Pre-release review - Dangerous Vows by Ava Parker

‘Dangerous Vows’ by Ava Parker is a romantic thriller. It follows Lucy Walker, an undercover cop who has just come home after being wounded during an assignment. When a man is murdered down the beach from her home, Lucy’s best friend reveals the affair that got the man killed. Now Lucy and her new handsome neighbour, Gabriel, must keep Caroline safe from the husband who turns out to be the opposite of a Southern Gentleman.

I haven’t read much in this genre, but it’s one of my favourite types of movies. I refrain from calling ‘Dangerous Vows’ a mystery, as Parker lays everything out on the table from the get-go. There’s nothing left to the imagination. We’re told right away who the murderer is, why he did it, and what he plans on doing next. The only thing we really get to discover is how Lucy and her friends deal with the situations. Overall, it’s an interesting story. I enjoyed the small additions to the plot which made it slightly more complex. It wasn’t simply a husband scorned by his adulterous wife. There were quite a few more layers to him which I enjoyed reading. Unfortunately, there were other aspects of the novel I felt were forced and made me angry. Lucy is introduced as a cop who had recently been underground with  a Miami drug cartel, but the rest of the novel she is described as moderately useless and in need of saving. At least, that’s how the people around her treat her, which is pretty aggravating. Even Gabriel, an ex soldier and military police officer, seems to have a hard time seeing her as much more than an attractive woman. I concede she had been wounded, but there was just something about their interactions that made me want to blare ‘Girl on Fire’ by Alicia Keys, just to give Lucy some support.

Overall, Parker has written an entertaining novel and keeps true to many of the genre’s characteristics. After all is said and done, you’re left happy and satisfied. Much like after an encounter with Gabriel. Perhaps the best part of the novel was Lucy’s relationship with Gabriel. After living undercover, she learns to open herself, body and soul, and learns what it’s like to have true intimacy after a hard life. It’s sappy, but beautiful and powerful and makes me grateful for the love I have in my own life. Lucy is a relatable character for that reason, and if the plot wasn’t as interesting, she is the reason I would recommend this novel. And while Lucy learns to be intimate, through Caroline we learn that love truly is blind. In a just as powerful message, we are given a powerful message that is often overlooked in today’s society. It is not your fault. If you are abused, hurt, or if someone you care for is hurt, it is not your fault. But you can do something about it.

‘Dangerous Vows’ will be available March 3, 2015 but you can pre-order it now on Amazon.

 

 

Book review: After the Sky Fell

'After the Sky Fell' by Mike Lynch is the second installment of the epic sci-fi/fantasy saga, the Sky Chronicles. After a fierce battle thirty years earlier, Earth is once again threatened by a dark species known as the Deravans as prophesied by the Antarians. After being defeated once by a great warrior, the Deravans believe they can change the scriptures and win the second battle. With the help of the Creators, the warrior is to win for a second time, conquering the Deravans and their leader, Abaddon, once and for all.

This is truly a wonderful novel. Despite not having read the first in the series, I had no problem catching on. 'After the Sky Fell' is actually what I consider Christian sci-fi, as it mirrors the events prophesied in Revelation. Even the leader of the Deravans is another name of Satan, which I thought was clever to use. As much as I enjoyed the novel, and would recommend to both Christians and non-believers, there are some unfortunate flaws which detracted from my reading experience. The version I was given to review does not read like a final copy. There are quite a few grammatical errors, but not as many spelling errors which is a plus. The worst was continuity with character names and pronouns. Wrong names are used throughout the book with scenes consisting of only two characters, and suddenly one of the characters change for a few paragraphs which was extremely jarring. At a pivotal, and what should have been an emotionally charged, scene, the names switched which made me lose the emotions that had built and I had to re-read the section.

With an extremely thorough edit, these issues should be cleared up. Once that's done, there's nothing stopping this novel from being a great hit. Revelation is already such an amazing and action-packed book, that it only makes sense that a novel based on its message would be the same. If you're looking for a complex space sci-fi novel, this is the one to read. It is one of those novels that makes you wonder about the universe God created, and Lynch does a great job of giving one answer to a 'what if?' What if there are other beings on different planets? How does the gospel affect them? Lynch, while staying as true to scripture as possible within the confines of science-fiction, has successfully shown what it is to have true faith in the face of destruction.

Link to the book on Amazon
Link to author's page

Revealing the Revolution: shortlisted for Prize Writer Award

Hello everyone! For once, I'm going to talk a little about myself! In September I published my first novel in my sci-fi series, 'Revealing the Revolution.' It's been a pretty overwhelming experience, and I wouldn't trade it for anything in the world! It's honestly one of the reasons I started reviewing. I wanted to become even more involved in the indie community.
 
And now my novel has been shortlisted for the Prize Writer Award, hosted by Bookbzz.com. In this final stage, it's open to a public vote. That's where you guys, my wonderful readers, come in. Voting will begin February 1st, so keep an eye out! I'll post something here in my blog to remind you all. Thanks ahead of time for all of your support! Remember that supporting your fellow indie authors is supporting yourself!

Book Review: Falling for Santa by Heather Diane

Holly only wants one thing for Christmas: a man to share the holidays with. In 'Falling for Santa,' Heather Diane gives us the story of Holly Berré who prays for a man to make her holidays, and life, a little less lonely. And then two single men move in, one on each side of her house. In the typical holiday movie/novel fashion, we follow Holly as she tries to make what ends up being a very important decision.

Diane's novel was extremely entertaining, for what it is. This is the novel version of the Hallmark Christmas movies which are mentioned within the novel itself. Once the two men, Albert and Ben (or as I like to call them, Plan A or B) are introduced you know exactly what is going to happen. There's nothing surprising about this novel, or new. But that perhaps lends to its readability for many people. Okay, let's face it: this is a woman's only book. I can't see many men enjoying it, but you never know. By the end of the novel, I was rooting for one man in particular, even if I in no way thought Holly deserved him. But, as with romance novels of this nature, they did and likely lived happily ever after. If you want a ridiculously cute holiday romance novel to pass the time, then this is the book to pick up. I was able to read it in one sitting, and it was well worth the time. Despite the series title being 'Christmas Prayers Romance' I urge anyone to read it, as the Christian theme really isn't apparent, in case that turned people away. It's still the typical 'feel-good' story, and extremely entertaining.

Click here for Amazon page

Click here for the author's website

Book review: Warrior Lore - Scandinavian Folk Ballads by Ian Cumpstey

'Warrior Lore' is a compilation of Scandinavian ballads translated by Ian Cumpstey. He has used various sources in order to render a modern and beautiful English translation of the ballads.

This compilation has been created for the general public, and Cumpstey has certainly achieved his goal. In preparation for this review I researched other English translations of each ballad in order to determine its level of readability. After searching, I found there were not many English translations of these ballads, at least not easily found. The only one which I was able to find in a public place was the ballad of Hilla-Lill, as the ballad inspired a famous watercolour. I found two translations, one by William Morris and the other by Whitley Stokes. Both have similar features to Cumpstey’s translation, but it is clear – and Mr. Cumpstey made mention of this in his notes – that there are different manuscripts used. This happens quite often with translations of all literature. Multiple manuscripts are used in order to produce a more fluid English translation. As it happens, sometimes using more manuscripts gives a more accurate translation, as well, and gives a bit more insight to the original intent of the ballad. I have seen this before with Chaucer’s “Truth” where only one known manuscript had an extra verse addressed to Vache and it has been argued that this has given us insight into Chaucer’s life and social circle.

Overall, the ballads are extremely readable and quite enjoyable. It is quite clear these are ballads rather than epic poems. I can imagine these being sung quite easily. Each flows well with the others and it shows a distinct style of Scandinavian ballads that I had not known before. This is the most recent translation of any of these ballads and for anyone slightly interested in medieval ballads, or specifically Scandinavian ones, I would highly suggest Cumpstey’s translation and compilation in ‘Warrior Lore.’

Click here for this book's Amazon page

Release date review: The Infernal Lands by J.C Staudt

'The Infernal Lands' by J.C Staudt is what happens when an author combines nearly every genre, gives it a punch of a post apocalyptic society, and lets it run wild. At times, it's even reminiscent of the wild west.

This rarely happens to me, but I was hooked from simply the first paragraph. So much so that I had to write that down on my calendar. You may think I'm exaggerating, but you're reading it here.

Early on I got the sense of a Martin-esque world, in regards to the characters and depth. There are quite a few main plots and characters, but that only makes me want to read more and faster. It's difficult to give much of a summary with so many strings of plot, and without giving too much to say. But I can say that this saga is one you do not want to miss. The epic journey of this devastated wasteland is on the scale of Tolkien, without being bogged down by the addition of history lessons. We're given exactly what we need to know, and when. For J.C Staudt's second novel, this is definitely a winner. Keep an eye out for his future books; you absolutely will not be disappointed.

Click here for this book's Amazon page

Pre-release review: Caramel by Haji Outlaw

'Caramel' by Haji Outlaw is the first part in an extremely dark and sinister series featuring a futuristic society where all those who have survived the harrowing climate change are boxed into one skyscraper, the Giddings. The novella mainly focuses on a teenager with no words, but is given the title name, Caramel. In the bowels of the Giddings, Caramel begins to ascend the ladder through fighting matches while those who have attempted to find sanctuary must survive the unlikeliest of foes.

It may be the world we currently live in which has jaded our minds, but most futuristic novels showcase a bleak, if not entirely hopeless, prediction of what is to come. 'Caramel' is no different. If anything, it's one of the bleakest, despite the likely unintentional homage to Monty Python. Set in 2112 (a nice sounding year to those who like symmetry such as myself) this novella has a few issues, which are equaled thankfully with the way in which the world is described. The use of songs that are not necessarily popular today is a bit anachronistic to me. I have a hard time believing that a hit song by Prince (if that's what he's still known as) will survive another 98 years. There are some other issues with clichés and metaphors, but let's face it: there are plenty of issues with Game of Thrones but those haven't hindered its popularity.

Overall, 'Caramel' is an interesting story. It makes you want to know more about the mysterious characters, and more about the world - or rather the building - they live in. This seems to be the first in a series, which could have probably been written into one novel, but I'm still interested to see what happens next.

'Caramel' is available December 12, 2014.

Click here for this book's Amazon page