Book Review Party Wednesday - LIVE!

<a href="http://cymlowell.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"><img alt="CymLowell" src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2442/3960797566_f11cfb2f41_o.jpg" /></a>

Welcome to Book Review Party Wednesday.

It is real simple. Link up any (old or new, any genre) book review that you have
written to the below MckLinky.

A couple of things to remember while you're linking.

1. Add a permalink to your specific post, not the main page of your blog (only one review per blog).
2. Add my Book Review Wednesday Badge or a link-back to the party at the end of your review post.
3. List the name of your blog, Title of Book or Genre. Be sure to use spaces and limit characters to 50. For example: The Lost Symbol, thriller

4. Become a follower of my blog, pretty please (not mandatory).
5. Visit the other linked up reviews and leave comments....it's a party, have fun!
6. I will announce the winner in a weekend post. The winner is chosen from the linked up reviewers using Random Number Generator. All included.

I am so excited to be reading all the reviews! This is always so much fun and gives me the opportunity to add new books to my list.

-CYM

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Raylan by Elmore Leonard **Book Review**

Raylan
by Elmore Leonard
William Morrow 2012

Raylan Givens is, perhaps, the most enduring of heroes in crime stories. A U.S. Marshall in the Kentucky coal mines, Raylan must weigh rationality with strict letter of the law justice.

By the same token, Elmore Leonard is one of our heroes in the crime fiction world, having created so many memorable characters over his long career, which continues in his late 80s (providing aspirational incentive to all of us budding, second career writers). Raylan is one of his best, serving, in turn, as inspiration for successful television series. Indeed, we will likely see the themes in Raylan on the little or big screen.

In Raylan, Raylan is thrown into the mayhem of kidney snatching marijuana growers. He then transitions into efforts of a coal mining company to secure the mountain top of the drug king, an old friend of Raylan’s (it’s a small world in Kentucky), which, predictably, leads to murders.

In the process of solving the mining murders, by and of women, Raylan comes across an interesting young woman who has become a professional poker player in her college years in Indiana. She needs a stake, gets it from a thoroughbred owner and falls in love with the aging Raylan. The budding romance adds a clever, human twist to a story told in the Elmore Leonard fashion – straight, charming, and disarming in its simplicity. There is no backstory, yet the reader is fully in the swing of the story, knowing everything that is really necessary. It is a style that is both lean and fascinating.

I had the feeling of Elmore sitting at his computer thinking how he would handle a winsome young poker player who he has just helped get rich, who wants into pants. Great fun for the next story.

I learn a lot from reading the work of successful authors. Elmore a life of learning to impart, which I hope I am absorbing.

Warms, Cym

ElmoreLeonard
Amazon

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Winner of the Wednesday Blog Book Review Party and Blog Spotlight!

*all winners are selected by Random Number Generator *

And the winner of the Amazon Gift Card ($15 value) from Wednesday's Review Party is...

(**Drums Rolling in the Background**)

Congratulations to A Bluestocking's Place!



Be sure to check out A Bluestocking's Place and leave a comment!


Send me your email address for the Amazon eGC.

Warms-
CYM

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Author Spotlight: Jon Fore

Synopsis:

They promised her that no matter what happened, they would be waiting there for her. They promised that it would only be two weeks, a short vacation, just some time to spend together and away from the daily demands of parenthood. They promised it would be just like going to sleep, and before she knew it, it would be over. These were promises they could not keep.

They always told Hope that Paradise was the place they would wait--forever. Paradise was where they married long before Hope was born. It was the faith instilled, over and again before placing her in stasis. Just a short respite, a vacation to work things out Hope was too young to understand.

While locked in stasis, a solar storm ravages the planet, burning the life from those exposed and bringing society to ruin. Helpless in the stasis pod, Hope absorbs an educational augmentation program, not for two weeks, but for centuries, awaiting her parents’ return.

Michigan, a young hunter in a tribe of hunter-gatherers discovers Hope during a mating contest and awakens her to a world where she inhabits the body of an adult, is emotionally only seven, and the is final vessel of all humanities applied knowledge.

Plagued with the unending monotone voices lecturing knowledge implanted during stasis, Hope tries to adapt to this new world, to this small tribe, themselves failing to illness, to a dwindling food supply, and the unrelenting taking of the Amabo. The Amabo were once a peaceful philanthropic tribe, caring for those survivors unable to care for themselves. Now they are brutal takers. Their culture is one of violence, of dominance, and the collecting of their needs from others. A practice, after so many generations, that has become their birthright.

Hope and Michigan resolve to find Paradise, to fulfill the last promise of her parents and free themselves from a world of savage collection.


Author Bio:

Jon Fore was born in Marysville, Ohio in 1968, the third son of Dave and Judy Fore. After graduating Manalapan High School in 1987, Jon enlisted in the United States Navy, serving a combat role during Desert Storm. Now he lives in Florida with his beautiful wife and three wonderful children, and attends college at Penn Foster.

His first professional short story, Mid Watch sold in 2004 to The Pow Wow Paper. This was to precede a number of short stories, thesis, and even poetry publishing credits over the next two years with periodicals such as The Story Teller, Events Quarterly, Crime and Suspense Magazine and Dystopia magazine. In 2006, his short story, Undone, was nominated for a Push Cart award by Story Teller Magazine.

In 2007, Jon published his first full length novel, Black Water, with Chippewa Publishing. Since then, Jon has completed six novels, the most recent, Paradise in 2011.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Jon has also published a number of horror and suspense pieces with publications such as ‘The Pow Wow Paper’, ‘Crime and Suspense Magazine’, ‘Dystopia Magazine’, ‘The Story Teller’, ‘The Patriot News’, and ‘Events Quarterly’. In 2007, I published my first full-length manuscript with Chippewa Publishing, LLC. Additionally, Story Teller Magazine nominated my short horror piece titled ‘Undone’ for a ‘Pushcart Award’ in 2006.

Links to Find Jon Fore:
Goodreads
Jon Fore
Amazon - PB & Kindle
Barnes & Noble

Thanks Jon for allowing me to spotlight you!

-CYM

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3 Popular E-Readers: The Pros, the Cons, and the Bottom Line

~Guest Post from Amber Paley~

With so many e-readers out there, it’s difficult to know which one to choose. Here are the facts on some of the most popular.

The Kindle Fire
Price: $199
Operating System: Android
Weight: 14.6 oz
Size: 7.5 inches
Storage: 8 GB (or 6,000 books)
External Storage: Incapable
Battery Life: 8 hours of continuous reading

Made by Amazon, this inexpensive tablet works flawlessly not only with Amazon's impressive e-book selection, but also with all of Amazon’s media collections. Users have access to magazines, music, and video. Additionally, because it works on the Android OS, users have access to the Amazon market place, i.e. app market, which includes widely-used apps like Netflix and Hulu.

The iPad 2
Price: $475 - $630
Operating System: Apple iOS 5
Weight: 21.2 oz
Size: 9.5 inches
Storage: Starts at 16 GB (or 12,000 books); can pay more for more space
Battery Life: 10 hours

Everyone’s heard of the iPad 2; it is after all the leader in the tablet market. Offering access to iTunes, the iPad 2 allows users to buy books, movies, music, and popular apps (like Netflix or Angry Birds). This tablet isn’t just an e-reader; it’s an all-out entertainment electronic. Users can also video chat, take pictures with its front and rear cameras, and browse the internet quickly through its 3G option.

Barnes and Noble Nook Tablet
Price: $250
Operating System: Android
Weight: 14.1 oz
Size: 8.1 inches
Storage: 16 GB (or 12,000 books)
External Storage: SD capability.
Battery Life: 11.5 hours of continuous reading.

This e-reader is one of Barnes and Nobles products. Though technically on the Android OS, users do not have access to the Android market. Instead, users can download eBooks, eMagazines, and apps through Barnes and Nobles’ Nook. It comes internet ready and is “optimized for Netflix and Hulu Plus video playback.”

The Bottom Line


Before deciding between these e-readers, you must ask yourself what you want out of your product. Are you looking specifically for an e-reader, without all of the bells and whistles? Or are you looking for a media tablet, where you can download games, movies, and browse the internet?

If you’re looking specifically for an e-reader: Go with either the Nook or the Kindle Fire; they are less expensive than the iPad 2, and both have glare-minimizing screens as opposed to the iPad 2. The Nook offers more in the way of storage and battery life. But the Kindle Fire offers more in terms of apps.

If you’re looking for something beyond just an e-reader, go ideally with the iPad 2, or if your budget doesn’t permit it, go with the Kindle Fire. Barnes and Nobles’ app store is very new and pales greatly in comparison to the access Kindle Fire and iPad 2 users have to apps.

Thank you Amber for this guest post!
-CYM

Amber Paley is a guest poster bringing us a comparison of some of the highest ranking e-readers. Though the tech world is a hobby of hers, Amber is first a writer and she spends much of her professional life writing about nursing home abuse.

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Book Review Party Wednesday - LIVE!

<a href="http://cymlowell.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"><img alt="CymLowell" src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2442/3960797566_f11cfb2f41_o.jpg" /></a>

Welcome to Book Review Party Wednesday.

It is real simple. Link up any (old or new, any genre) book review that you have
written to the below MckLinky.

A couple of things to remember while you're linking.

1. Add a permalink to your specific post, not the main page of your blog (only one review per blog).
2. Add my Book Review Wednesday Badge or a link-back to the party at the end of your review post.
3. List the name of your blog, Title of Book or Genre. Be sure to use spaces and limit characters to 50. For example: The Lost Symbol, thriller

4. Become a follower of my blog, pretty please (not mandatory).
5. Visit the other linked up reviews and leave comments....it's a party, have fun!
6. I will announce the winner in a weekend post. The winner is chosen from the linked up reviewers using Random Number Generator. All included.

I am so excited to be reading all the reviews! This is always so much fun and gives me the opportunity to add new books to my list.

-CYM

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Winner of the Wednesday Blog Book Review Party and Blog Spotlight!

*all winners are selected by Random Number Generator *

And the winner of the Amazon Gift Card ($15 value) from Wednesday's Review Party is...

(**Drums Rolling in the Background**)

Congratulations to Taming the Bookshelf!



Be sure to check out Taming the Bookshelf and leave a comment!


Send me your email address for the Amazon eGC.

Warms-
CYM

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Author Spotlight: Terra Whiteman

This is a story about God and the Devil, but not how you were taught to believe.

This is also a story about love and hate, and the suffering both can bring.

This is about rights and wrongs, and all of the spaces in between.

This is about revenge, courage, death, passion; with no villains, no heroes... only those left scorned.

This is a story about Heaven, Hell, and the Jury that holds them together.

This is The Antithesis.

Author Bio:
Terra Whiteman is a scientist by profession, a philosopher by hobby, and author of The Antithesis series, published by 1889 Labs. After graduating with a degree in Biochemistry, Terra Whiteman now works as a clinical toxicologist, while continuing her writing endeavors on the side. Whiteman's genres include visionary science fiction mixed with gritty dark fantasy, with intricate plots and philosophical themes. She is also the 1889 Labs Ezine Editor, and will be overseeing the upcoming 1889 Labs signature anthology collections, launching in mid 2012. And when she's not doing any of the above, you can find Terra Whiteman binging on science periodicals, listening to loud obnoxious music, or annoying her husband with her incessant grammar policing.

Terra Whiteman is the author of The Antithesis book series. She is also running a promotional contest that will include a giveaway for a signed copy of the whole book series.

Check Out Terra Whiteman:
Amazon
Facebook
Terra Whiteman
Goodreads

Thank you Lana Moore for sending me information on this Author! 

-CYM

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Book Review Party Wednesday - LIVE!

<a href="http://cymlowell.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"><img alt="CymLowell" src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2442/3960797566_f11cfb2f41_o.jpg" /></a>

Welcome to Book Review Party Wednesday.

It is real simple. Link up any (old or new, any genre) book review that you have
written to the below MckLinky.

A couple of things to remember while you're linking.

1. Add a permalink to your specific post, not the main page of your blog (only one review per blog).
2. Add my Book Review Wednesday Badge or a link-back to the party at the end of your review post.
3. List the name of your blog, Title of Book or Genre. Be sure to use spaces and limit characters to 50. For example: The Lost Symbol, thriller

4. Become a follower of my blog, pretty please (not mandatory).
5. Visit the other linked up reviews and leave comments....it's a party, have fun!
6. I will announce the winner in a weekend post. The winner is chosen from the linked up reviewers using Random Number Generator. All included.

I am so excited to be reading all the reviews! This is always so much fun and gives me the opportunity to add new books to my list (& now check out book covers).




HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY!

-CYM

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Trader of Secrets by Steve Martini **Book Review**

Trader of Secrets
by Steve Martini
(William Morrow 2011)

Successful thriller writers have their own idiosyncratic recipe of characters, plot, background, violence, romance, complication, nuance, and readability. As a newbie thriller writer, I find the process of reading and thinking about construction mechanics to be a continuous learning process, especially as I try to unearth my own voice.

Steve Martini combines current global issues with his own imagination of horrific catastrophes that could be on the horizon for all of us.

In Trader of Secrets, we are treated to one of Martini’s favorite characters, Paul Madriani and his supporting team, including his daughter Sarah. The story begins with the protagonist Liquida (a Mexican killer for hire, whose specialty is stiletto knives that can carve a target up like sushi) attacking Sarah as she is running off the reservation with her Doberman Bugsy. She survives, or it would have been a short story.

NASA scientists have sold secrets to Liquida’s employer, which ultimately is Iran. The top secret technology involves the ability to steer asteroids around space, or into the United States. If successful, such a plan could cause a solid iron mass to destroy North America, making us as extinct as dinosaurs from an earlier age.

There are double and triple agents scattered through the story, to add challenge to the FBI and other agencies in solving the mess. The White House has fumbled the secrets, endangering us all, of course without admitting anything to the exposed public. Madriani is put out as bait in hunt for Liquida. Of course, he and his team are not simply passive appetizers, so they launch off to Bangkok, Paris, and elsewhere in the world in search of the wily, murderous Liquida. They all come together in the jungle, complete with an angry Doberman and hungry crocodiles.

Could this underlying story be real? Is it possible that asteroids can be steered and targeted?

Trader of Secrets is an enjoyable and satisfying read. You are part of the action, though you need to be patient as the pieces are set in place. Steve Martini deserves the accolades bestowed upon the joyful quality of his writing. I read Trader of Secrets on a flight to Tokyo, reflecting how engaged I became.

I look forward to seeing Madriani handle the dismantling of Iran in the next story, perhaps through regime change in Syria, which becomes the means of neutralizing the Ayatollahs.

Warms, Cym

AMAZON

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Winner of the Wednesday Blog Book Review Party and Blog Spotlight!

*all winners are selected by Random Number Generator *

And the winner of the Amazon Gift Card ($15 value) from Wednesday's Review Party is...

(**Drums Rolling in the Background**)

Congratulations to Book Obsessed!



Be sure to check out Book Obsessed and leave a comment!


Send me your email address for the Amazon eGC.

Warms-
CYM

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A Sweethaven Summer :: Fiction Giveaway

If there's one thing I love in life, it's getting lost in a paperback novel. I love knowing it's there, waiting for me at the top of the stack on my night-stand. If it's really good, I toss it in my big ol' bag when I run out for an errand. (I like to pretend that I'm one of those moms who might find herself with a quiet moment to read.)

I love heading in to bed early and propping myself up. I like turning the pages with fingertips smelling faintly of orange peel. I like a cup of tea beside me, with a spoon to clank around.

I've got this down to a science, people.

In Junior High, I used to stay up until three in the morning and read two teen romances. It bugged me that the girls were always so pretty. I wanted to read one sometime where she was just average and still landed square-jawed Todd. Regardless, I read on, feeling so cool when my older brother came home after curfew only to find me wide awake...sitting on my bed...reading.

Looking back, he never seemed all that impressed. "Dude, my little sister is so cool! She stays home every Saturday night and reads!"

I think you understand all of my points, the main one being that I was born not to party, not to be wild, not to run, but to read. Jealous much?

Here's something that I didn't realize until very recently. Reading a novel written by a friend is a brand new kind of awesome.

My friend Courtney Walsh just released her debut novel, A Sweethaven Summer. People. It's such a fun read. It's beachy and Summery. It's transportive. The ideal prescription for mid-February gloom and despair. It redeemed a recent slow stretch of cooped-up, too-cold, get-me-the-heck-out-of-here days, and for that I will be forever grateful.

What I loved second-most was the story of friendships that transcend years and hurts. Aren't we all suckers for that? What I love third-most was the undercurrent of food. Give me some sweet tea and carrot cake, Adele. Fourth most? The cute boy, Luke. Fifth? The nostalgia. Sixth? The suspense.

Here's what I kinda hated the most: Courtney is so dang good at weaving together a story. She makes it look easy and I know it's not. I wanted answers and she had me trapped between racing to find them and slowing down to ride the train. I wanted to climb into her noggin' and take a good look around, really see how it worked. (Hey Court? Wanna write my book for me? Pleaseandthankyou.)

What I loved most of all was getting a window-seat into the soul of my friend. I loved hearing her laugh during the funny parts and seeing her quirks in her characters. I loved being amazed (but not surprised) by her ability to pick me right up and take me to that cute little lake-side town.

Homegirl carries a full-size bottle of creamer in her purse and magic up in her brain.

But don't just take my word for it.

You can buy your own copy of A Sweethaven Summer here, here, or here. (It'll be available for Kindle, soon, Sherry!)

And if you leave a comment HERE, I'll enter you in a giveaway to win a copy. Tell me about your favorite summer memory from childhood or your nerdiest way of spending a Saturday night in the 8th grade or just tell me your name. I'm not here to complicate life.

I'll draw a winner on Sunday evening. And remember, you can comment even if you don't have a blog. Just be sure to leave your email address in the comment!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Thank you Flower Patch Farmgirl for this awesome review & giveaway. Be sure to visit Shannon's Blog and leave a comment to win!

-CYM

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Author Spotlight: Erin Lawless

Erin is a graduate of the University of London, where she gained a postgraduate degree in English with emphasis on the influence of classical literature.

‘The Last Train Home & Other Stories’ is a collection of sixteen short or flash fictions, across a range of genres and styles, several of which have been featured in print and e-publications such as ‘Daily Flash 2012’, ‘Backhand Stories’ and ‘Every Day Fiction’.

Yet after six hours I feel like I have Jack Daniels and coke leaking from every pore and follicle and the final train leaves in twenty minutes. You seem to have perked up (fourteen consecutive wins on Super Smash Brothers will do that to a person) so I make a break for my bag and jacket. But all of a sudden your face screws up and you start a misdirected rant concerning the failings of the female sex. And your eyes are all shiny and you're waving the Nintendo controller around so pathetically – and I've never been able to just leave you to yourself. I drop my bag back down on the chair. And I miss the last train home.

The Last Train Home & Other Stories can be purchased at Amazon & Amazon UK. Also, be sure to check out what is being said about The Last Train Home & Other Stories on Goodreads.

Erin is currently working on her first novel.

-CYM

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Book Review Party Wednesday - LIVE!

<a href="http://cymlowell.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"><img alt="CymLowell" src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2442/3960797566_f11cfb2f41_o.jpg" /></a>

Welcome to Book Review Party Wednesday.

It is real simple. Link up any (old or new, any genre) book review that you have
written to the below MckLinky.

A couple of things to remember while you're linking.

1. Add a permalink to your specific post, not the main page of your blog (only one review per blog).
2. Add my Book Review Wednesday Badge or a link-back to the party at the end of your review post.
3. List the name of your blog, Title of Book or Genre. Be sure to use spaces and limit characters to 50. For example: The Lost Symbol, thriller

4. Become a follower of my blog, pretty please (not mandatory).
5. Visit the other linked up reviews and leave comments....it's a party, have fun!
6. I will announce the winner in a weekend post. The winner is chosen from the linked up reviewers using Random Number Generator. All included.

I am so excited to be reading all the reviews! This is always so much fun and gives me the opportunity to add new books to my list (& now check out book covers).

-CYM

Read More

Adrenaline by Jeff Abbott **Audio Review**

Adrenaline
by Jeff Abbott
(Hachette Audio 2011)

This excellent story is launched with an engaging paradox. A CIA operative, Sam Capra, is called out of a meeting in Company offices in London by his pregnant wife Lucy. As he leaves the building, he sees Lucy in a car with a scarred man who strikes her. The office is then blown up, killing all of his colleagues. The CIA believes Lucy to be a spy who has harbored by Sam.

He is imprisoned, interrogated, and tortured by the CIA. Sam maintains his confidence in Lucy as well as his own innocence. Ultimately, Sam becomes a bartender watched closely by the Company.

A skilled operative and parkour athlete (running over, through, and around impossible obstacles), Sam slips away. He gets back to Europe and picks up the trail of Lucy and the scarred man he saw strike her in the car. Jeff Abbott introduces us to a host of interesting characters as the action criss-crosses through Europe.

In the end, the central mysteries concerning the guilt or innocence of Lucy, birth and survival of baby Daniel, the identity of the scarred man, the identity of real protagonist, and so on are revealed, often with new mysteries.

Adrenaline is a well written, thoughtful, and exciting book, driven by its own dose of nerve stimulation. I will read or listen to more of Jeff Abbott. There is plenty of riveting action, with the violence presented in an inoffensive manner. Romance runs through the story in Sam’s devotion and faith in Lucy, and anticipation of his son Daniel.

We listened to the audio version of this book. It lasted almost 15 hours. We drive about 12 hours back and forth to Rosemary Beach in Panhandle Florida from Dallas. We listened to Adrenaline in two installments, never missing a beat after a few weeks. The story is so well written that we both felt as if we were watching a movie, fully immersed in the action. The ability to write in a manner that is so engaging and revealing, even when the words are being ready by a talented actor, is quite amazing.

Warms, Cym

Amazon

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Winner of the Wednesday Blog Book Review Party and Blog Spotlight!

*all winners are selected by Random Number Generator *

And the winner of the Amazon Gift Card ($15 value) from Wednesday's Review Party is...

(**Drums Rolling in the Background**)

Congratulations to Starting Fresh!




Be sure to check out Starting Fresh and leave a comment!


Send me your email address for the Amazon eGC.

Warms-
CYM

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Author Spotlight: Janet McNulty

Book Description:
In the days of Amborese the lands of Tesnayr have been plunged into a dark age where chaos and old rivalries reign. An evil wizard, Clymorus, seeks to destroy the world by bringing the lands of Tesnayr under his control, using monstrous creatures called Iorks. Amborese is the last true heir of Tesnayr and heir to a throne that has sat empty for over three centuries. Thrust into an adventure she never could have imagined, Amborese must discover who she is if she is to reclaim the throne. Accompanied by the talking cat, Sposa, and her friend Zolo, she must unite the five realms and destroy Clymorus and his army of dark creatures. With danger at every turn and a land full of enemies, her chances of successful seem doubtful. But Amborese's biggest foe is herself. Can she overcome her self-doubt to accomplish the impossible? To find that out, you must read the book.

About the Author:

Janet McNulty wrote Legends Lost Amborese and chose to publish it under the pen name Nova Rose, since she has also published material in nonfiction.

She currently resides in West Virginia and began construction on Legends Lost Amborese ten years ago while in high school. At the time it was merely a few pages of notes in one of her school notebooks. In college she continued working on the story of Amborese in the hope that one day she would be able to share it with the world. That day came in August 2011 when the book was first printed.

Ms. McNulty keeps herself busy writing the second novel in the Legends Lost trilogy. And she has her cats to keep her on task.

Additional Links:
LegendsLostTrilogy
Amazon
Barnes and Noble
Facebook

Thank you Janet for allowing me to spotlight you!

-CYM

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