Review "The Gatekeeper's Sons"

Some information

Title: The Gatekeeper's Sons

Author: Eva Pohler

Pages: 384

Published: August 2012

Publisher: Green Press/Eva Pohler

My source: the author (thank you!)

My score on Goodreads: 4 stars

Blurb

Fifteen-year-old Therese watches her parents die. While in a coma, she meets the twin sons of Hades—Hypnos, the god of sleep, and Thanatos, the god of death. She thinks she's manipulating a dream, not kissing the god of death and totally rocking his world. 

Than makes a deal with Hades and goes as a mortal to the Upperworld to try and win Therese's heart, but not all the gods are happy. Some give her gifts. Others try to kill her. 

The deal requires Therese to avenge the death of her parents. With the help of Than’s fierce and exotic sisters, the Furies, she finds herself in an arena face to face with the murderer, and only one will survive.

My review

Good book! This was my first audio book and I have to say I don't like audio books as much as I hoped I'd do. That's the reason why it took me so long to finish this book. The story was very good so that's not why I had to plough through it for months. 

In "The Gatekeeper's Sons" we meet Therese, 15 y.o., who just lost her parents in a terrible accident. The only problem is: the accident wasn't just an accident. It was a brutal murder and the person who pulled the trigger, wanted Therese to be dead too. In a way Therese would've liked this outcome better too, but the gods didn't believe she was ready to stop her life. 

The gods... in this story we are confronted with the Greek gods in all their glory. As a teacher in Greek and Latin I couldn't be thrilled more. I was frightened there would be lots of incorrect details, but I was happy to see Eva Pohler did a lot of research. Everything made sense and the whole story was poured in a beautiful whole. The gods were presented in a very good and complete way and the characters in the book were tangible, understandable, real,... The mix between gods and human beings was lovely.

After the accident Therese meets these gods very often. She even falls in love with one of the darkest gods in Greek mythology... Hades' son: Thanatos. His name means "Death", his job is to guide dead people to the underworld, the empire where his father is king. Why couldn't Therese fall for the cute boy next door? Why did she fall in love with an almost untangable god? Why is she risking her life to spend the rest of it with him in a world she doesn't know?

Beside the gods and the other characters I also liked the story. It was exciting from the beginning on! Sometimes I did believe there were otiose parts, but the main reason why I didn't like these parts was the voice reading this story. The person who did this was very good, but when you stumble upon an insipid part in a book you just start to read a little faster. With an audio book this wasn't possible and I had to listen to all these little parts in a very slow tempo. Hated it! That's why I prefer a real book instead of these audio books...

Review "Next Time Lucky"

Some information

Title: Next Time Lucky (Lessons of a Matchmaker)

Author: Siggy Buckley

Pages: 252

Published: January 2013

Publisher: Createspace

My Source: author (thank you!)

My Score on Goodreads: 4 stars

Blurb

Cherie, a professional matchmaker from Dublin, Ireland, faces the ultimate challenge when she tries to find a soul mate for herself. She surfs the risky waves of the Internet and flies around the world to adventures, disappointments and not a few surprises. Chat-rooms prove to be intoxicating, and Cherie feels like in a kid in a candystore. Among the Lotharios she encounters are recycled bachelors, breezy islands of ego, fly-by-nights, birds of paradise, commitment phobics, and the odd sex maniac. She learns the hard way that it's easy come, uneasy go at this smorgasboard of cyber-dreamboats.

Her story is an intriguing read, offering a revealing glimpse into the world of cyber romance for singles that are toying with the idea, for those who haven’t dared yet, or those who just want to compare notes. It also discloses practical advice for modern day’s mate selection through the eyes of a dating expert, both on the Internet and in the real world.

With insight and great humor, Siggy Buckley tells the sassy story of a modern woman's dilemma of being independent yet longing for coupledom.

If you are thinking about online dating or want to compare notes, this book is a must.

My review

Well, this was something different from what I normally read... But I liked it! 

In "Next Time Lucky" we meet Cherie, a German woman who lives in Ireland. She's at a point in her life where she's looking out for something more. She feels lonely after her divorce and a break-up. Her children are learning how to fly on their own and Cherie has the feeling she's left alone. This is extra hard when your job is to match couples and find "the one" for your clients. How is it possible Cherie can't find the man of her dreams while she's a professional matchmaker? 

Luckily Cherie isn't the kind of person who just sits there and waits for something to happen. She takes control of the situation and starts to fly around in the world of Internet Dating. Something new for her since she's only familiar with a good old dating agency. I have to say: this woman is a brave one. She starts making appointments and going on dates with total strangers. She even travels the world for them. 

Cherie gets to know nice men but she also meets creeps or very strange persons with serious problems. Even these experiences don't make her stop her quest for the man of her life. She always hopes that next time, she'll be lucky... And as a reader you hope with her!

Though this wasn't the kind of book I would normally pick up to read, I have to say I enjoyed it. It was the perfect holiday read for me but I assume it's a good book whenever you read it. Cherie is a character you can really connect with, even though she doesn't always do sensible things. Her courage to meet these unknown men is something I don't get at all. I wouldn't be able to meet another stranger after a bad experience with one. Cherie keeps hoping and in that way I envy her! 

This book was funny, confronting and warning at the same time. Sometimes Cherie tends to see things black and white, but this gave a funny touch to the book. 

I do think that people who wanted to join the internet dating community will think twice after reading this book. They'll see that a lot of people aren't honest on the internet and meeting with them could be dangerous. 

The writing in this book is what I liked the most. You just keep on reading without noticing how many pages you've read. The story sweeps you away and you start hoping Cherie will be "Next Time Lucky"!

Review "Of love, actors and acrobats"

Some information

Title: Of love, actors and acrobats

Author: Brie Bennett

Pages: 358

Published: August 2012

Publisher:

My source: author (thank you!)

My score on Goodreads: 4 stars

Blurb

How does a smart woman who doesn’t own a strapless dress and hasn’t had a manicure since senior prom find love in New York City? By going out on a Saturday night in sweatpants and a faded unicorn t-shirt, of course. At least, this approach seems to work for Zoe Richards, queen of bad dates and a boring job, newly thirty, and determined to turn her life around without becoming a vapid dilettante in the process.

Haunted by The Dream (true love, familial bliss, and a kickass career), Zoe turns the big 3-0 facing its antithesis. Her career? Neverending document review on a toilet plunger patent case. Familial bliss? Try coming home alone every night to a studio that could hardly fit a Keebler elf. And as for true love, that fabled nemesis of many a single woman, Zoe is a walking advertisement for why sperm banks might not be such a bad idea.

When serendipity throws Zoe into the path of Huck Gentry, dreamy star of the hit TV show Justice, Baby!, she must face all of her insecurities. Can girls with big noses who are in no danger of falling prey to anorexia win the heart of a guy like Huck? Of Love, Actors, and Acrobats is a hilarious look at what happens when you dare to be yourself and take a chance on love. For any woman who has ever dreamed of changing her life or ever struggled with why things just don’t seem to come together, Zoe’s antics provide an opportunity to laugh about the crazy double standards women today face in pursuit of the perfect life.

My review

Sometimes it just takes me a (long) while to start reading a book I was given for a review. I'm always honest with the authors... If they send me an e-book, it may end up in my huge pile of books and I don't know when I will get to it. To be honest I wasn't sure I was glad to stumble upon this book. I didn't know what to expect "of love, actors and acrobats". What was this book about? I hadn't read the blurb and the title didn't give away a lot. Luckily I saw the word "love" and thought "Well yeah, I can use a romantic book..." and I'm glad I could. 

"Of love, actors and acrobats" is more than a simple love story. It's a funny and recognizable love story. The main character, Zoe, is witty and says the wrong things all the time but at the same time her timing is perfect and she manages to do everything good in a bad way. She personifies a lot of girls. All the girls who aren't sure about their looks, who think they're less, who have doubts, who don't know if they'll find true love. Zoe gives those girls hope. She shows them everything is possible... as long as you believe in yourself. 

This last part is a difficult stumbling block for Zoe. When she meets the man of her dreams, Huck, she's not sure whether this is all possible for her. Isn't she too normal? Too thick? Too "everything this perfect man doesn't need or want in his life"? It appears she's not, but the hard thing for Zoe is to believe this.

In this book you see Zoe in all her glory. You see her as happy as she can be. You see her crying. You see her making jokes about everything. You see her at times she doesn't know what to say. It's a very good way to get to know this character and to note the little or big things you have in common with her.

I enjoyed this book a lot but I didn't gave it 5 stars because there where parts I thought of as a little boring. Most of the time I loved the story and the characters though, so if you ever get the chance to read it: have fun!

Review "Suicide Game"

Some information

Title: Suicide Game

Author: Haidji

Pages: 358

Published: October 2013

Publisher: Createspace

My scource: Author (thank you!)

My score on Goodreads: 4 stars

Covertext

Eight thousand candidates sign up for the Suicide Game. Only one can win. Their destination: the Night Stadium, a place of makeup and music, fear and adrenaline, blood and romance, celebration and death.

Each candidate has his or her own reason for entering the Game. The Council runs the Game. The outcome of the Game is left to fate...in the laps of the gods. The candidates will jump to their deaths in order to win everything, before capacity crowds in the Stadium. The public follows every jump, live on TV and on their mobile screens, choosing their favorite candidates and betting on their lives. 

The Game’s community also includes geeks, mafia, makeup artists, master chefs, models, musicians, ordinary workers, spies, terrorists, and many others. SG - Suicide Game is the story of the candidates’ journey. It boldly imagines a place where death and denial are interwoven with hope, choices and the innate desire for happiness. Impressive in the totality of its vision, it is an exploration of the best and worst things in our lives, nightmares and especially, our dreams.

My review

Strange title, strange story, not my genre at all,... I didn't think I would like this book the way I did. Can't say I completely changed my mind. For me, it's still a strange book with a very odd theme. On the other hand I believe it could be refreshing to read this kind of story. A book about a Game where people choose to commit suicide before the eyes of thousands of people is one of a kind. It's possible you're offended by this story, but author Haidji dares to write it down for us and we should appreciate that!

It's not because the author dared to write this kind of story I gave "Suicide Game" 4 stars. It's because of the messages hidden in the book. Haidji shows us some people who were let down by society. People who don't want to live anymore or are prepared to offer their lives for others. Second of all I liked the writing style. Though this was not my genre at all, I wanted to know what would happen next and kept on reading. It's a style that drags you along. 

One thing I didn't like was the repeated "intro" of the Game. Every step of the Game a hostess cheers on the people who are ready to jump and at the same time she tries to spread enthusiasm. Every step of the Game is consequently accompanied by the exact same words and this started to bother me after a while. 

Another thing I would have changed if I could was the Game itself. This Suicide Game could be called "Jump Game" too. There isn't much variation in the way the contestants test their luck.

Suicide Game puts you to thinking about our society. What if... ? What if this kind of Games where people commit suicide to entertain others would be accepted in our world? I think I would be indignant! In this Game the public pays a lot of money to see people die. They bet on who's going to survive and who isn't. They buy T-shirts with the Suicide Game symbol on them, eat suicide dogs, clap when big groups of people face death,... It's horrific! The contradiction in this game is that after a while the public starts to care for the contestants. They don't want their favorites to die, they cry when they see who's behind the candidate. A human being of flesh and blood. The public starts to realise they could be on the other side of the Game too. Maybe one day they will wake up disappointed in society too or they will see they have nobody in their life to rely on... That's the day they could enter the Suicide Game too and when that day arrives they wouldn't be clapping during every jump. They would be scared... 

I hope that everybody who's willing to read this book will start to think about it like I did and love it.

Review "The love of a cowboy" - Mini

Some information

Title: The love of a cowboy

Author: Anna Jeffrey

Pages: 368

Genre: Romance

Published: July 2003

Publisher: Onyx

My Source: Amazon

My score on Goodreads: 4 stars

Covertext

In this exquisite and sensual debut, Anna Jeffrey takes us to Callister, Idaho, where one woman discovers the love of a cowboy--and a passion as powerful and untamed as the rugged land they share...

Texas beauty Dahlia Montgomery isn't looking for trouble when she agrees to spend the summer with her best friend in Callister, Idaho. But the young widow's dreams of tranquility are shattered when she encounters Luke McRae--a long, lean cowboy who'd like to charm Dahlia into his bed. With his devastating smile and sinful swagger, Luke is something of a legend in these parts. Even though the last thing Dahlia needs is to fall for a man who's sworn off love and marriage, she finds it impossible to resist his sexy charm. But when one sultry night turns into another, she starts to believe that love--whether or not you trust in it--can happen when you least expect it...

My Review

Why do I like cowboys so much? I really don't have an idea... When I was younger I just LOVED to watch McLeod's Daughters. I still have all the seasons on DVD in my room and I'm planning to watch all the episodes again. I love ranches, cowboys, horses, ... although I don't have one of those elements around me in everyday life. Maybe that's why I like them so much. ;)

I liked this book by Anna Jeffrey about a woman who falls in love with a stubborn cowboy, Luke. It's a very typical story and that's the reason why I only gave 4 stars. You just know how it will all end, but that's also part of the fun. 

A sidenote: sometimes the story was very slow. You know what will happen next, but it doesn't seem to come. I don't like waiting for things I already know will happen. The book could be 50 pages shorter without a problem. But that's just a little thing I didn't like. It was a good read for lovers of chicklit and cowboys, nothing less, nothing more.

I know this is in Australia, but just because I love it: a little bit of McLeod's Daughters for you :D 

Enjoy!

Interview with Nadia Kim, author of "Reflection"

Hello everybody! Remember the beautiful book "Reflection"? Well, on the bottom of my review I promised you an interview with the author, Nadia Kim. Here it finally is! Sorry for the delay!

For those of you who wonder who is Nadia Kim, here's a picture. When you click on it, you'll be guided towards her own page on facebook where you can find some more information about her.

Before I start, I want to thank Nadia again for doing this interview and for sending me a digital copy of her book!

The interview!

1. Is Jess a person you could be friends with in real life?

I could be friends with her, in general she is very nice but can be overly critical of herself. I would hope that I could be a positive influence in her life to help her overcome some of this unnecessary judgement she puts on herself.

2. Did you base her character on somebody you know?

I think that in more of a general sense Jessica represents an internal ideal that many woman have that may not be on a conscious level. Does she over do it? Oh yes. She is extreme in her thoughts and maybe it's a little more balanced with some people, but I think it's important to recognize the aspect of Jessica in all of us. Because I think the image of what a woman should look like and act like is not the norm. It's society driven over time and has created these unrealistic ideas, which then make a girl/woman feel bad about herself when she is being told this is what you need to look like. Even worse, the image doesn't just  affect women but boys/men as well because they are chasing after what they too are seeing as what the "Normal woman should look like". Now I think that today this is changing dramatically. In television and in the media you are seeing more women fight back against this idea and start to accept who they are but the battle is not yet over.  Okay I am getting off my soap box. 

3. How did you come up with the idea to write a love story with some paranormal elements in it? 

Well its actually funny, it wasn't my first thought or even the plan. Along the way as I was writing I started thinking that none of us change over night. Well... not saying it's not possible but we are all works in progress. To me given just how drenched Jessica was in her own negative thoughts she would need something dramatic to change her life. And so I tossed around a few ideas but then came up with the idea that since the change needed to come from within, why not go really deep. If you know what I mean. I'm trying not to give away parts of the story.

4. What do you love about writing?

Creating wonderful dramatic stories that leave you craving more and also leave you with a lesson that will help you better yourself.

5. Is there a special reason you write stories with a message like this?

Yes, I think that it's important that people realize they don't have to be unhappy with how they look. They just need to learn to accept that is they way they are and embrace it. And also know that just because you feel or think a certain way one day doesn't mean that you can't get up tomorrow and know you can change. It all starts in the mind and thoughts. If you change them then you change your life. 

6. What does a day of writing look like for you? 

Well I have a full time job not writing and I also have three small kids to take care of as well as me and my kids do Kung Fu so there is no such thing as a day of writing. It's ad hoc in spurts when I can find time to sit and really drill out my story. These days the story is busting to come out I just haven't had the energy to do it. But that is something I need to change. If I want the energy to do it then I'll have it. It's my own desire that I have to work on. 

7. Are there special elements you can't miss around you when you're writing? 

Well I always have to have a romance element. Other than that I'd say I'm game for mostly anything. But also all my stories have to have a positive message. I think that is a critical piece for me.

8. Can you tell us something more about your next books/projects?

Early this year I published my first book in a new series called Love Curse. And I have a new novel that I have been working on for almost a year that I want to put out Spring/Summer of 2014. It's an inspirational novel with romance, drama and a wonderful message. That's all I'm saying about it for now. :)

Another "thank you" for author, Nadia Kim! I wish her best of luck with her new series and hope you'll all read a book written by this wonderful author!

Take care!

xoxo

Review "Reflection"

Some information

Title: Reflection

Author: Nadia Kim

Pages: 350

Genre: chicklit, paranormal

Published: June 2012

Publisher: Bookbaby

My Scource: the author (thank you!)

My Score on Goodreads: 4 stars (deserves a half more)

Covertext

Her soul is fragmented; she is but an empty vessel. Jessica Hamid isn’t your average African American/Middle Eastern woman. She’s broken. As if her childhood wasn’t bad enough. Because of all the kids who teased her for having a big butt or being mean to her, hurting her physically and mentally, she chose never to deal with those issues to bury them deep down inside, locking away the key. And now after landing her dream job the insecurities she developed have come back to haunt her in ways no one could imagine. Something is coming for her; she has no idea.

To make matters worse, despite obviously hiring her because of her excellent writing skills her boss at Teen Savvy Magazine hates her style and her coworkers want nothing to do with her. In fact, the only one giving her any attention is the mysterious photographer, Mark, whose charm is more torment than pleasure to Jessica as she struggles to figure out if he is for real or just out for another piece. 

This is a story of a woman who struggles with her own insecurities to break into the person she was meant to be. Will she overcome them and allow love to shine its light through her, or will she become the property of another, more sinister force, never able to reclaim her identity again?

Reflection is a page-turner not like any other. It’s a love story with a twist of fantasy, playing to the moral fibers of a person. The depth of the characters help create a three dimensional world. And the angst experienced by Jessica is felt by the readers on an intimate level, evoking many emotional responses along the way, from hurt and sadness to the funny moments when the ever clumsy Jessica makes a mess of things.

My review

To be honest I didn't know whether I would like this book or not. The title, cover and covertext didn't attract me that much and I hate to say it but for me those things can make me buy books and read them. Now I have discovered once more that you can't judge a book by its cover (or title or covertext) and that's also the message this book tries to give to its readers!

My favorite genre still is chicklit. I love to clear my head and read some love stories without much depth. On the other hand I also like classic novels and stories because their characters seem more real and they really have something to say. Combine those two elements and you have "Reflections" by Nadia Kim. This author wrote a book where she combines a beautiful love story with some paranormal elements. These elements give the book a second layer in which we can learn several things about life. 

In "Reflections" we meet Jess, a young woman who works for a teen magazine and loves her job. The only problem is that Jess is and has always been very insecure and this attitude doesn't really fit the world she lives in for her job. When she was younger she always was the center of ridicule. Most of the girls didn't want to be her friend because she was a little different and this made Jess horrible at finding new friends and truly trust them. When people acted like they liked her, they had other intentions most of the time (like really hurting her afterwards and laughing because she believed they wanted to be friends with her). That's why Jess is very closed and doesn't trust people around her, especially not when they're beautiful and work for a teen magazine.

Of course this makes her life difficult, because she really loves doing her job and is good at it. It becomes even more difficult when she meets the photographer (and owner) of the magazine, Mark. He really seems to like her, but Jess doesn't believe it at all. She already met some men in the past who liked it to trick a girl and make her believe they loved her before dumping her. Jess isn't going to let that happen again and keeps Mark as far away from her as possible. He, on the other hand, persists and makes Jess wonder if he really means it. Just when she starts to like him, he leaves because both of his parents died in an accident. Jess waits for him and hopes he will call her or email her, but she waits in vain and believes she's tricked once again. 

When Mark finally returns to the magazine, it seems like he started a relationship with Jess's boss. At this point Jess really starts feeling depressed. All her hopes are gone and she starts having very strange dreams. 

At the beginning Jess doesn't think much of these dreams. Everybody has strange dreams... But when those dreams start to get more real and frightening, she wants to learn more about them. Jess discovers she's in great danger and is followed by some sort of demons in her dream. Bad thing is these demons are more real then she thought in the beginning. For me these monsters, who try to get a grip on Jess's body, are the bad feelings she remembers from her past. The demons of her past keep following her, especially when she's insecure and hates herself once more. Just when Jess started to leave these monsters behind her because she fell in love with Mark, they started to follow her again because he left her. Just when she started believing somebody could really love her, she was dumped all over again. The demons start to catch up with her and it won't take them long to have her completely under control.

What Jess doesn't realise is that those demons have been there most of her life. They are the bad feelings she dragged along with her untill she met Mark. Can she leave them behind for the rest of her life or is she lost?

I'm not going to spoil the story for you, so if you'd like to discover how it all ends for Jess and Mark, you should really read the story. It's a beautiful one and it will keep you interested until the end (whether you like paranormal elements or not).

Enjoy it!

Interview follows soon!

Review - Interview - Giveaway "The Grotto under the Tree"

Some information

Title: The Grotto under the Tree

Author: John A. Theo Jr.

Pages: 139

Genre: Young Adult

Published: February 2013

Publisher: Astraea Press

My Scource: author and Candace's Book Blog

My score on Goodreads: 4 stars

Covertext

Sebastian and Sara mistakenly descend into a mystical land where elves, mermaids, gnomes and other mythological creatures live. The two discover they have stumbled into an ancient battle between these fair folk and evil creatures called the Kylo. Their guide on this journey is Capri, an elf lord who is on a quest to find his lost tribe. The Kylo chase the children and Capri in his flying galleon north into the Arctic Circle where they find the most unlikely ally. During the final battle the children learn about sacrifice, love and ultimately forgiveness.

My Review

What a great experience to travel back in time and read the kind of book I used to read when I was younger. As a child/young adult I adored heroes of my own age who discovered the most special places on earth and got to know the most wonderful creatures in that world! 

With "The Grotto under the Tree" John A. Theo Jr. provides us a good read for young and old. A book you can appreciate at every age and no matter what kind of books you normally like to read.

In this book we meet Sara and Sebastian, two young children who are neighbours and go to school together. Outside their school stands a beautiful oak tree who survived many storms and is known by young and old in the neighborhood. Sara and Sebastian too have played under it many times. When the tree is severely damaged in a storm, the two friends discover some strange things around it. Their curiosity leads them towards a very special world with very special creatures in it. Too bad for them their encounter isn't so peaceful because of some bad forces trying to attack the beautiful creatures Sara and Sebastion just met. Both necessity and friendship take the children along in this big battle between good and bad, a battle that must be fought for every living being on earth (and beyond).

What I loved about this book is the fact it can learn the young readers lots of lessons. You have to take care of your friends and you have to keep on believing in the good things even though that's not always easy. Also the fact there were some totally unexpected turns in the book was appreciated here. The author is able to keep the story going and to keep it exciting without making the story long or boring. 

Interview with the author

First we want to get our author a little better. Here's some information!

John Theo Jr. has numerous published articles on arts, culture and sports figures. He holds an M.F.A. in Creative Writing from Pine Manor College in Chestnut Hill, MA. During the day John serves as Vice President of Operations for Blue Sky Holdings, which owns many commercial fitness clubs. John is also an adjunct professor at Endicott College in Beverly, MA, where he teaches screenwriting. John's Book, The Grotto Under The Tree, has been released by Astraea Press.

Talk about some things in the book that are more personal to you, or some places in the book you've visited, or want to visit.

I wrote a scene where Sebastian finds his mother in the living room during a thunderstorm. He knows she never liked thunderstorms. He tries to comfort her by crawling into her lap like he did as a little boy, but instead she rocks him back to sleep. This was a subconscious homage to my mom who passed away in 1996. My way of sending her a hug.

How you came up with some of the more unique elements?

For Father Christmas' character it was a knee jerk reaction to the charicature of the fat red-suited santa claus our society has portrayed him as. I researched the historical Saint Nicholas and what I found amazed me. Ironically I made him more like the historical person which no one in movies or books has done before. He ends up being more like Gandalf in The Lord of The Rings than a chubby man in a red suit who delivers toys. I think people will really like this version of him.

Can you give some facts about the city or place the book takes place in?

It takes place in a town similar to the one I grew up in. The school and oak tree are based on Great Oak Elementary School where I went in Danvers, MA. I did alter the town to make it a seaside town though.

Can we meet the characters?

(Tell us about your main characters! Looks, personality, some background story, and/or maybe a few quotes from the story?)

Sebastian is the intellectual 5th grader who aces all his tests yet cannot throw a baseball. Sara is the popular athlete who struggles in school.

How do you come up with those special names for the characters? It seems like a difficult part of writing the book.

I keep a journal of names that jump out at me from time to time. When I go to sit down at with a story I can pull from them. It makes it an easy, and fun, part of the writing process for me. With that said, names are a tool that should not be overlooked. I teach my students that names offer another layer and opportunity to "show" rather than "tell". For example, Tolkien is a master of this in his Lord of The Rings trilogy. You have characters like "Wormtongue" and "Treebeard", but he (being a philologist) had almost every name mean something. Names of swords, names of rocks and mountains, etc. It's another layer to the story that, if the reader peels back, offers a reward of discovery. With that said, sometimes you just want to name a character Stu and leave it at that. 

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Review "Jack and the Jungle Lion" + "The Elephants of Shanghai"

Some information

Title: The Elephants of Shanghai

Author: Stephen Jared

Pages: 276

Genre: Adventure

Published: May 2013

Publisher: Solstice Publishing

My Scource: Author (thank you!)

My score on Goodreads: 4 stars

Covertext

It’s 1942. With war raging, and millions of lives hanging in the balance, the world faces an urgent need for chin-up heroics. Having barely escaped South American headhunters in his last adventure, Jack Hunter seizes the chance to prove his courage. He uses “skills” picked up as a former actor so he can pretend to be a Chicago gangster and pursue spies collaborating with the mob.

A bold plan, however, is not always a clever plan, and when Jack goes missing hope falls on Maxine Daniels, the great love of his life, to pick up a trail that leads all the way to Shanghai, China. Once there, she finds Jack in a race against time involving priceless jewels, secret weapons, a mysterious Chinese singer, and a fiendish warlord. 

It’s been five years since they survived the Amazon. This time Jack and Max set out to save more than each other – and end up facing a greater danger than they ever could have imagined.

Also included, a book bonus – Jack and the Jungle Lion, Jack Hunter’s first adventure.

Rave Reviews for Jack and the Jungle Lion…

"I was delighted with it from page one to the end. It's amusing, rollicking tale will make you nostalgic for the old days of glitzy Hollywood when fantasy and reality were often too close to tell apart." – Ron Fortier, Pulp Fiction Reviews

"... has the crackle and snap of a thirties comedy. There's also plenty of the cliff-hanging action of a Saturday morning serial." – Kendahl Cruver, A Classic Movie Blog dot Com

"Here's a debut novel that will knock your socks off. The pacing is spot-on, the characters believable and endearing, the action jumping off the page. Stephen Jared has just staked his claim as a pre-eminent voice in the growing legion of writers producing retro style adventures. Jack and the Jungle Lion is a topnotch entertainment." – Errol Flynn biographer Thomas McNulty

"Jack and the Jungle Lion may be an affectionate tribute to adventure serials and screwball comedies of the 1930s, but it stands on its own as a great fun read. The story is as entertaining as it is refreshingly free of cynicism. I loved Stephen Jared's first novel, and sincerely hope it's not his last." – Indiana Jones and Star Wars author, Ryder Windham

My review

Reading this book was like watching an old movie like Casablanca. From the beginning on I noticed the ability of our author, Stephen Jared, to picture a whole scene without using too many words or long descriptions. He seems to know the just amount of words/sentences needed to bring a story to live and give us the feeling we are in this story as well. Being an actor himself, Stephen did a very good job in depicting his main character Jack Hunter as an actor too. Thing is I had the feeling we only got to know the "star" Jack Hunter and it was hard to discover his true feelings although they sometimes slipped through. We know he loves Maxine Daniels, but that's all. We don't know his favorite food, color, music,... Just NOTHING! Maybe the author did this on purpose. "Jack and the Jungle Lion" as well as "The Elephants of Shanghai" start with a little introduction. An unknown person (and I often wondered who he/she could be) lets us know he/she will tell us Jacks story just like Jack told him/her. It is possible this narrator doesn't know more personal details about Jack. He also says in the beginning: "Everyone liked Jack Hunter. The whole world knew him - or thought they did. His movies were marvels of light-hearted heroics, quick wit, and charm, each almost perfect portraits of the dashing star himself." (p. 11) Maybe Jack didn't mention personal details while he told his story because he wanted to focus on his heroic deeds. 

As mentioned above, this book consists of two stories. You start with "Jack and the Jungle Lion" and you end with "The Elephants of Shanghai". I have to admit I liked the first book a little more. The story just seemed to be a little more coherent while the second book raised a lot of questions. In the first one we get to know Jack and Maxine. He's the movie star who catches a plane to his new film set, meets the animal trainer Maxine, falls in love with her and accidentally falls into a big adventure with her. Ok, we all get that. The second story though has nothing to do with Jack as a movie star. Now he just tries to be a "real" hero, he wants to save the world for real,... I didn't get it completely although Jack tried to explain Maxine why he changed so much. He didn't want to be useless, he wanted to mean something and help people. Hmmmm... Maybe author Stephen Jared could have wrote this story linking it to a new movie Jack was going to appear in. Now our main character just seems so different. He has a whole new idea of the world and his role in it and we didn't even notice this change in him. We just had to discover it when he already thought different on things.

Besides this difference there was one other thing I didn't like switching from the first to the second book. In "Jack and the Jungle Lion" we also meet Maxines adopted children (the cousins she takes care of after her sister died in an accident). Lindy and Tyler are great characters. Two honest children who adore their auntie and admire the "hero" who accompagnies them on their unsuspected trip through the Amazon. In "The Elephants of Shanghai" Lindy and Tyler are only mentioned in the beginning but they don't play a role in the rest of this story. That's a shame because they made the first one lighter to read. They also were a great help to Jack in the first book. Luckily Jack always meets a young boy with a piece of clothing that's too large. In the first book it's a boy who wears the hat of Clancy, the pilot who's also in this adventure. In the second book it's a boy with a part of a too large suit. Both of these children help Jack and his friends to get out of the awkward circumstances they're in.

I know it seems like all I do is complaining about the fact I didn't like the second book as much as the first one. But I gave 4 stars and did that with a reason. I really enjoyed reading these books. Even though the second one was a little more chaotic than the first one, I liked the story. Even though I didn't always had the feeling I knew the characters, I liked them. (couldn't always connect with them because of the lack of info, but in these circumstances (having an actor as main character, having somebody else telling us the story) I didn't mind)

I recommand this book to all kinds of readers because it's a story with love and action in it. Also it's written in a beautiful way and I really believe Stephen Jared has a gift for telling stories and bringing big adventures to live. 

P.S. What a beautiful cover!!!

Review "Not another bad date"

Some information

Title: Not another bad date

Author: Rachel Gibson

Pages: 384

Genre: Chicklit

Published: May 2008

Publisher: Avon

My Source: ECI

My Score on Goodreads: 4 stars

Covertext

WHAT DOES A GAL HAVE TO DO TO GET A GOOD DATE IN THIS TOWN?

Adele Harris can't even begin to answer that question. She's had so many lousy dates that she's sure she's cursed. Why else would every man she goes out with suddenly act like he's lost his mind--and his manners? Adele thought life couldn't get any more confusing . . . until she learns the marriage of her seemingly Miss Perfect sister is on the rocks. So she goes back to their hometown to give her a shoulder to cry on, only to run smack into Zach Zemaitis . . . the one who got away.

TEXANS LOVE GOD, FAMILY, AND FOOTBALL, THOUGH NOT ALWAYS IN THAT ORDER

Zach, a former pro star, knows all about football. As for the other two, well, he's doing his best. But when Adele comes charging back into his life--still all lush curves and beautiful, big blue eyes--he wonders if his best is good enough. After all, he did her wrong. Can a woman with her track record ever really believe that he's serious this time . . . or is he destined to be another bad date?

A "New York Times"-bestselling author delivers the fourth installment of her series about four writer friends and the messes they get into when they decide to try out the wild side of life. Original.

My Review

What can I say? I always like a good chicklit... I can even say I need this kind of books from time to time, just to feel good ^^. Rachel Gibson succeeded again and let the reader behind with a good feeling and the idea everything will work out after all. The strange thing is Gibson always writes books I really love, though the concept is always the same. Especially in the four "writer friends" books. Every single time we find a woman not looking for love but finding it nevertheless and that in the person she least thought about... Every time it's a relationship with ups and downs but everything ends well of course. 

In "Not another bad date" we meet Adele Harris, the last of our four writer friends without a husband. She isn't looking for a man in her life because she believes she's cursed. Every man she meets, turns out to be an smdfqie#mjfmioezq ;) so it seems better to stay alone. When her sister Sherilyn is pregnant and her husband leaves her, she decides to move back to the town they came from. Because of some complications Adele feels she needs to accompany her sister but she doesn't like the idea very much. She once left this town because of the single boy she truly loved in her life, Zach Zemaitis. The single boy she loved but also the one who broke her heart in a thousand pieces when he left her for his pregnant ex-girlfriend, Devon. 

As this is a chicklit book, it's only normal Adele and Harris meet again and both of them discover that the thing they once had isn't quite over... Though Adele desperately (hmmmm) fights to get over him and to not fall in love, she fails big time... I think you know what happens next, but to be sure you'd better read the book ;)

Review "Tulagi Hotel"

Some information

Title: Tulagi Hotel

Author: Heikki Hietala

Pages: 424

Genre: War/Romance

Published: April 2012

Publisher: Fingerpress Ltd.

My Source: author (thank you!)

My Score on Goodreads: 4 stars (or 3.5)

Covertext

World War II has given Jack McGuire the chance to escape the confines of the Midwest and the family farm. An ace U.S. Marine fighter pilot, he risks his life each day with his squadron in the South Pacific theatre. For him, there's calm and camaraderie up there in the cockpit. But when the war ends, Jack struggles to find his place in civilian society. Turning his back on his home, family and inheritance, he returns to the Solomon Islands. Here he builds a hotel on the same island paradise he flew over in his years of combat. But when Kay Wheeler, the widow of his wartime best friend and wingman, comes to visit the island, Jack's orderly world is disrupted. He is forced to consider whether there's room enough for two in his reinvented life.

Review

The reasons why I gave 4 stars to this book (I wanted to give 3 and a half, but that's not possible :p)are very simple. First of all I think this story is very well written! Heikki Hietala painted a scenery in this book that you can imagine perfectly. A place you'd certainly visit if you had the chance to. Secondly I love the fact that this is a story with several "genres" woven into it. I believe this book can be appreciated by lots of readers, even though they normally don't read the same kind of books. 

I can hear you think "why don't you give 5 stars if you liked this book that much?". Hmmm, maybe I'm difficult, but I believe a reader has the right to be difficult in some cases ;). Sometimes I found the book a little too long. I don't think it's possible to read this book in one sitting, but that's not necessary of course. Another reason why I couldn't give 5 stars, is the (in my opinion) hasty end. All of a sudden there are unsolvable problems solved and our main character feels happy again... Maybe that's possible... Jack (our main character) is a lucky man ;)

Despite this one lost star, I loved the story from the beginning on. Our main character, Jack McGuire, is an "easy" character to understand and sympathize with. Sometimes the other characters are important too (they make Jack the man he is) and the author spends just enough time on each of them. You understand them, they're 'touchable' and engaging. There's only one character I don't understand completely even though she turns out to be very important in Jack's life. Kay, the woman he falls in love with, is kind of a strange person and because of the things she said/did I couldn't connect with her.

Besides the characters, Heikki Hietala also described some beautiful moments and places in this book. It's not difficult at all to imagine these little pieces of paradise (and hell -> everything in this book begins with a world war). Sometimes it feels like you are a guest in Tulagi Hotel yourself and I loved this feeling.

One thing about these descriptions was a bit annoying sometimes... : they could be veeeery long from time to time. I think the author can delete quite a few sentences without losing the beautiful spirit of this book. Have to say that all my criticism doesn't mean much. After all this is a book I enjoyed reading and I recommend it to all kinds of readers! The language is very accessible and the book certainly reads smoothly :)

Review "Spooking"

Some information

Title: Spooking

Author: Gill James

Pages: 146

Genre: romantic paranormal Young Adult novella

Published: September 2012

Publisher: Crooked Cat Publishing

My Source: author (thank you!)

My Score on Goodreads: 4 stars

Covertext

Amanda is the love of Tom’s life. After an argument, Tom crashes his car and wakes up in an unfamiliar place. Amanda is out of reach. Then he meets Marcus, who has more experience in the areas that now matter. Tom accepts his help, but Marcus has his own concerns, and eventually Tom is alone again.

How can Tom let Amanda known how much he loves her? Does she feel the same way?

Review

Again a book that I started without expectations. I just didn't know what to expect... Now I've read it I can say to you "you may start with great expectations!". It really is a very good read with a plot I liked a lot. This is not the kind of story I normally read, but maybe I should read books like this more often. 

The reason why I read this book before others on my list was (shame on me) because I needed a thin one to complete my reading challenge on Goodreads. :p So lame... I know... But I was running out of time and wanted to succeed in my mission! Woohoow! I did! This book was a quick read not only because of the thickness, but also because you need/want to know what's going to happen next. 

Author Gill James tells us a kind of ghost story about Tom, a young man who dies in a stupid car accident. Just before Tom died he had an argument with his beloved girlfriend Amanda and because their separation is unfinished, Tom can't go to heaven or hell. He needs to stay in the Between Place and help Amanda through her grieving process. This is, of course, not easy for him. He has to help the love of his life to be happy again, to find a new lover, to let the old one (Tom) go,... He needs to help her to get her life back on track.

One of the reasons why I liked this book so much, is because the author doesn't give us unnecessary descriptions or something like that. You're able to read the story without boring passages. It's also very easy to connect with the characters and to understand their feelings/motives. 

You may think "why don't you give 5 stars when you liked it so much?". Well... maybe because, although it's a good story, it's a little simple from time to time. Not that I mind, but I can't say it's a book with beautiful dialogues, heavenly descriptions,... Not that every book needs this kind of stuff, but anyhow... I gave it 4 stars because I really liked it and that's it ;)

Review "Our father who art out there... somewhere"

Some information

Title: Our father who art out there... somewhere

Author: AJ (Alison) Taft

Pages: 260 (paperback)

Genre: chick noir

Published: September 2011

Publisher: Caffeine Nights Publishing

My Source: author (thank you!)

My Score on Goodreads: 4 stars

Covertext

What would you do if your own father refused to meet you?Growing up in Accrington with only an agoraphobic mother and Bert next door for company, Lily Appleyard spent her childhood hoping that one day her absent father would show up and whisk her off to a better life. He never did. Now nineteen and at college in Leeds, she stills harbours a fantasy he'll show up one day. Maybe he's busy saving the whale in the Antarctic, or searching for a cure for cancer in the Brazilian Rainforest.Her best friend Jo has much lower expectations of men. That's because her father waited until she was fourteen before leaving with his teenage, pregnant girlfriend. When Lily's mother dies and Lily finds her father alive and well but with no intention of ever meeting her, she has a decision to make. Should she forget about him? Or does she have a right to know her own father? Doesn't he owe her at least one meeting? Jo's had enough of talking about a revolution. She thinks it's time for action. Fuelled by vodka and a burning need for revenge, Lily realises she's got nothing left to lose.

Review

For me this book proved you can't judge a book by its cover. When I received my copy of "Our father who art out there... somewhere" I didn't know what to think. The title wasn't too attractive for me (it made me think of something religious/philosophical... a "heavy" book...) and neither was the drawing on the cover. When I read the back of the book though, I thought this book could be a good one. And it was... I liked it a lot! 

Alison Taft tells us the story of Lily Appleyard, a nineteen year old girl studying politics. When Lily hears her mother died, she doesn't know what to feel (like I did when I received this book). On the one hand she feels like she's left alone in this world because her mother was the only person left of her family. On the other hand she also feels some kind of relief... Her mother surely wasn't an example of parenting. After her husband left her (19 years ago, before Lily was even born), she gave up on life and started eating all the junkfood she could find. She became a person Lily was ashamed of. A person Lily needed to worry about. A person Lily couldn't trust or rely on. The death of her mother makes Lily wonder again... Is there really no other person in her life she can call family? Why didn't her father try to contact her once? Why did his family act as if she didn't exist. 

When Lily decides to write a letter to the Salvation Army to get in touch with her father, her life changes and will never be like before again. The Salvation Army lets her know her father has NO wish to communicate. Lily's world tumbles... She hoped after the death of her mother, she would be able to find her father and catch up with him without disappointing her mother who hated him. But now it turns out he doesn't want to meet her. It's a slap in Lily's face and she wants to hurt him back. That's why she kidnappes his other daughter, Fiona... The beginning of a big adventure that never gets dull. 

I must say I needed some time to get used to the writing of Alison Taft but this doesn't mean I didn't like it from the beginning on. It was "forward" but when I've got to know the characters better, I realised this "forward" way of writing was just what this story needed. It's a story about things nobody wants to happen in his/her life. A story about pain and about family. About finding and losing people you love... 

What I liked about this book was the fact it keeps on going and going without one boring moment. When I discoverd the kidnap happened rather quick in the book, I didn't think Alison Taft was going to be able to entertain me for much longer. I was wrong. The story goes on and there were lots of twists and turns in this book I didn't expect. This makes it a good and solid book. 

One thing I didn't quite understand, but maybe that's just me. In this book we get to know Stuart. He's Fiona's boyfriend and helps the girls when they try to hide for the father of Lily and Fiona. After a while Stuart admits he's in love with Lily. He tells this to Fiona and though she hates him for the fact he loves her sister, she finally gives the two of them the opportunity to be together. The chapter after that Fiona visits her mother togheter with Stuart. Why does he accompany her when they aren't a couple anymore? Does he try to love Fiona nevertheless?? Hmmm, I don't know :p But it doesn't matter.

What does matter is the fact I thought the story somewhat hasty at the end. Suddenly a lot of feelings change while they needed so much time to become what they were. It's like the book told us the story about the construction of a house and in the three last pages the whole house is suddenly torn down. This bothered me a little bit and that's why I gave the book 4 stars instead of 5.