The New Book Review

Wednesday, June 22, 2011

Love That Horror...and Sci-Fi...and Romance!

TITLE: Take One At Bedtime

AUTHOR: Jenny Twist
AUTHOR'S WEBSITE: https://sites.google.com/site/jennytwistauthor/
GENRE/CATEGORY: Story Collection of horror, sci-fi and romance
PUBLISHER: Melange Books
ISBN: 978-1-61235-064-6

Reviewed by Mysti Parker on GoodReads.com

If you love easy-to-read short stories, you'll enjoy Jenny Twist's Take One at Bedtime. This anthology of tales ranging from romantic to horrific is the perfect accompaniment for your bedside table.

In fact, for many of the stories, I took Dr. Twist's advice and read one (sometimes two or three on a good night) while I rested in my bed. They're the perfect length for a quick tale before you turn out the light, or during your lunch break, or when you're in a waiting room, or riding on the bus...I think you get my drift.

Most of these stories are set in England or Spain, and Ms. Twist employs her knowledge of both locales very well. The settings and personalities really come to life with her vivid language. Every story begins in a way that pulls the reader in and brings you to a conclusion you usually don't expect. Each tale is unique and paced nicely. I enjoyed them all and was sad when I reached the last page. I think you'll see what I mean when you buy your copy.

You can find Take One at Bedtime at Melange Books in e-book or print format.

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The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. It is a free service offered to those who want to encourage the reading of books they love. That includes authors who want to share their favorite reviews, reviewers who'd like to see their reviews get more exposure, and readers who want to shout out praise of books they've read. Please see submission guidelines on the left of this page. Reviews and essays are indexed by genre, reviewer names, and review sites. Writers will find the search engine handy for gleaning the names of small publishers. Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor. As a courtesy to the author, please tweet and retweet this post using this little green retweet widget :

Tuesday, June 21, 2011

Well Known Mystery Author Reviews Fellow Author's Book

Title: Night Corridor
Author: Joan Hall Hovey Publisher: BWLPPGenre: Suspense, 258 pagesASIN: B004NSV6TY Price: Kindle eBook: $2.99 Print Book: $10.79Publisher website address: http://bwlpp.com/mysteries.php
Author’s personal website: http://www.joanhallhovey.com

Reviewed by Aaron Paul Lazar

Caroline Hill, a fragile woman who’s seen more than her share of heartbreak, has just been released into the “real” world by the Bayshore Mental Institution, an aging facility recently doomed to closure. Trembling with fear after nine years of incarceration, at the age of twenty-six Caroline is armed only with a handful of memorized phrases from her psychiatrist and a small bag of hand-me-down clothing. She shows up as pre-arranged to a rooming house with a nosy landlady and her marginally challenged nephew, Harold. Once settled, Caroline makes her entrance at Frank’s, a local diner in the small town of St. Simeon, Canada where a dishwashing job awaits her.

Although the Bayshore institution offered safety and familiarity, Caroline is determined not to fail. The last thing she wants is to return to the place where she shared a room with a woman who clicked imaginary knitting needles 24/7.

Caroline’s timing is unfortunate, because the day she arrives in town, a serial killer has left yet another victim for police. And it so happens, the first victim—an aspiring actress on the verge of a breakthrough—lived across the hall from Caroline’s new room. Police and neighbors wonder – could the killer be someone in the rooming house? How did he gain access to the facility? How did he know the first woman? And the second? Both victims were pretty young ladies with brunette hair and blue eyes, Caroline’s exact appearance.

The mystery and suspense in this novel is outstanding, truly top notch, in the vein of Mary Higgins Clark, but—dare I say—even better? What really struck me as brilliant was Ms. Hovey’s ability to paint the picture of an innocent, a woman who’d been raised by an institutional staff since the age of seventeen, when a horrendous event tore her heart out and separated her from reality. Caroline’s inner thoughts, her hesitant and sometimes awkward speech, the turmoil she feels with each simple step toward freedom, her frail courage…each of these felt real and authentic. I grew incredibly fond of this protagonist, and with each brave step she took, I found myself cheering her on.

When Caroline notices a man following her, she wants to tell someone, but what ex-mental patient wouldn’t be afraid to share this news, knowing they’d probably classify her as paranoid and maybe send her back to Bayshore? She squares her shoulders and fights through the fear, soldiering on.

Against the backdrop of Caroline’s painful yet courageous re-entry into society, the low growling drumbeat of violence escalates. More women die, and the pattern heats up. We are given glimpses inside the mind of a seriously sick killer, and realize his delusions stretch far into his past. When Caroline becomes embroiled in the middle of the killer’s elaborate and insane plot to return to a chapter in his history where he was once happy, the action escalates and takes us on a heart-pounding rollercoaster ride to a satisfying finish.

Joan Hall Hovey has written yet another winner. I highly recommend it to any lover of suspense, mystery, romance, or thriller. You’ll not only race through this book, but clamor for more works by this talented and polished author.

The reviewer is Aaron Lazar who writes the

LEGARDE MYSTERIES

DOUBLE FORTE' (2004)

UPSTAGED (2005)

TREMOLO: CRY OF THE LOON (2007)

MAZURKA (2009)

FIRESONG (COMING SOON! JULY 2011)

DON’T LET THE WIND CATCH YOU (APRIL 2012)

MOORE MYSTERIES

HEALEY'S CAVE (2010)

TERROR COMES KNOCKING (JAN 2012)

FOR KEEPS (FEB 2012)

TALL PINES MYSTERIES

FOR THE BIRDS (COMING SOON! OCTOBER 2011)

ESSENTIALLY YOURS (COMING SOON! MARCH 2012)

Awards:

WINNER 2011 Eric Hoffer BEST Book, COMMERCIAL FICTION * GRAND PRIZE FINALIST Eric Hoffer Book Award 2011 * Preditors & Editors Readers Choice Award – 2^nd place 2011* Winner of Carolyn Howard Johnsons’ 9^th Annual Noble (Not Nobel!) Prize for Literature 2011 * Finalist Allbooks Editors Choice Awards 2011 * Preditors&Editors Top 10 Finalist * Yolanda Renee's Top Ten Books 2008 * MYSHELF Top Ten Reads 2008 * Writers' Digest Top 101 Website Award 2009 & 2010

www.legardemysteries.com

www.mooremysteries.com

www.murderby4.blogspot.com

www.aaronlazar.blogspot.com

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The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. It is a free service offered to those who want to encourage the reading of books they love. That includes authors who want to share their favorite reviews, reviewers who'd like to see their reviews get more exposure, and readers who want to shout out praise of books they've read. Please see submission guidelines on the left of this page. Reviews and essays are indexed by genre, reviewer names, and review sites. Writers will find the search engine handy for gleaning the names of small publishers. Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor. As a courtesy to the author, please tweet and retweet this post using this little green retweet widget :

Monday, June 20, 2011

In Celebration of Father's Day

Imagining the Future: Ruminations on Fathers and Other Masculine Apparitions

Carolyn Howard-Johnson and Magdalena Ball have woven their Imagining the Future: Ruminations on Fathers and Other Masculine Apparitions (Volume 1) on March 22, 2010, together like sisters of the same mind when it comes to the men in their lives. Carolyn begins her medley of childhood memories beginning with “All the sound in the world sucked to a waving wailing note as I perch on my father’s knee.” Later giftedly pondering, “The things I didn’t know about my father, his coming and goings, the fearing he would not return. One day, only a dawn or decade ago, he didn’t.”

“Then, then!” writes Carolyn, “Decades of dread (conflicts?) with names we remember and some we don't. Bosnia, Kosovo, First (!) Gulf War, Korean, Bay of Pigs, Rwanda,

Afghanistan, the Berlin Crisis for god's sake. More than 300 of them, words like the bass beat of drums. Vietnam when those troops who did come home couldn't walk or wouldn't talk. I tell my grandson, then only 12, how we who remember the grunt of that war see it differently from those who marched in the Double W Wars, wars when we wanted to be there.”

Carolyn Howard-Johnson's grandson served two tours in Iraq. Her husband is a retired Army officer who served in the 1960s Berlin call up. I can hear the sober sounds of the National Anthem in the background of all her poetry, with the throat voice of Uncle Sam warning, “I want him. He’s mine. You can’t have him!” All wives and little girls cry.

Magdalena pulls metaphors out of the air with, “You recede a little more. I reach for you over thought waves little girl’s hand hung in the air your absence, finally, matches reality to imagination trying to get truth from pretty metaphors that can’t touch your flesh still young somewhere while the precious science you drank like fine wine grinds your atoms to dust.”

Carolyn Howard Johnson and Magdalena Ball have written a wonderful little memoir celebrating Father’s Day and all their sacrifices as girls and women growing up in the 50’s and together they swam through a remembered past. I recommend this little gem and I give it Five Stars for Amazon. Happy Father’s Day to all…wives, children and our husbands who take care of our very basic needs while we write poetry.

By Joyce White

Sculpting the Heart Book Reviews

Joyce White
Author
Sculpting the Heart with Art Therapy
Read Now - http://bit.ly/d1jGLN
Twitter - @wjoycewhite

Joyce White

Barbara Bailey Reviews Laura Mays Hoopes New Book

Breaking Through the Spiral Ceiling: An American Woman Becomes a DNA Scientist
Laura L Mays Hoopes Author's web site: http://www.lauralmayshoopes.com
paperback
176 pages
Lulu.com
# ISBN-10: 0557923204
# ISBN-13: 978-0557923205
Memoir

Reviewed by Barbara Bailey, Oak Hills, CA for Amazon.com
Five stars

Laura Hoopes tells us her life story in Breaking Through the Spiral Ceiling that is similar to so many women of her time and still to many women today.

If you are expecting a flaming feminist report on the unfairness of women's treatment in academia, then you've come to the wrong place. Her story is not riddled with blame but a play-by-play interpretation of her quest as an intelligent and motivated young woman of the 1960s who fought to reach her goal of becoming a DNA scientist. She tells us about the snubs and betrayals, but we are not invited to see bitterness and anger. Instead, Hoopes invites us to take a look at what kind of person her journey has molded her into. And, the humor and gentleness in explaining complex biological concepts shows that Hoopes found her niche as a teacher and mentor to her students.

It's that insightfulness that makes this a charming read. Breaking Through the Spiral Ceiling should be required reading for every young woman to see that they are standing on the shoulders of women who fought the first battles of having a career, family, friendships, and love despite the trials they faced and came out with battle scars but still hopeful and still smiling.

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The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. It is a free service offered to those who want to encourage the reading of books they love. That includes authors who want to share their favorite reviews, reviewers who'd like to see their reviews get more exposure, and readers who want to shout out praise of books they've read. Please see submission guidelines on the left of this page. Reviews and essays are indexed by genre, reviewer names, and review sites. Writers will find the search engine handy for gleaning the names of small publishers. Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor. As a courtesy to the author, please tweet and retweet this post using this little green retweet widget :

Saturday, June 18, 2011

Title: The Fiddler’s Talisman Subtitle: Book 1 of The Fairy Godmother Diaries
Author: Izolda Trakhtenberg
ISBN: 978-0-9802298-1-3
Category: Fantasy/Urban Fantasy
Release Date: March 25, 2011
Length: 344 pages
Retail price: $7.99 (3.49 shipping and 6% tax if ordered in Maryland)
Binding: perfect pocket paperback

Reviewered by Elena Khazanova, orignially at amazon.com

A scotch-drinking, boots-wearing fairy Godmother, her brilliant but fragile charge who loses her sunny disposition as a result of a heartbreak, and a couple or sexy, talented yet sweet guys thrown into the mix - what fun! The writing is light and rich, speaks to your senses (even the detailed description of classical performances were engaging, which surprised me - I am not really the one to listen to classical music, let alone READ about it), and the food! I'd buy the book just for the wonders of that magical ice cream shop and to drool over the spectacular meals and desserts, and to dream about a cute Irish bartender building me a perfect Guinness!

Hope in the next book we'll get to travel again (the Ireland scenes were spectacular), and see the young Jo blossom even more into a fiesty, gutsy woman she is meant to be. I love reading about the intricacies of the fairy society: their relationships, how the fairy rules are enforced, who takes care of their charges when a Godmother needs a break, all that geeky stuff. -Elena Khazanova

Overall impression of the book: entertaining, funny, unsentimental though tender at times, well-paced, engaging, quirky and fun!

Friday, June 17, 2011

Ray Clenments Pens New Book on Spirituality

Title Zor

Author Ray Clements (J.B.)

Author's Web Site: www.GoToZor.com

Genre: Spirituality-mind,body,spirit

ISBN: 978-1452895406

Reviewed by Lisa Brown for the Book Worm Society

Reviewers Rating: 5 Star

Review

Zor by JB is a sagacious novel that ingeniously combines the worlds of the Consciousness, Spirituality and Quantum level science as definitive proof of the capabilities of human beings. The novel's main character - John is in deep need of spiritual guidance and Zor is the protagonist and spiritual guide that enlightens John into a new understanding of life and reality. The book is clear, concise and very easy to relate to.

As a devoted spiritualist and bookfreak for many years I have had the opportunity to read and study some of the most profound spiritual documents ever written. Some of those books left me with dangling unanswered questions. Other books inspired me to seek more information for further enlightenment and some books just left me confused, however Zor is one of the few books that has everything so well put together. I have finally found the book that I am sure one day will be considered a modern day gospel by all those that have the opportunity to read it. The book sums up and explains many theories that are normally expressed as separate doctrine. I found this book to be a god send and many others will find it just as valuable as there are many of us that are losing our faith because of the onerous road that life is to travel.

Zor encompasses all the main tenets of every possible spiritual belief and tangent scientific spiritual theories as we may or may not know them. Zor does not just lay out spiritual theories for the reader to make their own connections to, Zor demonstrates the theories in living color for the reader to absorb and understand. Although some of the theories are familiar this book is a great expression of all of the theories. The novel encompasses the following teachings: the effects of negative thinking, how our thoughts effect our realities, the energetic interconnection of all living things, the true affects of placebos on the mind and body, the comprehension of evil and dispelling it, the power of prayer, the power of meditation, the real reason for the building of the Hadron Collider and even Quantum physics and its relation to our spiritual being. Additionally, the book contains many more spiritual teachings but to name them all would do a disservice to the author and potential readers you need to experience this book for yourself.

From the outset, the book draws you in with the initial meeting between John Brewster and Zor. Zor is a dwarf and is targeted and insulted by some ignorant people. Zor does not respond to the insults and this lack of a reaction amazes John. Zor's refusal to indulge in the negative behavior brings about a perfect explanation of the damaging effects of negative thoughts and actions. The descriptions that are used to explain the debilitating effects of negative energy are to say the least completely accurate. Negative energy corrupts and destroys. I can say this because I have personally watched how negative energy destroyed someone's mental well being and health until it caused their suffering and death.

I could compare this book to other books pertaining to spirituality in modern day but this book bears no exact likeness to other books of this nature as it is a compendium of spiritual knowledge. This book really hit home with me because as I read it, I saw the connections that I made through my own pursuit of spiritual enlightenment come together as a whole. Without giving away too much more of the book I would like to emphatically endorse this book. I highly recommend this book to anyone, whether they are spiritually enlightened or just trying to make due while healing your life borne wounds, this book contains the spiritual "band aids" that we all need. (Reprinted with permission)

Thursday, June 16, 2011

Biography: Vets Will Love It

Title: Belle of the Brawl; Letters Home From a B-17 Bombardier

Author: Gary A. Best
Author's web site link: garyabest@gmail.com
Genre/category: Military/WW II biography

ISBN: 978-1-59299-489-2

Publisher: Inkwater Press

Reviewered by : Rob Ballister for Military Writers Society of America

Review:

Gary A. Best’s BELLE OF THE BRAWL is a wonderful portrait of the relationship between a boy and his mother, told through the letters of young Fred Lull as he writes home during his training and deployment as a B-17 bombardier. It describes a warm, emotional relationship, where a young man in harm’s way continuously works to reassure his worried mother that he is just fine and plenty safe, even when the horrors of war surround him.

Best does a great job of interspersing the letters from Fred with notes, comments, and news clippings about the war at that time. This serves to both allow the reader to fix in history when the story occurred and also to contrast the harsh realities of war with the boy’s club picture that Fred paints for his mother.

In addition to developing the picture of the relationship, the book does a wonderful job of painting a picture of what life was like in America during World War II. The reader learns about rationing, traveling in the United States, and how Americans worked to make ends meet in the 1940’s.

This book is an excellent addition to any library, but will be especially enjoyed by military aviation buffs and World War II veterans.

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