Layers of Thought

Giveaway: The House at the End of Hope Street ~ by Menna Van Praag

2013-05-13T10:12:00.001-07:00

Giveaway for The House at the End of Hope Street by Menna Van Praag for on US or Canadian resident.

A magical debut about an enchanted house that offers refuge to women in their time of need.

Distraught that her academic career has stalled, Alba is walking through her hometown of Cambridge, England, when she finds herself in front of a house she’s never seen before, 11 Hope Street. A beautiful older woman named Peggy greets her and invites her to stay, on the house’s usual conditions: she has ninety-nine nights to turn her life around. With nothing left to lose, Alba takes a chance and moves in.

She soon discovers that this is no ordinary house. Past residents have included Virginia Woolf and Dorothy Parker, who, after receiving the assistance they needed, hung around to help newcomers—literally, in talking portraits on the wall. As she escapes into this new world, Alba begins a journey that will heal her wounds—and maybe even save her life.

Filled with a colorful and unforgettable cast of literary figures, The House at the End of Hope Street is a charming, whimsical novel of hope and feminine wisdom that is sure to appeal to fans of Jasper Fforde and especially Sarah Addison Allen.

304 pages | 04 Apr 2013 | Pamela Dorman Books |18 - AND UP

You Do Not need to be a follower/reader to enter this giveaway but it helps. You will get an extra entry point if you are.

Ways to “follow”:

Facebook: for updates in your feed -add me as a friend.
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Google+
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Goodreads (Add me as a friend -no giveaway updates here only reviews.)

Also please fill out the Google form and remember that your personal data will be used for purposes of this contest only. Incomplete entries will also be VOID.

Review: Queen Victoria’s Book of Spells edited by Ellen Datlow and Terri Windling

2013-05-06T13:06:00.001-07:00

Shellie’s review for Queen Victoria’s Book of Spells: An Anthology of Gaslamp Fantasy edited by Ellen Datlow and Terri Windling.

Shellie’s quick take: A fantastical and intellectual collection of stories termed “Gaslamp” (set within Victorian times) with dark themes.

Shellie’s thoughts: What is Gaslamp fantasy? It’s fantasy set within the time when gas lamps lit England, before electric lights. So there can be a flavor of steampunk, but gaslamp is a broader genre as reflected by these stories.

In their stories the authors from this collection take “a poke” at the era with its blatant superior belief systems and its male-dominated and class-ridden social structure - as Terry Windling excellently addresses in the beginning to this anthology with her Introduction: Fantasy, Magic, and Fairyland in Nineteenth-Century England. Here the author academically describes how fantasy and magic where seen during Victorian times in England, setting the stage for the stories in this collection.

With eighteen stories, I did not love every one (some of the writing styles where difficult for me to digest), so I have only listed my very favorites. In my opinion these short stories definitely make the book worth the read. Each favored title has a short description including my quick thoughts – perhaps to persuade you to pick up and read one or two.

“The Fairy Enterprise” by Jeffrey Ford - An arrogant industrialist has an idea on how to make money by using fairies. It is wonderfully horrific and has a revengeful ending. I love great revenge stories.

“From the Catalogue of the Pavilion of the Uncanny and Marvelous, Scheduled for Premiere at the Great Exhibition (Before the Fire)” by Genevieve Valentine - An unusually told story based upon a true event – The Great Exhibit of 1851 in London and the fire. The story creatively catalogs the fantastical items which where lost in the fire which destroyed the exhibit.

“The Governess” by Elizabeth Bear - Is a dark feminist take on the selkie myth and is one of my top picks for the collection.

“The Unwanted Women of Surrey” by Kaaron Warren - A story set around a group of women whose husbands keep them in a home and away from their families for various reasons. The women get involved in some horrific mischief that is particularly memorable and historically significant to the era.

“Phosphorus” by Veronica Shanoes - And lastly another big favorite of mine is the dark tale based upon the women workers who made matches during the era; they worked under terrible circumstances and absorbed some of the phosphorus from the matches into their bodies.

What I liked about my favorites is that they had an accessible writing style where I was absorbed into the stories; and most brought to light some of aspect of real life horror happening during the time.

In the end I recommend this book for readers looking for a dark fantastic journey into Victorian England, especially readers who enjoy the literature from the era. I’d give 3.5 stars for this short story collection.

Tor Books; March 2013; Trade Paperback; 352 pages.

Giveaway: A Certain Summer by Patricia Beard (and Spring Fling Hop)

2013-04-30T12:36:00.001-07:00

Giveaway for A Certain Summer by Patricia Beard and the Spring Fling Hop.

Here’s a bit about this historical fiction read:

"Nothing ever changes at Wauregan.” That mystique is the tradition of the idyllic island colony off the shore of Long Island, the comforting tradition that its summer dwellers have lived by for over half a century. But in the summer of 1948, after a world war has claimed countless men—even those who came home—the time has come to deal with history’s indelible scars.

Helen Wadsworth’s husband, Arthur, was declared missing in action during an OSS operation in France, but the official explanation was mysteriously nebulous. Now raising a teenage son who longs to know the truth about his father, Helen turns to Frank Hartman—her husband’s best friend and his partner on the mission when he disappeared. Frank, however, seems more intent on filling the void in Helen’s life that Arthur’s absence has left. As Helen’s affection for Frank grows, so does her guilt, especially when Peter Gavin, a handsome Marine who was brutally tortured by the Japanese and has returned with a faithful war dog, unexpectedly stirs new desires. With her heart pulled in multiple directions, Helen doesn’t know whom to trust—especially when a shocking discovery forever alters her perception of both love and war.

Part mystery, part love story, and part insider’s view of a very private world, A Certain Summer resonates in the heart long after the last page is turned.

This book is part of the Spring Fling Giveaway Hop May 1st – 7th. Hosted by I Am A Reader, Not A Writer & Eve’s Fan Garden.

We have two copies for US and Canadian addresses and you Do Not have to be reader/follower to enter this contest. However if you are you will receive an extra entry in the contest.

Ways to “follow”:

Facebook: for updates in your feed -add me as a friend.
Your Email Box
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Now for the other blogs offering bookish giveaways for this hop:

Giveaway: The Grail of the Summer Stars ~ by Freda Warrington (and blog hop)

2013-04-23T12:23:00.001-07:00

Giveaway for The Grail of the Summer Stars (Aetherial Tales - Volume 3) by Freda Warrington and Showers of Books Giveaway Hop.

The climactic concluding novel in the spellbinding magical contemporary fantasy Aetherial Tales trilogy

A painting, depicting haunting scenes of a ruined palace and a scarlet-haired goddess in front of a fiery city, arrives unheralded in an art gallery with a cryptic note saying, “The world needs to see this.” The painting begins to change the lives of the woman who is the gallery's curator and that of an ancient man of the fey Aetherial folk who has mysteriously risen from the depths of the ocean. Neither human nor fairy knows how they are connected, but when the painting is stolen, both are compelled to discover the meaning behind the painting and the key it holds to their future.

In Grail of the Summer Stars, a haunting, powerful tale of two worlds and those caught between, Freda Warrington weaves an exciting story of suspense, adventure and danger that fulfills the promise of the Aetherial Tales as only she can.

Although the third in the series this book is also billed as a stand alone.

This book is part of the Showers of Books Giveaway Hop from April 24th to 30th. It is hosted by I Am A Reader, Not A Writer and Books à la Mode.

We have one copy for one US or Canadian resident. And you do not have to be reader/follower to enter this contest. However if you are you will receive an extra entry in the contest.

Ways to “follow”:

Facebook: for updates in your feed -add me as a friend.
Your Email Box
Feed Reader
Twitter
Google+
Pinterest
Goodreads (Add me as a friend -no giveaway updates here only reviews.)

Also please fill out the Google form.

Now for the other blogs offering bookish giveaways for this hop:

Incoming Books: April 22, 2013

2013-04-22T10:30:00.001-07:00

It’s our incoming books for April 22, 2013.

ChiZine

The Warrior Who Carried Life by Geoff Ryman

To defeat her enemies . . . . she must make them immortal.

Only men are allowed into the wells of vision. But Cara’s mother defies this edict and is killed, but not before returning with a vision of terrible and wonderful things that are to come . . . and all because of five-year-old Cara.

Years later, evil destroys the rest of Cara’s family. In a rage, Cara uses magic to transform herself into a male warrior. But she finds that to defeat her enemies, she must break the cycle of violence, not continue it.

As Cara’s mother’s vision of destiny is fulfilled, the wonderful follows the terrible, and a quest for revenge becomes a quest for eternal life.

ChiZine; Trade Paperback; 300 pages Apr 15, 2013.

Macmillan/Tor

Kitty Rocks the House by Carrie Vaughn

On the heels of Kitty’s return from London, a new werewolf shows up in Denver, one who threatens to split the pack by challenging Kitty’s authority at every turn. The timing could not be worse; Kitty needs all the allies she can muster to go against the ancient vampire, Roman, if she’s to have any hope of defeating his Long Game. But there’s more to this intruder than there seems, and Kitty must uncover the truth, fast. Meanwhile, Cormac pursues an unknown entity wreaking havoc across Denver; and a vampire from the Order of St. Lazaurus tempts Rick with the means to transform his life forever.

Tor Books; March 2013; Mass Market Paperbound; 336 pages.

Queen Victoria's Book of Spells: An Anthology of Gaslamp Fantasy edited by Ellen Datlow and Terri Windling

“Gaslamp Fantasy,” or historical fantasy set in a magical version of the nineteenth century, has long been popular with readers and writers alike. A number of wonderful fantasy novels, including Stardust by Neil Gaiman, Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell by Susanna Clarke, and The Prestige by Christopher Priest, owe their inspiration to works by nineteenth-century writers ranging from Jane Austen, the Brontës, and George Meredith to Charles Dickens, Anthony Trollope, and William Morris. And, of course, the entire steampunk genre and subculture owes more than a little to literature inspired by this period.

Queen Victoria’s Book of Spells is an anthology for everyone who loves these works of neo-Victorian fiction, and wishes to explore the wide variety of ways that modern fantasists are using nineteenth-century settings, characters, and themes. These approaches stretch from steampunk fiction to the Austen-and-Trollope inspired works that some critics call Fantasy of Manners, all of which fit under the larger umbrella of Gaslamp Fantasy. The result is eighteen stories by experts from the fantasy, horror, mainstream, and young adult fields, including both bestselling writers and exciting new talents such as Elizabeth Bear, James Blaylock, Jeffrey Ford, Ellen Kushner, Tanith Lee, Gregory Maguire, Delia Sherman, and Catherynne M. Valente, who present a bewitching vision of a nineteenth century invested (or cursed!) with magic.

Tor Books; March 2013; Trade Paperback; 352 pages.

Rebel Angels: Lady Lazarus (Volume 3) by Michelle Lang

Magda Lazarus has twice come back from the dead to fight the Nazis’ devastating conquest of Poland. To prevent the Holocaust her sister has seen in terrible visions, Magda will need the Heaven Sapphire, a gem powerful enough to defeat even the demon Asmodel. With the future of all Europe in the balance, Magda and her husband, the fallen angel Raziel, begin a perilous journey to the Caucasus, the resting place of the fabled stone.

Surrounded by Germans, Russians, and mistrustful Azerbaijani tribesmen, Magda must summon all her magic to withstand the predations of the deadly supernatural foes. But more dangerous yet is the power of the Sapphire itself, which could stop Hitler…or destroy Magda.

Rebel Angels, the climactic book of Michele Lang's Lady Lazarus trilogy, filled with suspense, magic, and action, will have readers at the edge of their seats until the exciting conclusion.

Tor Books; March 2013; Hardcover; 320 pages .

Lady Lazarus: (Volume 1) by Michele Lang

With the romance of Twilight, the suspense of The Dresden Files, and the delicious thrills of True Blood, the enthralling saga of Magdalena Lazarus unfolds. Descended from the legendary witch of Ein Dor, she alone holds the power to summon the angel Raziel and stop Hitler and his supernatural minions from unleashing total war in Europe. The Nazis have fighters more fearsome than soldiers, weapons more terrifying than missiles, and allies that even they are afraid of SS werewolves; the demon Asmodel who possesses a willing Adolf Hitler, and other supernatural creatures all are literally hell-bent on preventing Magda from possessing the Book of Raziel, a magical text with the power to turn the tide against Hitler’s vast war machine.

Magda, young and rebellious, grew up in the cosmopolitan city of Budapest, unaware of her family’s heritage. When her mother dies, Magda--ready or not--is the Lazarus, who must face the evil that holds Europe in an iron grip. Unready to assume the mantle of her ancient birthright, but knowing that she must fight, she sets out across Europe searching for the Book. Magda is desperate enough to endanger her soul by summoning the avenging angel Raziel. When she sees him in the glory of his celestial presence, her heart is utterly, completely lost…

Tor Books; August 2010; Trade Paperback; 320 pages.

Virus Thirteen by Joshua Alan Parry

Virus Thirteen is an irreverent and contagious thriller from debut author Joshua Alan Parry.

Scientists James Logan and his wife, Linda, have their dream careers at the world’s leading biotech company, GeneFirm, Inc. But their happiness is interrupted by a devastating bioterrorist attack: a deadly superflu that quickly becomes a global pandemic. The GeneFirm complex goes into lockdown and Linda’s research team is sent to high-security underground labs to develop a vaccine.

Above ground, James learns that GeneFirm security has been breached and Linda is in danger. To save her he must confront a desperate terrorist, armed government agents, and an invisible killer: Virus Thirteen.

Tor Books; March 2013; Mass Market Paperbound; 320 pages.

Necessary Evil (Milkweed #3) by Ian Tregillis

12 May 1940. Westminster, London, England: the early days of World War II. Again.

Raybould Marsh, one of “our” Britain’s best spies, has travelled to another Earth in a desperate attempt to save at least one timeline from the Cthulhu-like monsters who have been observing our species from space and have already destroyed Marsh’s timeline. In order to accomplish this, he must remove all traces of the supermen that were created by the Nazi war machine and caused the specters from outer space to notice our planet in the first place.

His biggest challenge is the mad seer Gretel, one of the most powerful of the Nazi creations, who has sent a version of herself to this timeline to thwart Marsh. Why would she stand in his way? Because she has seen that in all the timelines she dies and she is determined to stop that from happening, even if it means destroying most of humanity in the process. And Marsh is the only man who can stop her.

Necessary Evil is the stunning conclusion to Ian Tregillis’s Milkweed series.

Tor Books; 4/30/2013; Hardcover; 384 pages.

Without a Summer (#3) by Mary Robinette Kowal

Up-and-coming fantasist Mary Robinette Kowal enchanted fans with her novels Shades of Milk and Honey and Glamour in Glass, which introduced Regency glamourists Jane and David Vincent. In Without a Summer, Jane and Vincent take a break from their international travels. But in a world where magic is real, nothing—even the domestic sphere—is quite what it seems.

After a dramatic trip to Belgium, Jane and Vincent go to Long Parkmeade to spend time with Jane’s family, but quickly turn restless. The spring is unseasonably cold, and no one wants to be outside. Mr. Ellsworth is concerned by the harvest, since a poor one may imperil Melody’s dowry. And Melody has concerns of her own, given an inadequate selection of eligible bachelors locally.

When Jane and Vincent receive a commission from a prominent London family, they take it, and bring Melody with them. They hope the change of scenery will do her good and her marriage prospects—and mood—will be brighter in London. Talk here frequently turns to increased unemployment of coldmongers and riots in nearby villages by Luddites concerned that their way of life is becoming untenable. With each passing day, it’s more difficult to avoid getting embroiled in the intrigue, which does not really help Melody’s chances for romance. It doesn’t take long for Jane to Vincent realize that in addition to arranging a wedding, they must take on one small task: solving a crisis of national proportions.

Tor Books; April 2013; Hardcover; 368 pages.

Grail of the Summer Stars Aetherial Tales (Volume 3)by Freda Warrington

The climactic concluding novel in the spellbinding magical contemporary fantasy Aetherial Tales trilogy

Tor Books; 4/23/2013; Hardcover; 384 pages.

Misc

The Power of Indigo by Alesia Kunz

In a future world where firebombings, samesex relations and programmable SexDolls are the norm, Leila, a martial artist and Resister, battles the State’s violence and mind control with astonishing creativity, while trying to control her own warring compulsions.

The Power of Indigo is a stirringly sensual, dazzling exploration of our relationship to gender, to the environment, to power and technology, and an inspiring call to evolve before it is too late.

Dog Ear Publishing; 3/19/2012; Pages: 328

The House at the end of Hope Street by Menna Van Praag

A magical debut about an enchanted house that offers refuge to women in their time of need.

304 pages | 04 Apr 2013 | Pamela Dorman Books |18 - AND UP

Giveaway: London Falling ~ by Paul Cornell

2013-04-16T09:40:00.001-07:00

It’s release day and we have a giveaway for one copy of London Falling by Paul Cornell for a US or Canadian address.

About the book:

Police officers Quill, Costain, Sefton, and Ross know the worst of London—or they think they do. While investigating a mobster's mysterious death, they come into contact with a strange artifact and accidentally develop the Sight. Suddenly they can see the true evil haunting London’s streets.

Armed with police instincts and procedures, the four officers take on the otherworldly creatures secretly prowling London. Football lore and the tragic history of a Tudor queen become entwined in their pursuit of an age-old witch with a penchant for child sacrifice. But when London’s monsters become aware of their meddling, the officers must decide what they are willing to sacrifice to clean up their city.

Tor Books; 4/16/2013; Hardcover; 416 pages

PAUL CORNELL is a British writer best known for his work in television drama, most notably for Doctor Who. Three of his Doctor Who episodes have been nominated for the Hugo Award for Best Dramatic Presentation, Short Form. He has written several Doctor Who spin-off novels, and created the character Beatrice Summerfield. He has also written for Marvel Comics and DC Comics, and had two original novels published.

You do not need to be a follower/reader to enter this giveaway but it helps. You will get an extra entry point if you do.

Ways to “follow”:

Google+
Facebook: for updates in your feed -add me as a friend.
Your Email Box
Feed Reader
Twitter
Pinterest
Goodreads (Add me as a friend -no giveaway updates here only reviews.)

Also please fill out the Google form and remember that your personal data will be used for purposes of this contest only. Incomplete entries will also be VOID.

Review: Who Was Dracula? by Jim Steinmeyer

2013-04-15T10:32:00.001-07:00

A review by Shellie for Who Was Dracula? Bram Stoker’s Trail of Blood.

Shellie’s quick take:

A historical telling of how Bram Stoker’s 100 year old cultural icon – Dracula - was created and became the character that holds awe even today. This book goes into some of the significant happenings going on around the creation of the novel Dracula.

Shellie’s description:

Vampire fascination is not going to go away. We can see that in the popularity of books and cinema that include vampires. Interest in the novel Dracula, even a 100 years beyond its publication, proves this well. In the non-fiction book Who Was Dracula? author Jim Steinmeyer attempts to enlighten and dispel some long held ideas about who the character was, who Stoker based his character on, how the novel was created, and some intriguing historical details surrounding Stoker at the time.

It appears that Steinmeyer wants readers to believe that Dracula was not entirely based upon Bram Stoker’s boss Henry Irving (many Dracula scholars believe it was). In fact the character is influenced by some famous individuals and events that Stoker came across in his life. These include Oscar Wilde, Walt Whitman, Jack the Ripper and many more.

Less surprisingly, Steinmeyer believes that the mythology we have built around vampires is based upon what Bram Stoker created. He also states that Dracula became a powerful mystical figure a long time ago – indeed he says that Dracula was a revered pop cultural icon 100 years ago. So Vampire love is not new.

Shellie’s thoughts:

This was not an all-encompassing read for me; I felt compelled and intrigued in some parts but a bit lost in others. Generally, I find non-fiction historical books a bit hard to read, but I gave this a go because I loved the novel Dracula and feel that the character Stoker created is an exceptional and memorable one. So naturally I was curious as to what influenced Bram Stoker when he was writing this popular novel.

There are a lot of meaty historical details around a variety of characters and Bram Stoker’s connection to them, as the author attempts to support his theories. This pulled me in and kept me reading, but at times I felt like I was reading more about Henry Irving (Bram Stoker’s boss and a popular actor and theatre owner) than I was about the novel Dracula or Stoker himself.

I did enjoy the book and in the end would say that Who Was Dracula? is for anyone who is interested in the elements that create a character such as Dracula; anyone interested in the historical situations that surrounded Bram Stoker and influenced him; and those interested in the reasons why it is still so popular 100-plus years after its publication. 3 stars for this intriguing historical book.

*A note to readers: if you are planning on reading this book you may want to read a few other things first – including Dracula, The Picture of Dorian Grey, Leaves of Grass and the Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. It does contain some spoilers for these classics. Alternatively, be prepared to skip a bit here and there so you can still enjoy these great books to the full.

336 pages | 04 Apr 2013 | Tarcher

Review: Bowl of Heaven by Gregory Benford and Larry Niven

2013-04-10T11:00:00.001-07:00

Review by John for Bowl of Heaven:

John’s quick take: Grand science fiction ideas and an epic-scale story, but a disappointingly executed novel.

John’s description: An expedition sets off from Earth to explore a distant star system and to populate a (hopefully) Earth-like plant. The journey will take many decades and most of the travelers are put into a deep sleep while skeleton crews take it in turn to pilot the starship. But after just eighty years Cliff Kammash, one of the lead biologists, is awoken early.

It soon becomes apparent to Cliff that there is a problem, but the problem pales beside the discovery of an unimaginably huge artifact that is the size of a solar system. Indeed, the bowl-shaped object seems to encompass a star and have a surface area that is millions of times that of earth. It also seems to heading towards the same star system targeted by the humans.

With the starship inexplicably losing velocity and struggling to reach its goal, the crew decide to investigate the bowl, hoping to replenish supplies that are being depleted too quickly. More of the crew are awakened and a landing party is sent down to the surface of the bowl. There they discover strange bird-like aliens, but half of the party are captured. The two separated groups then struggle to explore and understand the strange world, unsure of how they can ever get back to their own ship.

John’s thoughts: Oh dear. One of my pet hates is a book that masquerades as a standalone novel but in reality is only the first episode in a series – with no satisfactory conclusion to any of the plot threads. There are ways of creating a series that still provide a satisfying experience to someone who just wants to read one of the books, but no attempt is made to do that in Bowl of Heaven. Worse still, nowhere on the jacket or book description are you made aware that this is just the first in the series. This is the worst example of my pet hate that I have come across in a long time. Very frustrating.

Will I be tempted to seek out the next in the series? No. There are some interesting ideas in the book and I like some of the interaction between the different species, but the story drags on too much and lacks pace - I had a hard time reading more than a dozen pages at a time. It doesn’t help that the characters are all a bit two dimensional and some of the interplay between them just doesn’t feel plausible. It also doesn’t help that there is some weird editing in the book. There were at least three obvious discontinuities or contradictions in the story.

I can only rate this book 2 stars; and the only people I could recommend it to are die-hard fanatical follower of Benford or Niven who are prepared for the long haul of a series and can get beyond some of the shortcomings of this read.

Bowl of Heaven ~ by Gregory Benford and Larry Niven (Tor Books; October 2012; Hardcover; 416 pages)

Contest: Win a copy of A LEGACY OF STARS by Danielle Ackley-McPhail

2013-04-08T11:22:00.001-07:00

A giveaway contest from Danielle Ackley-McPhail for two signed copies of her science fiction short story collection A Legacy of Stars.

Danielle states: I received a wonderful review yesterday for my solo science fiction collection, A Legacy of Stars (DTF Publications/Dark Quest Books). It made my day, but it came with something of a mystery, which I’ll quote here:

“One of the cleverest first contact stories to come along in a long time.” Analog June 2013 issue

Where is the mystery, do you ask? See…there are two first contact stories in the collection. Now I could just ask the reviewer which one he thought was the cleverest, but where is the fun in that? I say this calls for a
contest.

For the next week I will be taking a poll on what you thought was the cleverest first contact story in the book. How it works: If you really like me and want to give some support to a small press author buy the ebook version of the book for $2.99 and give it a read.

Kindle: http://www.amazon.com/A-Legacy-of-Stars-ebook/dp/B00AD4BHI2/?tag=blissinsan-20

NOOK: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/a-legacy-of-stars-danielle-ackley-mcphail/1113801125?ean=2940015734997

Or, email me (Danielle) at greenfirephoenix@aol.com and I will send you a PDF file of the two stories in question. Whichever route you take, read the stories: Building Blocks and To Look Upon The Face of God and click the below rafflecopter by April 12 (EST) with your pick for which is the cleverest. On April 13th the reviewer, Don Sakers, will answer the question on my Facebook page. Two people will win a free, autographed copy of the print version of A Legacy of Stars.

http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/3536890/

To help share this promo visit:
http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/share-code/MzUzNjg5YWM2OGQxYmQ4N2NmYjhiNWE2MDk1NmViOjA=/

To read the full review: http://www.analogsf.com/2013_06/reflib.shtml

Giveaway: The Isis Collar and The Eldritch Conspiracy by Cat Adams (and blog hop)

2013-03-31T12:12:00.001-07:00

Welcome to the Fool for Books Giveaway Hop from April 1st to 7th. Hosted by I Am A Reader, Not A Writer.

We have two book up for giveaway The Isis Collar and The Eldritch Conspiracy by Cat Adams. Here is a bit about each book from the publisher:

The Isis Collar: The Blood Singer Novels (Volume 4)

Celia Graves was once an ordinary human, but those days are long gone. Now she strives to maintain her sanity and her soul while juggling both vampire abilities and the powers of a Siren.

Warned of a magical "bomb" at a local elementary school, Celia forces an evacuation. Oddly, the explosion seems to have no effect, puzzling both Celia and the FBI. Two weeks later, a strangely persistent bruise on Celia's leg turns out to be the first sign of a magical zombie plague.

Finding the source of the plague isn't Celia's only concern. Her alcoholic mother has broken out of prison on the Sirens' island; her little sister's ghost has possessed a young girl; and one of Celia's boyfriends, a powerful mage, has disappeared.

Tor Books; March 2012; Trade Paperback; 384 pages.

The Eldritch Conspiracy: The Blood Singer Novels (Volume 5)

Not every bride needs a bridesmaid who can double as a bodyguard. But Celia's cousin Adriana is no ordinary bride: she's a Siren princess, and she's marrying the king of a small but politically important European country. She's getting death threats from fanatics who want to see the whole Siren race wiped out—including Celia herself, who is half Siren.

Luckily, Celia is on duty when a trip to a bridal salon is interrupted by an assassination attempt, so everyone survives. When Adriana returns to the Siren homeland to try to prevent a coup, Celia is free to hunt for the terrorists and the vile mage who is helping them (while keeping her eyes open for the perfect maid-of-honor dress).

Assuming the bride and groom both live to see their wedding day, this will be one royal wedding no one will ever forget.

Tor Books; January 2013; Trade Paperback; 384 pages.

Both books are available for one US address. Because I will be mailing these out myself you MUST be a follower/reader of the blog to enter this contest.

Ways to “follow”:

Facebook: for updates in your feed -add me as a friend.
Your Email Box
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Twitter (I will follow back, for any of the below media sites.)
Google+
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Also please fill out the Google form. Loading...

Now for the other blogs offering bookish giveaways for this hop:

Giveaway: The Kassa Gambit by M.C. Planck (and blog hop)

2013-03-28T11:23:00.001-07:00

Giveaway for The Kassa Gambit by M.C. Planck and the Hoppy Easter Eggstravaganza Giveaway Hop

Our giveaway is the recently published science fiction novel where you can read a review by John for The Kassa Gambit and also an interview with M.C. Planck linked to the text.

Publisher’s Description: Centuries after the ecological collapse of Earth, humanity has spread among the stars. Under the governance of the League, our endless need for resources has driven us to colonize hundreds of planets, all of them devoid of other sentient life. Humanity is apparently alone in the universe.

Then comes the sudden, brutal decimation of Kassa, a small farming planet, by a mysterious attacker. The few survivors send out a desperate plea for aid, which is answered by two unlikely rescuers. Prudence Falling is the young captain of a tramp freighter. She and her ragtag crew have been on the run and living job to job for years, eking out a living by making cargo runs that aren’t always entirely legal. Lt. Kyle Daspar is a police officer from the wealthy planet of Altair Prime, working undercover as a double agent against the League. He’s been undercover so long he can't be trusted by anyone—even himself.

While flying rescue missions to extract survivors from the surface of devastated Kassa, they discover what could be the most important artifact in the history of man: an alien spaceship, crashed and abandoned during the attack. But something tells them there is more to the story. Together, they discover the cruel truth about the destruction of Kassa, and that an imminent alien invasion is the least of humanity’s concerns.

Tor Books; January 2013; Hardcover; 288 pages.

This book is part of the Hoppy Easter Eggstravaganza Giveaway Hop from March 29th to April 5th. Hosted by I Am A Reader, Not A Writer & Read Now Sleep Later

We have one copy for one US resident. And because this book will be mailed out by me personally you MUST be a reader/follower to enter this contest.

Ways to “follow”:

Facebook: for updates in your feed -add me as a friend.
Your Email Box
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Google+
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Goodreads (Add me as a friend -no giveaway updates here only reviews.)

Please fill out the Google form.

Now for the other blogs offering bookish giveaways for this hop:

Review: The Map of the Sky by Felix J. Palma

2013-03-26T10:23:00.001-07:00

A review written by John. And since this is a sequel you may want to take a look at John’s review of The Map of Time.

John’s quick take: A sort of stand-alone sequel to the impressive The Map of Time, this is an equally complex and original story. Once again featuring H. G. Wells as a central character, this time Palma takes Wells’s The War of the Worlds as a foundation and spins a mind-bending tale of time travel, aliens, adventure, terror and love.

John’s description: H. G. Wells is not happy. Just a few months after the publication of his book The War of the Worlds, an American hack writer has written a sequel which Wells thinks of poor quality and in poor taste. He finally agrees to meet the writer for lunch, and after a few drinks Wells surprisingly starts to soften to him. After more drinks the American takes Wells to a secret room in the Natural History Museum and shows him an amazing otherworldly exhibit which totally stuns the British author (I will say no more in case I give away too much).

Several decades earlier, an ill-fated expedition to the Antarctic floundered as the ship became locked in the ice. The explorers are trying to make the most of their unhappy lot, when a flying object streaks overhead and crashes into the ice nearby. Their travails become worse when they find the object contained a strange alien beast, and soon they are embroiled in a fierce battle for survival.

Back in present day 1898, New York socialite Emma Harlow is bored of her constant suitors, and especially the egotistical and determined millionaire, Montgomery Gilmore. Eventually Emma agrees to marry Gilmore, but on one condition – first he has to create a reproduction of the Martian invasion scenes featured in The War of the Worlds. Thanks in part to things he achieved during his secret past, Gilmore thinks he can pull this off and starts planning the event.

A short while later in the outskirts of London, Wells is present when Gilmore’s show starts. Strange containers appear but soon it becomes apparent, to everyone’s horror, that a real alien invasion has started. Amazingly, in some ways the invasion mirrors Wells’s recently published novel. Even the might of the British empire can do nothing to stop the aliens, who’ve soon overrun London. Wells, Gilmore, Harlow, a strange detective and a motley crew of associates struggle to escape the onslaught – and Wells finds he has a strange gift which might just help.

John’s thoughts: As with The Map of Time, this is structured around three separate story lines which eventually become interweaved, thanks in part to a bending of the timelines. Also in line with the earlier novel, everything in this book centers around H. G. Wells, an intriguing character who is painted as being super-smart and rather prescient.

It’s an interesting story with a complex plot and many twists and turns. Again one of Wells’s most famous novels features prominently in the story; this time The War of the Worlds provides a foundation and launch pad for Palma’s strange tale. What would happen if a “war of the worlds” actually happened, and what might the famous author be able to do about it?

Palma clearly has a gift for storytelling and a great imagination. He leverages the original master of the science fiction genre, but this is a lot more than an homage to the great H.G. Wells – Palma takes the story into some pretty whacky places.

My quibbles about the book? It is some 600 pages long and I think it could have benefitted by some tight editing and losing 100 of those pages. In places it seems to take a long time to get to where it wants to go. It also builds quite a lot on characters and events from The Map of Time – not a problem for me as I’d read the earlier book, but for those who are reading Palma for the first time, there will be some missing background and character development that will take away from the reading experience.

I do really like the Victorian setting and Palma does a good job of creating a realistic Victorian era background and then mixing in some oddball storylines. Overall I’d rate it 4 stars and as with The Map of Time I’d thoroughly recommend it to anyone who enjoys a good historical fantasy novel or indeed a good fantasy novel, period. If you are a science fiction fan and a big follower of Victorian fiction, then this is most definitely one for you.

Atria Books | Hardbound | 594 pages | 2012

It looks like the trade paperback version of the book will be out in June of 2013, The Map of Time is now available in mass market paperback, and both books by Felix J. Palma are available in audio format.

Review: The Silence of Bonaventure Arrow by Rita Leganski

2013-03-21T09:26:00.001-07:00

A review written by Shellie.

Shellie’s quick take:

A lyrical, sadly sweet, yet redemptive novel which has magical realism at its heart. It will make most readers shed tears throughout its reading. It did for me.

Shellie’s description: Set primarily during the late 1940’s through the 50’s in a small Bayou town near New Orleans, the book’s main character, Bonaventure Arrow, his mother and paternal grandmother live in their wealthy home with its own chapel. Bonaventure’s a smart little boy that doesn’t speak a word, but it’s his amazing gift, an ability to hear impossibly subtle things, that in part gives this novel its magical realism quality.

The heartbreaking part of the story is that the main characters have lost a well-loved family member who, although good natured, is haunting them. Most of these characters are damaged, including the entity himself, who feels responsible for their pain; this is keeping the ghost in his worldly limbo as he tries to direct them. In the end it’s a Creole house-keeper (who has a touch of the sight) and Bonaventure himself who pull the story together, revealing the mysterious reasons for the deeper afflictions of their family and helping with its ultimate healing.

Shellie’s thoughts: All at once complex, perfectly interwoven and poetic, this is a wonderful novel that I read quickly. I liked that the author broke the text down into short chapters showing the perspective of each of the characters, creating a book that is easy to pick up and read for short periods. I also liked that all the characters are well developed and likeable, except for a multi-layered protagonist that most readers will love to hate - which is exactly as it should be.

Although I enjoyed this easy-to-read novel and mostly got lost in it, I do want to mention a couple of things that may bother some readers. Firstly, the author’s descriptions are nicely done but there are a lot of them, especially when it comes to the main character’s ability to hear very delicate and impossible things – so I did do some skimming. The second thing that registered for me was that I felt that there was a slight religious agenda imbued in the novel’s pages. However, with that said, Catholic readers will probably enjoy this novel a lot.

Don’t let my small complaints deter you in reading The Silence of Bonaventure Arrow. It’s recommended for women readers who enjoy magical realism, those who like a Southern setting and flavor, those who don’t mind quite a few tears, those wanting a mild religious feel to their reads, and anyone who likes in-depth poetic descriptions in their novels. I give this lyrical and sweet novel a 4 stars.

Harper Paperbacks; (February 26, 2013) 400 pages.

About the author: Rita Leganski holds an MA in writing and publishing and a BA in literary studies and creative writing from DePaul University. She teaches a writing workshop at DePaul’s School for New Learning and was a recipient of the Arthur Weinberg Memorial Prize for a work of historical fiction.

You can find more information about her on her Facebook page .

This book is part of a book tour hosted by TLC Book Tours. For more opinions about The Silence of Bonaventure Arrow link to the tour’s schedule.

Incoming Books ~ March 18, 2013

2013-03-18T14:20:00.001-07:00

It’s our latest ~ Incoming Books for the month.

ChiZine

Goldenland Past Dark by Chandler Klang Smith

A hostile stranger is hunting Dr. Show’s ramshackle travelling circus across 1960s America. His target: the ringmaster himself. Struggling to elude the menace, Dr. Show scraps his ambitious itinerary; ticket sales plummet, and nothing but disaster looms. The troupe’s unraveling hopes fall on their latest and most promising recruit, Webern Bell, a sixteen-year-old hunchbacked midget devoted obsessively to perfecting the surreal clown performances that come to him in his dreams. But as they travel through a landscape of abandoned amusement parks and rural ghost towns, Webern’s bizarre past starts to pursue him, as well.

Along the way, we meet Nepenthe, the seductive Lizard Girl; Brunhilde, a shell-shocked bearded lady; Marzipan, a world-weary chimp; a cabal of drunken, backstabbing clowns; Webern’s uncanny sisters, witchy dogcatchers who speak only in rhymes; and his childhood friend, Wags, who may or may not be imaginary, and whose motives are far more sinister than they seem.

Chizine; Trade Paperback 300 pages March 15, 2013.

Macmillan/Tor

Elsewhens (#2 of the Glass Thorns series) by Melanie Rawn

Touchstone, the magical theater troupe, continues to build audiences. But Cayden is increasingly troubled by his “elsewhens,” the uncontrolled moments when he is plunged into visions of the possible futures. He fears that his Fae gift will forever taint his friendships; his friends fear that his increasing distance will destroy him.

But worldly success follows them—an apparent loss in the Trials leads to Touchstone being selected to travel to the Continent with a Royal Embassy to collect Prince Ashgar’s new bride. They are the first theater artists to appear outside Albeyn for at least seventy years—for magic is suspect and forbidden elsewhere, and the Kingdom’s easy race mixing and magic use horrifies the people they are to travel among.

Tor Books; February 2013; Hardcover; 384 pages.

Firebrand Rebel Angel Series (Volume 1 of 4)by Gillian Philip

At the end of the sixteenth century, religious upheaval brings fear, superstition, and doubt to the lives of mortals. Yet unbeknownst to them, another world lies just beyond the Veil: the realm of the Sithe, a fierce and beautiful people for whom a full-mortal life is but the blink of an eye. The Veil protects and hides their world…but it is fraying at the edges, and not all think it should be repaired.

Discarded by his mother and ignored by his father, sixteen-year-old Seth MacGregor has grown up half wild in his father’s fortress, with only his idolized older brother, Conal, for family. When Conal quarrels with the Sithe queen and is forced into exile in the full-mortal world, Seth volunteers to go with him.

But life beyond the Veil is even more dangerous than they expected, and Seth and Conal soon find themselves embroiled in a witch-hunt—in which they are the quarry. Trapped between the queen’s machinations at home and the superstitious violence of the otherworld, Seth must act before both of them are fed to the witch-hunters’ fires…

Brimming with intrigue and rebellion, Firebrand is the first book in the Rebel Angels series by Gillian Philip, the Carnegie Medal–nominated author of Crossing the Line and multi-award-nominated Bad Faith.

Tor Books; February 2013; Hardcover; 368 pages.

Wide Open (#1) by Deborah Coates

When Sergeant Hallie Michaels comes back to South Dakota from Afghanistan on ten days' compassionate leave, her sister Dell's ghost is waiting at the airport to greet her.
The sheriff says that Dell's death was suicide, but Hallie doesn't believe it. Something happened or Dell's ghost wouldn't still be hanging around. Friends and family, mourning Dell's loss, think Hallie's letting her grief interfere with her judgment.

The one person who seems willing to listen is the deputy sheriff, Boyd Davies, who shows up everywhere and helps when he doesn't have to.

As Hallie asks more questions, she attracts new ghosts, women who disappeared without a trace. Soon, someone's trying to beat her up, burn down her father's ranch, and stop her investigation.

Hallie's going to need Boyd, her friends, and all the ghosts she can find to defeat an enemy who has an unimaginable ancient power at his command.

Wide Open has been nominated for the Bram Stoker Award for Superior Achievement in a First Novel, appeared on Locus Magazine’s Recommended Reading List for first novels, and was chosen as a Tor.com Reviewer’s Choice Pick for Favorite Book of the year.

Tor Books; January 2013; Trade Paperback; 320 pages.

Deep Down (#2) by Deborah Coates

Now that she's solved her sister's murder, Hallie Michaels has left the army and isn't sure what to do next. Her relationship with deputy Boyd Davies is tentative, there's still distance between her and her father, and she needs a job. The good news is, she hasn't seen a ghost in weeks.

All that changes when she gets a call asking her to help an elderly neighbor who is being stalked by black dogs, creatures from the underworld that are harbingers of death. When a black dog appears, Hallie learns, a reaper is sure to follow. And if the dark visions she's suddenly receiving are any indication, it looks like the reaper is now following her.

Meanwhile, strange events herald the arrival of ghosts from Boyd's past, ghosts the young deputy isn't ready to face. Refusing Hallie's help, Boyd takes off to deal with the problem on his own, only to find that he's facing something much larger and more frightening than he'd imagined.

Stalked by a reaper and plagued by dark visions, Hallie finds she must face her fears and travel into Death's own realm to save those she most loves.

Deep Down is the chilling sequel to Wide Open.

Tor Books; March 2013; Hardcover; 304 pages.

Quintessence by David Walton

Imagine an Age of Exploration full of alchemy, human dissection, sea monsters, betrayal, torture, religious controversy, and magic. In Europe, the magic is thin, but at the edge of the world, where the stars reach down close to the Earth, wonders abound. This drives the bravest explorers to the alluring Western Ocean. Christopher Sinclair is an alchemist who cares only about one thing: quintessence, a substance he believes will grant magical powers and immortality. And he has a ship.

Tor Books; 3/19/2013; Hardcover; 320 pages.

Pandemonium (#2) by Warren Fahy

Deep beneath the Ural Mountains, in an underground city carved out by slave labor during the darkest hours of the Cold War, ancient caverns hold exotic and dangerous life-forms that have evolved in isolation for countless millennia. Cut off from the surface world, an entire ecosystem of bizarre subterranean species has survived undetected—until now.

Biologists Nell and Geoffrey Binswanger barely survived their last encounter with terrifying, invasive creatures that threatened to engulf the planet. They think the danger is over until a ruthless Russian tycoon lures them to his underground metropolis, where they find themselves confronted by a vicious menagerie of biological horrors from their past—and by entirely new breeds of voracious predators. Now they’re rising up from the bowels of the Earth to consume the world as we know it.

Tor Books; 3/19/2013; Hardcover; 320 pages.

Blood’s Pride (The Shattered Kingdoms - Volume 1) by Evie Manieri

Rising from their sea-torn ships like vengeful, pale phantoms, the Norlanders laid waste to the Shadar under cover of darkness. They forced the once-peaceful fisher folk into slavery and forged an alliance with their former trading partners, the desert-dwelling Nomas tribe, cutting off any hope of salvation.

Now, two decades after the invasion, a rebellion gathers strength in the dark corridors of the city. A small faction of Shadari have hired the Mongrel, an infamous mercenary, to aid their fledgling uprising—but with her own shadowy ties to the region, she is a frighteningly volatile ally. Has she really come to lead a revolution, or for a more sinister purpose all her own?

Tor Books; February 2013; Hardcover; 528 pages.

Misc Publishers and Independent Authors

The Necromancer’s Grimoire (book 2 of the Elysium Texts series) by Annmarie Banks

At the dawn of the Renaissance, a young woman finds herself on the path to great power... but can she control it or will it destroy her?

Nadira has earned her place in the company of adventurers traveling to Istanbul to uncover something the Templar Knights lost 200 years before. She brings with her the knowledge and skills she acquired from reading The Hermetica of Elysium and learns that she is the key the Templars need to unlock their past.

Lord Montrose is impatient with their mission. He is eager to turn his attention to seeking out and punishing his brother's murderers who sail the Mediterranean hunting heretical manuscripts. While another member of their group, the pious Friar William, is in the throes of doubt as his faith is challenged by what he has seen of Nadira's growing powers and the mystical elixirs of the alchemists.

For what they want is for Nadira to read and master the powers of the book of Satan's realm, The Necromancer's Grimoire.

Knox Robinson Publishing; March 6th, 2013.

Read my review for the first book in this series - The Hermetica of Elysium.

The Mapmaker’s War by Ronlyn Dominigue

This will be the map of your heart, old woman. In an ancient time, in a faraway land, a young woman named Aoife is allowed a rare apprenticeship to become her kingdom's mapmaker, tasked with charting the entire domain. Traveling beyond its borders, she finds a secretive people who live in peace, among great wealth. They claim to protect a mythic treasure, one connected to the creation of the world. When Aoife reports their existence to her kingdom, the community is targeted as a threat. Attempting to warn them of imminent danger, Aoife is exiled for treason and finds refuge among the very people who had been declared her enemy. With them, she begins a new life surrounded by kindness, equality, and cooperation. But within herself, Aoife has no peace. She cannot share the grief she feels for the home and children she left behind. She cannot bear the warrior scars of the man she comes to love. And when she gives birth to their gifted daughter, Aoife cannot avoid what the child forces her to confront about her past and its truth. On this most important of journeys, there is no map to guide her. In this tale -- her autobiography -- Aoife reveals her pain and joy, and ultimately her transformation.

The Mapmaker's War is a mesmerizing, utterly original adventure about love and loss and the redemptive power of the human spirit. Watch for its epic sequel, The Chronicle of Secret Riven, in 2014.

Atria Books; Hardcover: 240 pages; March 5, 2013.

Ordinary Grace by William Kent Krueger

“That was it. That was all of it. A grace so ordinary there was no reason at all to remember it. Yet I have never across the forty years since it was spoken forgotten a single word.”

New Bremen, Minnesota, 1961. The Twins were playing their debut season, ice-cold root beers were selling out at the soda counter of Halderson’s Drugstore, and Hot Stuff comic books were a mainstay on every barbershop magazine rack. It was a time of innocence and hope for a country with a new, young president. But for thirteen-year-old Frank Drum it was a grim summer in which death visited frequently and assumed many forms. Accident. Nature. Suicide. Murder.

Frank begins the season preoccupied with the concerns of any teenage boy, but when tragedy unexpectedly strikes his family— which includes his Methodist minister father; his passionate, artistic mother; Juilliard-bound older sister; and wise-beyond-his-years kid brother— he finds himself thrust into an adult world full of secrets, lies, adultery, and betrayal, suddenly called upon to demonstrate a maturity and gumption beyond his years.

Told from Frank’s perspective forty years after that fateful summer, Ordinary Grace is a brilliantly moving account of a boy standing at the door of his young manhood, trying to understand a world that seems to be falling apart around him. It is an unforgettable novel about discovering the terrible price of wisdom and the enduring grace of God.

Atria Books | 320 pages | March 2013

A Shade of Vampire by Bella Forrest

On the evening of Sofia Claremont's seventeenth birthday, she is sucked into a nightmare from which she cannot wake.

A quiet evening walk along a beach brings her face to face with a dangerous pale creature that craves much more than her blood. She is kidnapped to an island where the sun is eternally forbidden to shine. An island uncharted by any map and ruled by the most powerful vampire coven on the planet. She wakes here as a slave, a captive in chains. Sofia's life takes a thrilling and terrifying turn when she is the one selected out of hundreds of girls to join the harem of Derek Novak, the dark royal Prince. Despite his addiction to power and obsessive thirst for her blood, Sofia soon realizes that the safest place on the island is within his quarters, and she must do all within her power to win him over if she is to survive even one more night.

Will she succeed? ...or is she destined to the same fate that all other girls have met at the hands of the Novaks?

December 2012

Perverse by Larry Rodness

19 year old Emylene Stipe is a 2nd generation Goth who, like every teenage girl, is trying to find her place in the world. One night she comes upon an old painting in an antique store and is compelled to purchase it. When she brings it home an image of a young woman appears in the sketch and then magically materializes in her apartment. Emylene nick-names her 'Poinsettia' and they soon become fast friends. But Poinsettia has an ulterior motive for her sudden and strange intrusion into her host's life which causes Emylene to question her whole belief system.

Itoh Press; Jan. 04, 2013

Staring into the Abyss by Richard Thomas http://whatdoesnotkillme.com/

As Friedrich Nietzsche said, “Battle not with monsters lest ye become a monster; and if you gaze into the abyss the abyss gazes into you.” In this collection of short stories Richard Thomas shows us in dark, layered prose the human condition in all of its beauty and dysfunction. A man sits in a high tower making tiny, mechanical birds, longing for the day when he might see the sky again. A couple spends an evening in an underground sex club where jealousy and possession are the means of barter. A woman is victimized as a child, and turns that rage and vengeance into a lifelong mission, only to self-destruct, and become exactly what she battled against. A couple hears the echo of the many reasons they’ve stayed together, and the one reason the finally have to part. And a boy deals with a beast that visits him on a nightly basis, not so much a shadow, as a fixture in his home.

These 20 stories will take you into the darkness, and sometimes bring you back. But now and then there is no getting out, the lights have faded, the pitch black wrapping around you like a festering blanket of lies. What will you do now? It’s eat or be eaten—so bring a strong stomach and a hearty appetite.

Kraken Press; March 1, 2013; 136 pages.

Who Was Dracula? Bram Stoker’s Trail of Blood by Jim Stein Meyer

An acclaimed historian sleuths out literature’s most famous vampire, uncovering the source material – from folklore and history, to personas including Oscar Wilde and Walt Whitman – behind Bram Stoker’s bloody creation.

In more than a century of vampires in pop culture, only one lord of the night truly stands out: Dracula. Though the name may conjure up images of Bela Lugosi lurking about in a cape and white pancake makeup in the iconic 1931 film, the character of Dracula—a powerful, evil Transylvanian aristocrat who slaughters repressed Victorians on a trip to London—was created in Bram Stoker’s 1897 novel of the same name, a work so popular it has spawned limitless reinventions in books and film.

But where did literature’s undead icon come from? What sources inspired Stoker to craft a monster who would continue to haunt our dreams (and desires) for generations? Historian Jim Steinmeyer, who revealed the men behind the myths in The Last Greatest Magician in the World, explores a question that has long fascinated literary scholars and the reading public alike: Was there a real-life inspiration for Stoker’s Count Dracula?

Hunting through archives and letters, literary and theatrical history, and the relationships and events that gave shape to Stoker’s life, Steinmeyer reveals the people and stories behind the Transylvanian legend. In so doing, he shows how Stoker drew on material from the careers of literary contemporaries Walt Whitman and Oscar Wilde; reviled personas such as Jack the Ripper and the infamous fifteenth-century prince Vlad Tepes, as well as little-known but significant figures, including Stoker’s onetime boss, British stage star Henry Irving, and Theodore Roosevelt’s uncle, Robert Roosevelt (thought to be a model for Van Helsing).

Along the way, Steinmeyer depicts Stoker’s life in Dublin and London, his development as a writer, involvement with London’s vibrant theater scene, and creation of one of horror’s greatest masterpieces. Combining historical detective work with literary research, Steinmeyer’s eagle eye provides an enthralling tour through Victorian culture and the extraordinary literary monster it produced.

336 pages | 04 Apr 2013 | Tarcher

Virus Thirteen by Joshua Alan Parry ~ Giveaway and Lucky Leprechaun Hop

2013-03-14T14:45:00.001-07:00

Virus Thirteen by Joshua Alan Parry giveaway and the Lucky Leprechaun Blog Hop.

We have one copy for a US or Canadian address.

Virus Thirteen is an irreverent and contagious thriller from debut author Joshua Alan Parry.

Tor Books; 3/26/2013; Mass Market Paperbound; 320 pages.

This book is part of the 3rd Annual Lucky Leprechaun Giveaway Hop hosted by I Am A Reader, Not A Writer and co-hosted by Books Complete Me & Author Cindy Thomas from March 15th – 22nd

You DO NOT need to be a “follower/reader” of Layers of Thought to enter this contest, however you get an extra point if you do. Here are ways to keep up to date:

Ways to “follow”:

Facebook: for updates in your feed -add me as a friend.
Your Email Box
Feed Reader
Twitter (I will follow back, for any of the below media sites.)
Google+
Pinterest
Goodreads (Add me as a friend -no giveaway updates here only reviews.)

This hop and giveaway are now closed. Congratulations to our winner – Josh A!

“Developing Dark Characters” by Nicole Wolverton and Giveaway for: A Trajectory of Dreams

2013-03-14T10:08:00.001-07:00

Today we have a giveaway of a signed copy of The Trajectory of Dreams and a snippet called “Developing Dark Characters” from its author Nicole Wolverton.

Let’s welcome Nicole!

Developing Dark Characters ~ by Nicole Wolverton

There’s a stereotype about dark characters that, I think, stems from comic book villains. Many of them are fairly one-dimensional—just some guy with a maniacal laugh, intent on blowing up the hero or the town for no other reason than that they want to. The antagonist in a novel needs a bit more than that, or often they can come off flat.

Lela White, the main character in my novel THE TRAJECTORY OF DREAMS, is a dark character. She breaks into the homes of astronauts while they sleep. She creeps around their houses, touching their things and standing over their beds. Worse, she’s a threat: if one of them should wake up, she’s prepared to kill. She’s a straight up dangerous stalker. It would have been easy for me to just say, Well, this is just who she is, and she has no hopes and dreams or reasons.

Of course, that’s a pretty boring story. Don’t you want to know why she does it? Isn’t a book like THE TRAJECTORY OF DREAMS made richer, more real, and perhaps spookier if you understand and, dare I say, empathize with Lela just a little?

For me, that’s the key to developing dark characters: to understand a criminal or serial killer and recognize yourself in them in some way is the most frightening thing in the world. Take Dexter, for instance. Now look—I hope you’re not a serial killer in disguise, but we do root for Dexter. We want him to be successful. He’s an incredibly dark character, no question. But he’s also complex and, in his darkness, he works on the side of good on some level, and that’s what makes him so compelling. Lela is cut from the same cloth. Oh sure, her mental disorder puts everyone she comes in contact with in mortal danger, but she thinks her actions serve the greater good. She’s a hero in her own head, and an unsung hero at that. And as you’re reading THE TRAJECTORY OF DREAMS, you start to wonder if she’s really so crazy, if there might be something to her theories . . . which makes you complicit in her criminal actions.

When I’m writing a dark character, it’s important to include a Save the Cat moment in the plot. It’s a moment where your main character does something unselfish and good, thus making himself seem like a fine, upstanding citizen worthy of admiration and love. Most of the time, it’s the good guy who gets the Save the Cat moment, but it’s just as important for villains in many cases because it complicates the plot and leads to identification with the bad guy. And that’s never a bad thing.

About The Trajectory of Dreams: Publishers Weekly calls THE TRAJECTORY OF DREAMS (Bitingduck Press) a "skillful mainstream examination of a psychotic woman’s final descent into insanity."

The novel exposes the chaotic inner life of Lela White, a sleep lab technician and mentally ill insomniac who believes she has been tasked with protecting the safety of the revitalized U.S. space shuttle program. She breaks into the homes of astronauts to watch them sleep, and she is prepared to kill to keep those with sleep problems from the shuttle launch. Her delicate grasp on reality becomes more tenuous when annoying co-worker Trina Shook insists on moving into her house and visiting Russian cosmonaut Zory Korchagin inserts himself into Lela's life. Korchagin's increasing interest puts her carefully-constructed world at risk of an explosion as surely as he does his own upcoming launch. Lela's tragic childhood unfolds throughout the novel, revealing the beginnings of her illness and long-buried secrets, and as Lela’s universe unravels, no one is safe.

About the author: Nicole Wolverton fears many things, chief amongst them that something lurks in the dark. From ghosts to stalkers, her adult and young adult fiction plays on the mundane and not-so-mundane things that frighten us all. THE TRAJECTORY OF DREAMS is her debut novel. She is a freelance writer and editor and lives in the Philadelphia area with her husband, dog, and two cats. http://nicolewolverton.com/

Enter to win a signed copy of THE TRAJECTORY OF DREAMS, along with a lucky key ring for US or Canadian residents.

You DO NOT need to be a “follower/reader” of Layers of Thought to enter this contest, however you get an extra point if you do. Here are ways to keep up to date:

Ways to “follow”:

Facebook: for updates in your feed -add me as a friend.
Your Email Box
Feed Reader
Twitter (I will follow back, for any of the below media sites.)
Google+
Pinterest
Goodreads (Add me as a friend -no giveaway updates here only reviews.)

Most importantly, please fill out the Google form. To fill out the Google form to win THE TRAJECTORY OF DREAMS link via this text.

Good luck!

Review: Eyes to See ~ by Joseph Nassise

2013-03-13T11:25:00.001-07:00

A review written by John.

John’s quick take: A very dark urban fantasy about a grieving father who gives up his natural eyesight in order to see things differently.

John’s description: Once upon a time, Jeremiah Hunt seemed to have everything – a well-respected job that he enjoyed, a beautiful wife with a high-powered career, a nice house and, above all, a daughter that he adored. Then one night his young daughter simply disappeared from his house and all attempts to find her come to nothing. Hunt becomes increasingly obsessed with the search and ceaselessly chases down every clue and piece of information, keeping up the search long after everyone else has given up hope. Eventually his obsession causes him to lose his job, his reputation and eventually his wife; but still Hunt is driven to keep looking.

Then one day he decides to undergo an arcane ritual, causing him to lose his normal sight in exchange for an ability to see “that which is unseen”. Now he can see all manner of ghost and spirits – and to his great shock the world is full of them. He is convinced that somehow his new gift will help him to find his daughter, but his life becomes ever more bizarre. He takes on odd jobs chasing away unwanted spirits that are haranguing the living, and also uses some of his skills to help out the police.

A series of brutal murders that he helps to investigate seem to be somehow linked to his daughter’s disappearance, and soon Hunt is sucked into a battle with an ancient and evil force. What can he find out about his daughter’s fate? Might she still be alive? With a mixture of blindness, special sight and obsession, he is lured towards a dreadful finale.

John’s thoughts: This was my second dive into the fantasy genre in the last few weeks – a genre that doesn’t normally attract me. While there is much in here that will appeal to fantasy fans, I must admit that my attention was wandering by the time I’d got halfway through the book. I guess I can only take so many ghosts and ghoulies and this story is full of them. Not to mention witches and magick.

It is clear from some other reviews that I saw that many readers do rate this book highly and I can see why. The plot was interesting, the writing was tight and fast-paced, the Hunt character is certainly intriguing and the story is hard boiled and dark in extremes. Throughout it all Hunt’s pain and anguish ooze from the pages. If those things all sound good to you and you like urban fantasy, then you should jump right in. It’s just not quite my cup of tea.

I’d still rate the book three stars, as it is well written and imaginative. (It’s also got a terrific cover).

Eyes to See (The Jeremiah Hunt Chronicle -Volume 1 of 3) by Joseph Nassise

Tor Books; October 2011; Hardcover; 320 pages.

Review: The Six Gun Tarot by R. S. Belcher

2013-03-06T15:02:00.001-07:00

A review written by John:

John’s quick take: A clever and entertaining mash-up of cowboy Western, mysticism, mythology, urban fantasy, and horror – all set on the edge of the Nevada desert in the late 1860s, in the weirdest little town you can hope to imagine.

John’s description: After the disappearance of his beloved dad, who is a deeply scarred Civil War veteran, young Jim Negrey’s life turns upside down. With secrets to hide and on the run, he heads out west and eventually finds himself crossing the deadly 40-Mile Desert in Nevada. Out of water and with his horse on the point of dying, Jim is in a desperate situation, but he’s discovered and rescued by a strange outcast Native American Indian, who seems to have an odd affinity with the wild coyotes. The Indian, whose only name is Mutt, is deputy at the nearby wild town of Golgotha, and that is where he takes Jim.

Golgotha turns out to be weird beyond belief – with a host of oddball characters and a history of strange happenings. One of these characters is the town sheriff, Jon Highfather, who has “the mark of the noose” around his neck and is believed by many to be a dead man whose time has not yet come. Being a new friend of Mutt, who is deeply trusted by the sheriff, Jim is taken under the wing of Highfather.

Almost immediately that Jim arrives in town, all manner of madness and mayhem breaks out - much of which seems to stem from the old silver mine on the mountainside overlooking the town. With the help of a strange preacher, a primordial evil is stirring deep in the bowels of the earth beneath the silver mine. With the very fate of Heaven and Earth hanging in the balance, a motley crew of local people seem to be the only ones who can save the world.

Mutt and Highfather may, or may not, be able to rely on the help of the Mormon mayor with his trove of mythical treasures, the leader of the local Chinese tong and a powerful but shady saloon owner whose family has owned the silver mine and surrounding land for many generations. But central to it all is Jim and a strange artifact that used to belong to his father.

John’s thoughts: Although fantasy and mysticism are not my usual shtick, it’s good to try something different now and then and this seemed like an unusual and interesting story. So I’m glad I gave it a go because The Six-Gun Tarot is a real melting pot of content and themes creating an entertaining read.

At its heart it’s a fantasy thriller set in the wild West, but it includes shades of mysticism, Chinese and Mormon mythology, Native Indian lore, theology, zombie-ism and Frankenstein! Oh, and it’s a coming of age tale. And did I mention the secret order of assassins? Sound intriguing? It definitely was.

What I like most about the story was the characters that Belcher created. The lead characters are complex, well developed and just flat-out interesting. This starts with Jim, Mutt and Highfather, but many of the supporting cast are also three-dimensional with lots of quirks to them. And come to think of it, some of the characters may have more than three dimensions.

If there was anything I wasn’t crazy about it was some of the religious mythology and underpinning of the tale, but this wasn’t too over the top and didn’t get in the way too much for me – and it did mean that we could have fallen angels added to the mix. One other minor niggle was one key thread to the story’s conclusion which wasn’t explained well (of if it was I missed it).

All in all this was a complex and fun mash-up creating a fast-paced, entertaining story. Although Fantasy really isn’t a big draw for me, I enjoyed this book and I’d rate it four star. I recommend it to anyone who is interested in urban fantasy, steampunk or “weirdo-Westerns”.

The Six-Gun Tarot ~ by R. S. Belcher; Tor Books; January 2013; Hardcover; 368 pages.

In case you haven’t read it, we have a post by R. S. Belcher about how he went about creating the fantastical Western world in his novel, link on this text to read it.

Giveaway: The Mapmaker’s War by Ronlyn Domingue (and Leap into Books Hop)

2013-02-27T14:21:00.001-07:00

We have one copy of this soon to be published book The Mapmaker’s War by Ronlyn Domingue for one US or Canadian address.

Here’s a bit about the book:

Atria Books; Hardcover: 240 pages; March 5, 2013.

Ronlyn Domingue is the author of The Mapmaker's War (Atria Books; March 5, 2013). Its epic sequel is scheduled for 2014. Her critically acclaimed debut novel, The Mercy of Thin Air, was published in ten languages. Her writing has appeared in The Beautiful Anthology (TNB Books), New England Review, Clackamas Literary Review, New Delta Review, The Independent (UK), and Shambhala Sun, as well as on mindful.org and The Nervous Breakdown. Born and raised in the Deep South, she lives there still with her partner, Todd Bourque, and their cats.

For more information please visit http://www.ronlyndomingue.com, and follow the author on Facebook and Twitter.

This book giveaway is part of the Leap Into Books Giveaway Hop from February 28th to March 7th. Hosted by I Am A Reader, Not A Writer and co-hosted by Jinky is Reading.

You do not need to be a “follower/reader” of Layers of Thought to enter this contest, however you get an extra point if you do. Here are ways to keep up to date:

Ways to “follow”:

Google: via the blog’s side bar (I will follow back if I can find your blog.)
Facebook: for updates in your feed -add me as a friend.
Your Email Box
Feed Reader
Twitter (I will follow back, for any of the below media sites.)
Google+
Pinterest
Goodreads (Add me as a friend -no giveaway updates here only reviews.)

This hop and giveaway are now closed. Congratulations to our winner Tabitha J!

Giveaway: A Natural History of Dragons ~ by Marie Brennan

2013-02-25T10:39:00.001-07:00

We have three copies of this just recently published book – A Natural History of Dragons (A Memoir by Lady Trent) ~ by Marie Brennan for US or Canadian addresses.

Here’s the author’s blurb for the book:

You, dear reader, continue at your own risk. It is not for the faint of heart—no more so than the study of dragons itself. But such study offers rewards beyond compare: to stand in a dragon’s presence, even for the briefest of moments—even at the risk of one’s life—is a delight that, once experienced, can never be forgotten. . . .

All the world, from Scirland to the farthest reaches of Eriga, know Isabella, Lady Trent, to be the world’s preeminent dragon naturalist. She is the remarkable woman who brought the study of dragons out of the misty shadows of myth and misunderstanding into the clear light of modern science. But before she became the illustrious figure we know today, there was a bookish young woman whose passion for learning, natural history, and, yes, dragons defied the stifling conventions of her day.

Here at last, in her own words, is the true story of a pioneering spirit who risked her reputation, her prospects, and her fragile flesh and bone to satisfy her scientific curiosity; of how she sought true love and happiness despite her lamentable eccentricities; and of her thrilling expedition to the perilous mountains of Vystrana, where she made the first of many historic discoveries that would change the world forever.

Marie Brennan introduces an enchanting new world in A Natural History of Dragons.

Author Website; Author Twitter

Tor Books; February 2013; Hardcover; 336 pages.

You do not need to be a “follower/reader” of Layers of Thought to enter this contest, however you get an extra point if you do. Here are ways to keep up to date:

Ways to “follow”:

Google: via the blog’s side bar (I will follow back if I can find your blog.)
Facebook: for updates in your feed and add me as a friend.
Your Email Box
Feed Reader
Twitter (I will follow back, for any of these social media sites.)
Google+
Pinterest
Goodreads (Add me as a friend -no giveaway updates here only reviews.)

Please fill out the Google form. And remember that your information is used for this contest only. Incomplete names, emails, and addresses will be make your entry VOID.

To fill out the Google form link via this text.

Good luck!

Giveaway: A Shade of Vampire ~ by Bella Forrest (and YA Paranormal blog hop)

2013-02-20T11:11:00.001-07:00

We have a giveaway of one signed copy of A Shade of Vampire ~ by Bella Forrest for one international address, and a Young Adult Paranormal Hop where you can potentially win more books of a similar genre.

About A Shade of Vampire: On the evening of Sofia Claremont's seventeenth birthday, she is sucked into a nightmare from which she cannot wake.

Will she succeed? ...or is she destined to the same fate that all other girls have met at the hands of the Novaks?

About Bella Forest: She’s been telling stories pretty much since she could talk. Instead of having her parents read her bed-time stories, she would prefer to share her own made up tales. After growing up she developed a passion for the fantasy genre, but more specifically vampires.

Her debut novel, A Shade of Vampire, was released in December of 2012. It became a #1 Christmas Bestseller in Vampire Romance, Paranormal and Fantasy.

This book is part of the Young Adult Paranormal Giveaway Hop from February 21st – 27th. It’s hosted by I Am a Reader, Not a Writer and YA Between the Lines.

Rules:

It’s INTERNATIONAL.
You DO NOT need to be a follower to enter this contests.
If you do follow then you get an extra point.
Fill out the Google form completely or your entry will be VOID.
Please see below for ways to follow Layers of Thought.

Ways to follow:

Google: via the blog’s side bar (I will follow back if I can find your blog.)
Facebook: for updates in your feed and add me as a friend.
Your Email Box
Feed Reader
Twitter (I will follow back, for any of these social media sites.)
Google+
Pinterest
Goodreads (Add me as a friend -no giveaway updates only reviews.)

This hop and giveaway are now closed. Congratulations to our winner Zara F!

Giveaway: Blood’s Pride ~ by Evie Manieri

2013-02-19T10:28:00.001-07:00

We have one copy of just released - Blood’s Pride ~ by Evie Manieri for one US or Canadian address.

Here’s the author’s blurb for the book:

This thrilling new epic fantasy is set in a quasi-Medieval Mediterranean region, drawing together the warrior culture of Vikings, the wanderlust of desert nomads, and the oracles of ancient Greece. Evie Manieri's Blood's Pride is an intricate, lush fantasy novel full of taut action, gut-wrenching betrayal, and soaring romance.

Evie Manieri’s Website; Author Facebook; and Author Twitter page links.

Tor Books; 2/19/2013; Hardcover; 528 pages.

You do NOT need to be a “follower/reader” of Layers of Thought to enter this contest, however you get an extra point if you are. Here are a number of ways to keep up to date:

Ways to “follow”:

Google: via the blog’s side bar (I will follow back if I can find your blog.)
Facebook: for updates in your feed and add me as a friend.
Your Email Box
Feed Reader
Twitter (I will follow back, for any of these social media sites.)
Google+
Pinterest
Goodreads (Add me as a friend -no giveaway updates here only reviews.)

Also please fill out the Google form which is linked below. And remember that your information is used for this contest only. Incomplete names, emails, and addresses will be make your entry VOID.

To fill out the Google form to enter to win BLOOD’S PRIDE link HERE.

Good luck!

Guest Post: Keeping it Short ~ by Danielle Ackley-McPhail

2013-02-14T09:38:00.001-07:00

We have another informative guest post from Danielle Ackley-McPhail, this time on writing short fiction and understanding the differences between it and a novel. Here she shares some concise advice on how to manage the details.

Again let’s welcome Danielle!

Keeping it Short – When the Words Count ~ By Danielle Ackley-McPhail

In writing, as in everything else, most of us have a natural range. Some people are right handed, some people left, and just to screw up the curve, some can use either one interchangeably. You have sopranos…tenors…basses, and the rare vocalist who can manage to bounce all along the range. In writing it is a touch simpler.

Some people excel at novels, others at short fiction. (We don’t talk about those who can do either one with ease…they tend to get a lot of dirty looks from the other writers.) Now, just because you have an innate length doesn’t mean you can’t hone your ability to write longer or shorter. It’s all about scope and scale. If you can get a handle on those you can run up and down the word-count range with the best of them, no matter your natural impulses.

Think of a short story as what you see through a telephoto lens. You zoom in right on a narrow image and capture it. You go for the crisp, tight detail and it’s all about that. Short stories capture an instant, a single thread. There are generally only a few characters dealing with one event or goal. The action/tension comes fast and every word leads toward the resolution, with little to no wandering. It is more about what is happening than who it is happening too. Don’t get me wrong…this doesn’t mean you get a free pass on characterization. What it does mean is that in short fiction character details tend to be the type that move the plot forward, whereas in longer works the author has more room to explore the character’s depths for their own sake and not for what they offer toward resolving the plot.

Now, nothing is universal. There are always exceptions, but for the purpose of discussion I have outlined some of the usual differences between short fiction and novels. Just know…if there is a “rule” somewhere, writers will break it…

Short Story	Novel
Detail relevant to the plot	Detail that builds the characters and universe Details relevant to the plot
Brief build-up Mostly action/tension leading to the resolution	Detailed build-up intermixed with action/tension leading to the resolution
Single thread of action Single or minimal POV character	Multiple threads of action One or more Primary characters Several secondary characters
Scale is equivalent to a scene or an episode	Scale is equivalent to a movie or series season.

Establishing Character in Short Fiction

Short stories have a limit. Go past that limit and they are no longer short stories. This is a fundamental fact many writers have trouble grasping (says the editor who has received 15,000-word “short” stories). So, how do you keep the words reined in and still have a distinct, recognizable character? You cherry-pick details. Find one or two elements that make your character unique and introduce them early, then find ways to reinforce those elements throughout the story without going into great details. For example, I have a character named Scotch. He’s a wiseass. Most of the time this does not come into play, but once in a while a natural progression in the dialogue will leave an opening for a smart-ass comment. Scotch never misses an opportunity to jump in. It is always brief and always in relation to what is already happening, but it is enough to set this character off from, Kat, his sarcastic, “straight-man” companion. Now for Kat there are two things I use to distinguish her…at random times the events happening inspire thoughts of her PawPaw that somehow tie into what is happening; and when she is tense, her gun is like her security blanket. Those aren’t a lot to go on when defining who a person is, but they are distinct enough details that you feel you know them and care what happens to them when I keep dealing them blow after blow on the way to the climactic ending.

Keep Your Eye on the Goal

As a short story writer you have one goal: Keep it short. That means your characters have one goal. Stick to that one goal and you can write a short story. Start pulling in multiple threads and get ready to find beta readers for another novel. In a short story everything that happens should have the express purpose of taking you one step closer to the story’s resolution. Anything that doesn’t do that has to go. Okay…most of everything that doesn’t do that has to go. (Like I said…writers…rules…things are going to break.)

Doing a 180

Not going to spend too much time on this, but I wanted to at least touch on it, because, you know some people have the opposite problem. How do you move past short to novel length? It helps if you think of a novel as a series of short stories all headed in the same direction, only not in an orderly fashion. They jumble together, they touch, they even trample across each other’s paths until threads get tangled, but in the end…if you do your job “write”…it all makes satisfying sense. The difference in a novel is that some of these “stories” are the getting-to-know-you kind, while others are the action-packed rush. The key is that each one builds on the next with all the little sub-threads coming together for an overall goal.

Summing Up

So…have short stories frustrated you in the past? Feel there is always more story to tell, until suddenly you have a book? If you want to keep it short, keep it tight. Ease your way in. Maybe try writing one encapsulated scene. Pick a character. Pick one goal. Pick one conflict. Pick one opponent. Find a twist. Find a solution. Do that over and over. Make it complete. Don’t worry about if it is a full story, just get used to dealing with one goal. Make it interesting, make it intense, either with action or emotion. When you are done, take a look and see what things look like under a microscope. It doesn’t matter if there is more story to tell as long as you resolved the primary objective of your scene. After all, nothing saying you can’t just write another story!

Danielle Ackley-McPhail’s novels include The Eternal Cycle (first three titles link to samples of the books) - Yesterday's Dreams, Tomorrow's Memories, Today’s Promise, the writers guide The Literary Handyman, and more. She edits the Bad-Ass Faeries anthologies and Dragon’s Lure, has contributed to numerous anthologies, and has recently published a collection of science fiction short stories called A Legacy of Stars. For more about Danielle link to her sites below:

Website www.sidhenadaire.com
Blogs http://lit_handyman.livejournal.com, http://damcphail.livejournal.com
Twitter https://twitter.com/#!/DMcPhail
Facebook http://www.facebook.com/#!/danielle.ackleymcphail
Goodreads http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/989939.Danielle_Ackley_McPhail

To read Danielle’s informative first post here at Layers of Thought link to “The Changing Face of Publishing” via its title. It’s about the choices that writers have around getting their books published.

Review: Broken Time ~ by Emily Devenport

2013-02-13T09:52:00.001-07:00

Review written by Shellie.

Shellie’s quick take:

A fast paced, complex but easy-to-read science fiction romance story that had me quickly turning the pages. It has a believable alien, cool science oriented “time warps”, and a wonderful, strong and likeable female lead. It was nominated for a Philip K. Dick Award and is an unbelievable .99 cents at various ebook retailers. What a deal!

Shellie’s description:

On a distant planet in the distant future, our heroine Siggy Lindquist has grown up on a planet that is much like ours but where trips to other nebulas and galaxies, and other futuristic phenomena are the norm. However, this world is recognizable and Siggy has a life similar to a regular girl (excluding her beautiful and unusual contrast of brown skin and white hair), with her various interests and life events. For example, she is a terrific dancer and believes she is going to marry her childhood sweetheart.

The drama starts when Siggy graduates from high school and her dreams for the future fail unexpectedly; she accepts an undesirable job on a distant planet knowing that this may be her only option of getting away from her heartbreak and earning a living. It’s not by any means a dream job – since Siggy will be doing janitorial work in a maximum security prison/hospital for the criminally insane. That the inmates are the absolute bottom of the heap when it comes to human nature is an understatement; worse yet is that they are brilliant. Get in, get it finished, and get out is her motto. But when the “Director” of the prison requires Siggy to ascertain information from the patients for research, things get a bit more complicated.

Then to twist things nicely there are the aliens called “Speedies” - who do everything that humans can except much faster - who are occasionally attacking the planet. It all creates a story even more wonderfully convoluted than what I have summarized here.

Shellie’s thoughts:

Emily Devenport is one of those unusual writers who writes complex plots in a way that makes them feel easy to read and simple. Broken Time was one of those books for me. I did not struggle with it or have to re-read any parts because it flowed, yet it’s layered with intriguing plot lines, subplots and themes. The only negative thing I can say about this book is that I could see it easily being a third or more longer; maybe there will be a sequel?

I like science fiction anyway – especially science-based science fiction – and I loved this book. It does help that I also enjoy books with a wonderful strong female character, and Siggy certainly fits the bill; it is also nice to see great science fiction written by a woman. I also love the dark psychological aspects, including the insane yet brilliant inmates that give the book a taste of horror.

That is five big pluses in my opinion, so I cannot recommend this book enough, especially for those who like science-based science fiction, those who enjoy romance and are perhaps looking to try out the sci-fi genre, and perhaps for fans of Lois McMaster Bujold. It was a 4.5 star read for me. I will definitely be reading more from this author with her accessible but complex writing style.

Emily Devenport (aka Maggie Thomas and/or Lee Hogan) has written under those three pen names and has been published in the US, the UK, Italy, and Israel. A prolific writer, nine of Emily’s novels have been published as mass market paperbacks by ROC. Now she has begun publishing her books in ebook format. The current publication format for Broken Time is now an ebook and has been released under her current pen name Emily Devenport. For more information about her and her books you can visit her fun blog at www.emsjoiedeweird.com .

Broken time is available on major websites like Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Smashwords. This book is only .99 cents! Here is the Smashwords url: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/75636

Review: All Standing ~ by Kathryn Miles

2013-02-06T09:59:00.001-07:00

A review written by John.

John’s quick take: The Great Famine in Ireland is one of the most shameful episodes in the last 200 years of Western history. All Standing is an accurate retelling of the story of the legendary Jeanie Johnston famine ship, interwoven with a vivid history of the famine and the tale of one family who emigrated to America aboard the Jeanie Johnston to avoid the catastrophe.

John’s description: On the surface, the Great Famine was caused by potato blight that destroyed the crop that a huge proportion of the Irish relied upon – but the underlying causes went much deeper. With an impoverished economy, a booming population, predatory landlords, an enormous number of subsistence farmers with virtually no rights, and an over reliance on a single crop, the famine was a disaster waiting to happen. But the sheer scale and callousness of the disaster are hard to take in.

Before the famine Ireland had a population of around eight million people. Over the seven year years that the famine lasted it is estimated that a million died from starvation or related diseases and another million emigrated, mostly in a desperate bid to escape the horrors at home. Ireland’s population plummeted by some 25%. Unfortunately for the emigrants, conditions aboard the famine ships were often a lot worse than what they were escaping from. Emigrants were treated like cargo and crammed into ships’ holds with hardly any food and no sanitation, and diseases ran rampant. Over a hundred thousand emigrants died on the so-called coffin ships; on many voyages mortality rates were much worse than on slave ships. When the starved and sickly Irish arrived at their destination, they usually had to once again fight abject poverty, not to mention uncaring authorities and rampant racism.

But amidst the horrors one ship became legendary for not losing a single passenger during 16 cross-Atlantic voyages from Ireland to Canada or America. The Jeanie Johnston, based out of Tralee in Ireland, was built by a Scottish craftsman working in Canada, and captained by a professional sailor who carefully picked his crew and cared for his passengers. Unusually this ship had a ship’s doctor – and a very good one at that. Still the voyages were dangerous and the Jeanie Johnson had to rely on its fair share of luck.

On its maiden voyage across the Atlantic, a farmer’s wife by the name of Margaret Reilly gave birth to a baby boy, who the parents named after the ship’s owner, doctor and crew – resulting in the boy having no less than seventeen middle names! Nicholas Johnston Reilly (that’s his short name) and his parents survived the voyage, arrived in Quebec, crossed into America and eventually moved via Indiana and Michigan before settling down in Fergus Falls, Minnesota.

John’s thoughts: Through painstaking research Miles has created a vivid picture of mid-nineteenth century Ireland, the famine, national politics and politicians, local characters involved with the Jeanie Johnston, the ship’s voyages, an emigrant’s life in Canada or America, and the Reilly family story.

While the bare facts are fascinating (not to mention truly horrific), this could so easily have become a dry, documentary history tome, but Miles has avoided that fate and created a really interesting book that is easy to read. In large part she has achieved that by focusing a lot on real people and their stories, which brings the history to life. Cleary that required an awful lot of research and hard work on her part.

Personally I’m still incredulous that the famine was allowed to become as catastrophic as it was – so much could have been prevented or alleviated if it wasn’t for greed, bigotry, inhumanity and neglect. I learnt an awful lot reading this book. Can you believe that in the middle of the famine when a huge portion of the Irish population was starving to death, large amounts of food were still being exported out of the country? Stunning.

It was also interesting to hear about the plight of immigrants arriving in North America, and in particular the racial discrimination that they faced. That’s the second book I’ve read this year which has touched on this theme – the first one being The Spy Lover which told the story of a Chinese immigrant.

I did like the way that Miles weaved in the story of the Reilly family, which served to personalize the big historic picture - though I would say resulted in the narrative jumping around a bit. Regardless, I’d rate this book four stars and recommend it to anyone with an interest in Irish history, immigration into North America, or nineteenth century history generally. For anyone with even a drop of Irish blood in them, this is thoroughly recommended.

Simon and Schuster -Free Press, January 2013 Hardcover, 256 pages.