Percival and Carly are wonderful together…
Tag Archive: Fiction
The Colors of Malent: Book One (The Colors of Malent #1)
by Tim Adams and Sam Inzerillo
Alara is a 14 year old girl, almost 15, who has the normal trials and tribulations of teens everywhere. Alara’s best friend Madison or Mads as Alara calls her, is already a pro shopper with tons of attitude. Alara’s new boyfriend Alex is a good looking jock who really seems to like her but doesn’t always understand her. Her freaky teenaged next door neighbor Freddy, incredibly smart but socially awkward, suddenly starts talking to her.
Alara’s busy and tension filled life is further complicated by the strange dreams that have haunted her since she can remember. Dreams that are getting weirder and weirder. They take her to another time and place where she enters the minds and bodies of the people she comes across.
Slowly she realizes that she can control the thoughts and actions of these people and she believes these people and places are real and are from a place called Malent. The bigger problem though is that these dreams are starting to come when she is awake too. And if all this isn’t enough to deal with, she has just found out something about herself that shocks her to the core!
As Alara tries to discover who the strange people in her dreams are and where Malent is, she is also trying to discover something about herself. Her questions bring her into contact with new people who could be friends or enemies. Things seem to be constantly changing and it leaves Alara wondering who she exactly she can trust.
The ending will leave you holding your breath, impatient for the next book to continue with this very intriguing story!
I really enjoyed this novel. The twists and turns keep you flipping the pages, faster and faster, as you try to see what will happen next.
The characters in Alara’s life are very believable. Her parents are typical parents, with her dad being the loud disciplinarian and her mom understanding the problems of being a teenaged girl. Her friends are very real. The situations are what many teens go through.
The people from Malent, the alternate world of Alara’s, are reminiscent of the our world but from many centuries ago. The strange, scary animals that inhabit the lands are definitely not of our world and are incredibly imaginative.
The way the story switches between our world and Malent is extremely well done. I really look forward to the next book in this YA fantasy series.
Montana Wildfire by Rebecca Sinclair
Amanda Lennox, blond, green eyed and intelligent, at least she thought she was intelligent until she lied to get this job of bringing Roger Thornton Bannister III home. The little monster was making the already rough trip through the western countryside unbearable. Amanda has always prided herself on her even temper but now, struck in the river, with the spoiled Roger splashing her and demanding lunch, Amanda is ready to blow. Even Roger realizes that perhaps he’s pushed her too far and goes rushing off into the forest to find someone to help Amanda.
To Amanda’s surprise and relief, Roger comes back with a man. But after just a few minutes with this man, Amanda’s wondering if maybe being trapped in the river wasn’t better than having to put up with this man.
Jacob Blackhawk Chandler is no one’s idea of a hero, including himself. A half breed Indian with a chip the size of the Rockies on his shoulder, Jake doesn’t want to get involved with Amanda and Roger but since there is no one else around to get Amanda out of the hole she’s in he steps up.
Getting out of the river requires a lot more body contact then Amanda was prepared for. She’s thankful that Jake was there to help but is uneasy with the new thoughts crowding her head. She just wants to get back on the trail and get Roger home.
Ready to leave Amanda and Roger to find their way through the country side is fine with him until Roger comes up missing. Amanda turns again to him for help and against his better judgement, Jake agrees to help find Roger.
As Amanda and Jake trek through the countryside on Roger’s trail, they find themselves drawn to each other. But what kind of life can a angry half breed offer a proper Bostonian white woman specially in a country where Indians and white people don’t mix, and being caught together can cause death?
I really enjoyed this novel. With wonderful commentary on the western countryside, the tiny towns and the relationships between people of different races this was a very readable novel. The characters are well rounded, with some flaws which helps to make them believable. The story clips along at a steady pace.
I am so excited! Tomorrow I will be holding my first guest blog. Graham Parke, author of several novels including
No Hope for Gomez! by Graham Parke
Winner of the Forewords Book of the Year Awards, nominated for the International Book Awards and the USA Book News Best Book Awards, featured in the Kirkus Best Indie 2011 list.
It’s the age-old tale:
Boy meets girl.
Boy stalks girl.
Girl already has a stalker.
Boy becomes her stalker-stalker.
and Random Acts of Senseless Kindness will be be leaving a guest post about the launch of his newest novel
Unspent Time by Graham Parke
Along with the quest post, Graham Parke will be offering the chance to receive free books and a chance to win either a Kindle Fire of a Kindle Touch.
Flash fiction, sometimes referred to as commuter fiction (which was the term I heard first) is a very, very short fictional story. It is one of those terms that is rather hard to define as there seem to be no common rules. The length can be set as no less or more than 55 words (San Luis Obispo Times) or any story up to 1000 words (other sources). Most though deem a rough count of approximately 300 words. There is agreement that a title for flash fiction be no longer than 7 words.
A great example of flash fiction is
Embarrassing Moments by Per Holbo
Other terms you might hear to describe flash fiction are microfiction, micro-story, short short postcard fiction and sudden fiction (sudden fiction is usually over 1000 words). Flash fiction has actually been around for centuries, one of the oldest know is in Aesop’s Fables. With the coming of the internet flash fiction is taking off. People want short, concise stories that don’t take up a lot of their time.
Established in 2007, the Micro-Award is used to recognize outstanding flash fiction in both print and electronic media. The first winner was
Reconstruction Work by Bruce Holland Rogers, R.W. Ware (illustrator)
Other winners include Let x by Chad Simpson in 2009, and The Children’s Factory by Michael Stewart in 2010. Flash fiction is a great quick read, very handy for commuting trips, coffee breaks, and so many more things.
The Beautiful Mystery: A Chief Inspector Gamache Novel
by Louise Penny
Can you hear that? The pure, clear beloved sound fills his ears, enters his mouth and starts to move through his body. He’s at peace now, all worries gone, nothing matters to him but the music of the plainchant. Nothing!
When Frere Mathieu was found murdered the case was assigned to Chief Inspector Gamache and Inspector Jean-Guy Beauvoir. Theirs is a relationship that has been forged through time and gun battles. Beauvoir would lay his life down for the chief but still Beauvoir can’t tell the chief everything and he’s getting more and more concerned the Chief will find out.
Traveling by float plane then into a small fishing boat, Gamache and Beauvoir get farther and farther away for civilization, with no real idea of where they are.
Opening the door at the monastery doesn’t happen, but today it did. Dom Philippe, the abbot has reported that one of his monks has been murdered. Now its up to Gamache and Beauvoir to figure this out before it hits the media because these aren’t just any monks. These ones are already famous and just want to be left alone. But the mystery is only the top layer, its what s below that’s going to break this case.
A lot of work and research went into this book. The information was passed on to us the readers in such a way that it felt like a story, not a history lesson. The characters felt like real people because they all had good and little bad in them. And the mystery will keep you guessing as it quietly glides through the twisting, musty halls and rooms of the old monastery
Before I received this ARC, I have to admit I had never read anything by Louise Penny. I don’t even have a reason as I do love a good mystery. But I am so happy that I received this one! I really enjoyed this. I would definitely recommend it.
The Beautiful Mystery is just what it says it is The Beautiful Mystery!
I received this ARC through GoodReads and was asked for my honest review
Strike: The Hero From The Sky by Charlie Wood
Tobin Lloyd is a 17 year old practical joker, who thinks not of how to save our country, but how to keep out of trouble for his latest practical joke. His buddies, Jennifer Robins and Chad Fernandes, have had his back for years but its senior year, time to look to the future, think about being an adult. But Tobin’s still far too busy having fun to worry about what lies ahead, except for maybe being a game show host, that’d be cool.
Imagine then waking up in an alien land, on an alien planet, with alien buddies AND if that’s not enough for you, being told of alien super heroes and alien super villains.
How can Tobin and his friends, both old and new, cope with all the changes. And just what is so important about Tobin that makes everyone want him on their side?
A great action, fantasy, YA romp with overtures of super heroes and super villains. I would love to see this as a graphic novel!
This to me is more of an older child or teen book, however as I am not sure what level of violence you deem acceptable for your children, I would consider looking the book over first. I believe there is worse on regular television, but as I said, there is violence. Good moral story, good teen roll models.
I received this through a LibraryThing Giveaway
The Man Who Crossed Worlds by Chris Strange
A few years before Miles Franco was born the Bores showed up. No one knows for sure what caused them or why they were there, but the governments soon found ways to use them. They’ve found a way to make “tunnels” to another dimension. The place they call Heaven is anything but. Filled with a race of creatures similar to humans but with a much different perception of reality, it is the perfect place to smuggle things from, but there’s so much more to it. No one really knows the full depth of the tunnels and what can come from them.
Miles Franco is a freelance tunneler. He has a certain code of ethics that, while it doesn’t include working for gangsters, it also doesn’t include working for the cops. So when the cops pick him up on a trumped up charge he knows something is up. Something big, or why would they be bothering with him.
Blackmailed into helping the cops, Miles must call on all his powers as a tunneler. When things sped out of control, and his city and friends get pulled into the mess that is now Miles’ life, its time for him to make his stand.
A great urban fantasy mystery novel! With an interesting new theme, creepy new race and a so-not-a-hero hero, this is a fun, fast paced, twisty read. I look forward to reading more of Miles Franco and his world, starting with the short story The Man Who Couldn’t be Bought.
I received my copy through LibraryThing and was asked for my honest review.
Dangerous Waters by Anne Allen
At 16, Jeanne was a happy young woman who loved her family, the sea and her Guernsey home. One horrible day she lost her parents and her love for the sea and within days her Guernsey home. After 15 years away, Jeanne Le Page is finally coming home to Guernsey.
Meeting up with old friends, feeling the fresh ocean breezes on her skin, having a safe haven have all caused her to think about being home and perhaps returning to Guernsey for good.
Still, its not the homecoming she had wanted. Her gran’s death, the breakup with her long-time boyfriend Andy and the fallout she suffered from the ending of her relationship have left her reeling. Its almost as bad as the horrible sea accident that caused her to leave.
She’s remembered little of the accident or the 10 days spent in the hospital afterwards. Being back in her gran’s beloved cottage, she is beginning to have flashbacks to that horrible day. Could there be more to the accident than she remembers?
Will going back to her old life in England work for her now or should she stay in Guernsey and start over?
A mystery romance novel with interesting characters, a good little mystery and an interesting subplot about genealogy and food.
I received a copy of this novel from the author and was asked for my honest review.
The Colors of Malent
Debut authors Tim Adams and Sam Inzerillo, have finished book 1 in their new Young Adult fantasy novel The Color of Malent series. They are working now on books 2 and 3.
I met Tim Adams at an online site. I offered to review his upcoming novel, The Color of Malent, and asked if I could also do an interview with both he and Sam Inzerillo. I was thrilled when they agreed and also offered a copy of their YA fantasy novel for a giveaway. I will have the pleasure of interviewing both men later this month or early next month as a blog interview and will be offering a giveaway of their YA fantasy novel The Color of Malent as well.
BOOK SYNOPSIS THE COLOR OF MALENT
For as long as she can remember, Alara Martin has had strange dreams about a beautiful, faraway world. They increase with intensity as she approaches her fifteenth birthday, and Alara has a hard time distinguishing them from reality. She thinks about them constantly—and wonders why no one else in her family experiences them.
After suffering from a particularly traumatic and vivid nightmare, Alara learns an astonishing truth from her parents: she is not their real daughter! Alara is devastated by the news and riddled with more questions than answers. Who are her real parents? Where does she belong? And why do these strange dreams plague her every night?
Alara’s daily routine is interrupted by extraordinary landscapes, unbelievable creatures, and strange waking visions. Her search for answers will thrust her into the middle of a conflict for which she is completely unprepared. Can Alara’s destiny really lie in the world of Malent? And how can Alara leave all that she loves in her current world for her true heritage? Desperate for help from anyone who will listen, Alara fights to uncover her real identity—before it’s too late.
This will be my first interview and giveaway on my blog! I am super excited but of course a little nervous as well. I am really looking forward to learning about Tim Adams and Sam Inzerillo and finding out more about how they got together to write, why they decided on Young Adult fantasy to write, and more about their new book, and the series. If you have any suggestions or comments, please let me know.
Susan
susanreviews 