means setting someone up to take the fall for his crime.
Dave Meechum is my favorite character. I don’t want to give spoilers, so I won’t explain exactly why – just know that he’s a man to watch.
Come to the sunny beaches of Daytona with Laura and Gerry, but watch out for vintage Chevys in dark alleys.
“Daytona Dead”
#AuthorNetwork , #IndieBooksPromo, #amreading #amwriting #indiepromo
DB Jones
A captivating international mystery — I couldn’t put it down. A great read!
I just finished reading Bentley Square, Time after Time Book four, by Carol Ann Kauffman. I couldn’t put it down. Carol Kauffman carries the reader along the intriguing and dangerous paths of her main characters, Mark and Becca, as they struggle to be together, only to be faced with insurmountable challenges that not only threaten their relationship but their lives. Just when you think you have the plot figured out…Bam…something else pops up, and you can’t let go until you find out what will happen next.
I recommend this captivating international mystery and am eagerly awaiting her next book.
#DYSTOPIAN #BESTSELLER #BOOKBOOSTER
By Sharath C Babu
#COZIES #MYSTERY, #LAURAANDGERRY, #SHERLOCK/HOLMES
Hell Hath No Fury – and all that
By Dellani Oakes
Laura Hamilton’s fiance, Gerry, calls her a corpse magnet. Even if he is the one to find poor Ethel’s body, he still blames Laura.
Working part-time as an assistant building super and full time as manager of the Moose Burger Emporium, Laura’s life is full. Unfortunately, dead bodies cross her path and she can’t resist the urge to solve the murder.
Over Her Dead Body is the second book in Vaughan’s Laura & Gerry series. Funny and light-hearted, it’s also a murder mystery that keeps fans on the edge of their seats until the end.
Vaughan’s funny, sarcastic dialogue peppers the pages as the story revs up and drives onward. Her characters are wacky, dapper, sophisticated, slutty, raving lunatics or all around nice guys.
Over Her Dead Body will keep you laughing all the way to the morgue.
“Dead on Arrival” 
Pleased that I discovered this book
By Ron Miner
Ron Miner, author of “Sketches of a Black Cat”
It has been my good fortune to have had the pleasure of interviewing quite a number of WWII Black Cats in the last few years, and I dearly wish Henry Lawrence had been one of them. But thanks to his daughter, Pamela Ackerson, Henry’s legacy is preserved for any who are a little curious about those night flying Cats, as well as enthusiasts like myself.
Long before he ever operated a radio on board a PBY painted entirely black, ARM Lawrence endured an experience only a few of us can imagine. In vivid detail, he describes the morning of December 7th as he and his fellow crewman struggled to set up defenses, protect planes, and help wounded on Ford Island as the smoke and fires raged in the harbor surrounding them. His indoctrination into the war was sudden. With their PBYs destroyed, he would now embark on a new and different journey to wide-ranging locations throughout the Pacific theater.
This memoir reads easily and feels like you are sitting in Henry’s own living room as he serves up his experiences in training and combat. In my case, the know-how of this “Just a Radioman” was fascinating, as I had yet to meet one who had flown in a PBY. The extent of his Black Cat adventures in late 1944 was another surprise. They were still extremely active and focused on night search and attack missions. The crew launched themselves into numerous glide bombing and strafing runs with enemy shipping that are methodically described, and they were appropriately decorated for their courageous efforts.
#HISTORICAL, #PARANORMAL, #SHIFTER, #ROMANCE, #ADVENTURE, #WITCH’S
mona williams
“Her Soul to Save”
Original, plenty of twists and turns.
By UsedtobeCrankyTop Contributor: Fantasy Books
Samantha Jacobey’s, The Wicked Awakened, is a perfect Halloween read.
Sarah and her childhood best friend, Karen, are off to college. Unlike Karen, Sarah is a dedicated student. Karen has other interests.
I loved the depiction of the two childhood friends and their relationship. I thought the author did an excellent job of portraying the complex ties that bonds friends and how it can mask competing impulses.
In high school, both girls shared an interest in witchcraft. Karen’s ties went deeper than Sarah knew.
Karen is involved with a dangerous coven, who are interested in recruiting Sarah.
Things go bump in the night, creative and original twists. Stories involving the occult. Some of the twists and turns, I didn’t see coming.
Well-researched, excellent read. ARC (Reviewed for Romance Reviews Magazine UK)
By Francine Howarthon
Life in a Harem and the practices defined as part of life within a Sultan’s palace is unacceptable and sexist for 21st-century thinking. Thus the era in which Joanna Thomson’s novel is set, it is nonetheless a safer place than most for those sold into slavery, and a strict hierarchy exists, and woe betides anyone who breaks the rules. Strange as it may seem, women within Harems of the Ottoman Empire stretching to the Barbary Coast, had more rights and power than most European women had within marriages, so sayeth the renowned English aristocrat Lady Mary Wortley-Montague, who stated in one of her 18th century letters: “The Turks govern their country and their wives govern them. In no other country do women enjoy themselves as much.”
Be assured the author has researched her subject matter in depth, right down to names for individual items of clothing worn by women of the Harem, and of a south sea island maiden, though the true heritage of Sarah and the colour of her hair sets her apart from other women, just it had for another who arrived at the Harem and is thus presented to Naa’il Dhar. Throughout the beginning of the novel two stories of two women run parallel and finally merge as one, and yet neither woman meets the other. Whilst Naa’il is the central pin in their respective stories aside from the swashbuckling hero Hassan, Naa’il is a man of his time and his religion, wealthy and powerful, and yet his faith is tested, just as the hero’s faith and belief he can rescue the woman he loves is tested.
Hassan Aziz’s existence as a Barbary pirate is key to knowledge in how to achieve his aims, but the fact he is not what he seems is also reliant on the betrayal of those closest to Naa’il. This is a fascinating novel of south sea island innocence, treachery, lust, and love, the kind of love that comes once in a lifetime if a man is lucky, and both Naa’il and Hassan are driven to acts that astound both in their own way because of two women. So alike is Sarah to Cora, an American captive; Naa’il’s conscience plagues him for his unjust treatment of both women who refuse to submit and embrace his religious dictate. Although I mention love and lust, this is a historical novel combined with romance, and the novel is not a steamy read in the vein of eroticism. The characters are well-rounded, their faults exposed, and the punishment of slaves and concubines, or favoured wives who deceive, can be realistically harsh. All told this is an enlightening read with hints at how one person’s religion can give cause for another to doubt their own.
Viv Drewa 