An Uncomfortably Close Look at the Prescription Drug Abuse Epidemic

THE BITTER TASTE OF DYING

A memoir

by Jason Smith

ISBN-10: 0996402012

ISBN-13: 978-0996402019

Web site: authorjasonsmith.com

Available on Amazon

Available at iBooks

Reviewed by Christa Wojciechowski originally on MySweetDelirium.com

Just a few years ago, Jason Smith was lying in his bathtub, the blood slowly draining from his slit wrists. Now he is here to tell us how he reached the point of suicide after his long, dark descent into prescription opiate abuse. The Bitter Taste Dying is a story of resurrection told by an author who has literally come back from the black grip of death.

Today’s junkies are not just on the street corner anymore. Big Pharma are the suppliers, and doctors are the pushers, cultivating (perhaps inadvertently, but that’s debatable) a massive population of addicts from all demographics.

After a severe car accident, Smith has back surgery and is given a perpetual menu of painkillers and muscle relaxers by his physicians. It doesn’t take long for the high schooler to realize that by taking more than the recommended dosage, he could obtain the warm, euphoric mental and physical comfort only opiates can bring. But all too soon he also discovers the pangs of withdrawal whenever his medication runs out.

If anyone has difficulty understanding what an addict feels like, Smith describes it with painful accuracy.

“You know that feeling of having your head held under water, the last of your oxygen depleted, where very fiber of your being screams at you to get to the surface for more air? That’s the feeling of needing more drugs…”

As Smith grows into a man, his addiction grows to mammoth proportions and he must go through heroic efforts to keep himself in pills and Fentanyl patches. Smith tells the story in an approachable, conversational tone that may have you laughing out loud at some parts. As horrendous as it is watching how far he would go and how morally low he would sink to get more drugs, it’s difficult not to marvel at his ingenuity and boldness.

At the same time, Smith writes with tender honesty and cutting unabashedness that is rare in any writer, much less any human being. The reader immediately feels very close to him, making his shocking confessions feel like blows.

The Bitter Taste of Dying is an important book that underscores the urgency with which society has to address the prescription drug abuse epidemic. It allows us to watch with uncomfortable closeness how easy it is to develop an addiction to pain medication and how quickly and mercilessly it can devour one’s entire life.

From aspiring football star to international criminal, Smith shows us step by step how opiate addiction can happen to anyone you know, and very likely destroy them. Most importantly, The Bitter Taste of Dying reveals the light at the end of the tunnel–even the most hopeless addict can make it out alive.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Jason Smith is a graduate of the University of California, Davis, whose work has been published extensively in both online and print media. Jason Smith is also the Creative Director of TheRealEdition.com, a recently launched website that allows addicts, recovering addicts, and their loved ones to publish their stories of addiction. Jason currently lives in northern California with his wife Megan and two children, Jaden and Isabella.

The Bitter Taste of Dying was released July 6th, 2015 by Thought Catalog and available in Kindle, iBooks, and his website http://authorjasonsmith.com.

Jason Smith is available for interviews, contributions, and appearances. To schedule a media event, order books, or request review copies, please contact christawojo at gmail.com.

ABOUT THE REVIEWER

Christa Wojciechowski is an author and freelance internet marketer living in Panama. You can visit her blog at christawojo.com and follow her on Twitter at @christawojo.

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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.

Second Book in Luana Ehrlich Series Maintains the Thrills

Title:  Two Days in Caracas
Series: A Titus Ray Thriller

Author:  Luana Ehrlich

Website: http://www.luanaehrlich.com

Genre: Christian thriller

ISBN: 1511628650

ASIN: B00ZPQYHIK

Amazon Purchase Link:  http://www.amazon.com/Two-Days-Caracas-Titus-Thriller-ebook/dp/B00ZPQYHIK

Originally reviewed by Ron English for Amazon

It has been said that a new author often will produce a good book on her first time out, but then struggle to produce a second. That has not been your case Luana Ehrlich. Two Days in
Caracas beautifully dovetails into the wake of your first book, One Night in Tehran. I somewhat expected your new work might have toned down the action of Titus Ray, or at the least just drift into his next adventure. No. That was not the case. 

Two Days in Caracas delivers new thrills, more depth into the mind and life of your growing character, Titus Ray, while promising more intrigue from future stories. You delivered such skill in drawing me into Titus Ray’s background of family and old hurts and then wove into his heart a new, growing affection for the police detective, Nikki Saxon. Where one might expect a passionate display of fast moving sex and love you handle this relationship with the kind of drama I recall from the old westerns where the cowboy has grace and reluctance and then rides off into the sunset leaving the reader wanting more. This book has it all. Danger—plenty of that, travel to foreign lands--for sure; characters that are so believable you might sense you know these folks. You surely develop an interest in turning the page to see what will happen next. Since I live in Norman, Oklahoma, I kept hoping that Titus Ray would return and let me glimpse more of his new life in our familiar surroundings. You did not disappoint. I marvel at the way you let Titus Ray grow into his new faith. You have not forced any religion onto these pages, but let this part of his life make a gentle impression on the reader as it does so in his expanding experience. His learning to pray is so new to him it reminds one of a child growing in grace and knowledge. His faith, while strange to him, is such a natural part of who he is and who he is becoming. His love for Nikki is refreshingly tender with just the right amount of desire and fear one might expect from a decent man living a dangerous life and chasing bad guys. And chase them he does. Not a curse word in the book and yet nothing is taken away from this adult story of action, love, assassins, kidnapping and murder. Great book. You have introduced me to a new kind of fiction where I can believe this story is a true life adventure of a man, his work, his love, his dog making me care for them all. Now I must wait for your provoking promise of Titus ray’s next adventure in Washington. Hurry, please.

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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.

Chief Editor at Midwest Book Review Praises The Frugal Editor

The Frugal Editor, second edition

Author: Carolyn Howard-Johnson
HowToDoItFrugally Publishing
www.howtodoitfrugally.com
ISBN: 9781505712117

$17.95 pbk / 

$9.00 Kindle 

Available on Amazon 

Reviewed by James A. Cox, Editor-in-Chief Midwest Book Review for Library Bookwatch (July  2015), the Jim Cox Report, and the Writing/Publishing Shelf at Midwest Book Review

Now in an updated second edition, The Frugal Editor is part of the "How To Do It Frugally" series for writers and publishers, and an absolute "must-have" for virtually all aspiring and practicing authors in these tough economic times. Tips, tricks, techniques, and do-it-yourself editing secrets will aid in improving one's writing at every stage of the process - from creating an initial query letter to revising rough drafts, putting the finishing touches on the final manuscript, and marketing the published work. 

"Remember when you first realized that a blow-by-blow account of a movie bored your parents? It's true with books, too. When space is limited, your plot should be a mere logline, pitch, or teaser. Your credentials or experience will be far more impressive to an agent or publisher." 

Extensive appendices filled with useful things like professional sample cover letters or query letters, tips for Kindle formatting made easy, and more round out this top-notch guide by award-winning author and former New York publicist Carolyn Howard-Johnson. 

Also highly recommended is the second edition of "The Frugal Book Promoter" (9781463743291, $17.95 pbk / $9.95 Kindle).

 

MORE ABOUT THE REVIEWER

Jim Cox and the Midwest Book Review have a long history of providing credible reviews to authors regardless of the press they are printed on. Find them at http://www.midwestbookreview.com. Cox also edits the Library Bookwatch, an online magazine, and his own e-mail newsletter, the Jim Cox Report.

 

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The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn t 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.Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers.

Poet Published Short Book of Philosophy and Religion

Strength to Be Human
Author: Mark Antony RossiLoyal First Books
2015 Kindle E-Book Editions
48 pageshttp://www.amazon.com

 Review by Sy Albright originally for Loyal First Books

Tackling the existential existence of humanity on a global scale would be a topic too large for even a War and Peace length volume, but Rossi’s Strength to Be Human manages to boil down his poignant distillations in less than fifty pages. Quite a feat when considering he neither dances around political opinions nor runs away from criticizing Science and Religion as potential negative elements that hold back humanity from its fullest potential.

In “What We Learned” Rossi states…..We waste our time building the better machine rather than raising the better child. The sum of our species is naught if we simply carry our fear and hostility to the Cosmos?

This is the first time I have ever read a book that successfully pushes back on religious thought and science philosophy without calling for extreme measures or proposing to exchange one idiotic ideology for another. He plainly points out that religion and science are most dangerous to peaceful coexistence when allowed to lament on humanity’s lack of superhuman or supernatural powers. Powers he clearly shows are unwanted and unneeded.

There is a certain poetry in these writings that ease the deeper thoughts into your mind as with the closing lines of “Prime Mover “--- “But the ultimate beauty of the human creation is the indomitable desire to rise above the sum of our shortcomings. In this journey the happiness of humanity stands the strongest chance of building a better world and finally finding a love capable of pushing back the primal instinct.”

These essays read like meditations for the well-being of four billion people. It’s a heady goal but likely a beneficial mission suited for the world-at-large. If Poverty and War have a permanent cure the medicine will arrive by natural means. No test tube or holy touchstone can bring people closer to peace until they settle the war raging in their own hearts. The mechanical and the metaphysical have a place in our dreams if humanity takes care to ensure our deepest decisions are made from personal experience and common sense.

About the Author:

Mark Antony Rossi is an Italian-American poet, fiction writer, playwright and future science author. His poetry, fiction, nonfiction and criticism have been published in Another Chicago Review, The Antigonish Review (Canada), Anak Sastra (Taiwan), Bareback Literary Review (Canada),  Black Heart Review, Brain of Forgetting (Ireland), Coe Review,  Deep South Journal, Dirty Chai,  Dogplotz,  Enclave, Entropy, Farther Stars Than,  Flash Fiction (Italy), Gravel, Heart and Seoul (South Korea), Mad Swirl,  Peaches Literary Magazine, Ploughshares,  The Muse (India) New Delhi Review (India), On The Rusk, Poetry Kanto (Japan), Petite Hound, Purple Patch (England), Japanophile, Satire, Scribble (New Zealand), SchitzoRealism, Scrivener Creative Review (Canada), The Journal of Poetry Therapy,  The Poet’s Haven,  The Sacrificial,  TransNational (Germany), Toad Suck Review, Tracer, Twisted Vines Literary Review, Yellow Chair Review and hundreds of others in ten countries. His poetry and fiction book titles include Tints and Timbres, Variations on Virtue, Songs the Season After, Church of Jazz and No Town of Mine.  His also the author of two nonfiction books Strength To Be Human and The Intruder Bulletins: The Dark Side of Technology a major bioethics paperback and ebook that became highly popular in American Colleges and Latin America after the Spanish-language version was released. He lobbied against Human Cloning Research was congratulated by then President George H.W. Bush for his ethical writings and principled stand on increased ethical consideration regarding biotechnology. A USAF combat veteran he devotes his spare time to supporting veteran causes in his community. And he has been a frequent radio guest (Weissbach, The Jeff Rense Show, X Zone, Across The Net, The Byte Show, Paranormal Front) to promote bioethics and veterans rights. His paper “Poetry as Therapy: Self and World Analysis” has been used a basis for poetic therapies to treat post-traumatic stress disorder in combat veterans.

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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.

King's Traveling Man Called "Deviant Thriller"

The Traveling Man 

 Series: The Travelers: Book One

Author: Michael P. King

Author's Web site: https://michaelpkingwriter.wordpress.com/

Genre: Crime Thriller

ISBN-13:9780986179600

Purchase The Traveling Man  

Reviewed by Kirkus Review

Husband and wife con artists must get back on their feet after a scheme goes spectacularly wrong in this criminally good debut by King.

Married hustlers Tom and Patty (or, at least, those are their aliases) arrive in a small town alongside their partner, Buddy Ray, with the intention of pulling off a lucrative con—selling contaminated lakefront land for a high price. Everything proceeds according to plan, until Buddy and Patty go against Tom’s instructions and take on a doomed side deal. From there, things take a dangerous turn, and Tom and Patty are left to pick up the pieces of their business and personal relationship (and heal more than a few physical wounds). After taking a monthslong break, the couple tries to get back in the game—with similarly messy results. On the spectrum of grays, these two are much closer to black than white. They cheat, steal, manipulate, blackmail and even kill when the moment calls for it. Yet readers might still find themselves white-knuckling their books (or e-readers) when the pair is in a tight spot. Despite the couple’s more questionable values, Tom and Patty’s relationship is based on love, loyalty and trust, and even they have their red lines: “We don’t scam civilians. Rule number two. We use them; we pay them; we stay out of jail.” Charismatic, levelheaded Tom is especially likable despite his criminality. It also doesn’t hurt that Robert and Pamela Johnson (as they call themselves in the second half of the book) are more than once pitted against an even more cutthroat thug who makes them look like the good guys. Surrounding them is a cast of superbly sketched characters whose competing motives constantly trip up their plans, such as Marcie, the overconfident, small-time real estate agent they’ve looped into their land-sale con. With a story every bit as intricate and entertaining as the personalities who fill it, King’s uncommonly solid debut is a must-read.

An absorbing, deviant tale of redemption.

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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.

Reviewer of Western Novels Gives Nod to Detour Trail

Detour Trail

Author: Joy V. Smith

Author Web site: http://pagadan.wordpress.com/

Fiction: Western / Historical Novel

ISBN 978-1612355702

Purchase Detour Trail at the publisher or Amazon

Reviewed by Bill S originally for Julies Book Reviews

 

It's rare that you find a Western written by woman. Maybe that's why it's been labeled an historical novel as well as a western.  Historical novels often have a character from history play a part in the story. I don't think that's true in this novel unless I missed something. It's not important. What is important is that the story rings true and this one does.

The western novels I've read have usually been written by men with an emphasis on the "wild and wooly" dimension of the Wild West. The "Detour Trail" has plenty of violent moments but what I also found engaging was the emphasis Ms. Smith gave to the town building and housekeeping aspects of what pioneers had to do.

Many novels and films today make their female protagonists equal or superior to men when it comes to defending themselves. Lorena Emerson, the lead woman in this novel, is one of them. What I like about her is she's a balanced character. Tough as nails when she has to be with a warm and caring touch when needed. Women have been homemakers because of childbearing, but there is much cultural evidence of their history as leaders in community development. Too bad so many  men don't share.

Like all westerns I've read there are good guys and bad buys including renegade native Americans. What I found here that I didn't find in others was what went on when it came time to build a community. How people worked together and learned to respect the differences among themselves. In that regard there is a lesson for what's going on today in the streets and even the churches.

Besides writing a good story Joy V. Smith has given us something to think about when it comes to the respect most pioneers had for each other. More than a history lesson the respect shown in the characters of the "Detour Trail" is needed in the here and now.
4 Stars

MORE ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Joy V. Pagadan also blogs media tidbits at http://pagadan.livejournal.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.

Former Reader's Digest Editor Gives Sci-Fi Book Huge Thumbs Up

 Title: Rarity from the Hollow

 Author: Robert Eggleton

 Author's Web link: http://www.lacydawnadventures.com

 Genre: Science Fiction / Fantasy

 ISBN: ISBN-10: 1907133062

ISBN-13: 978-1907133060

Reviewer's Rating: 5 of 5 stars

Available in paperback or as an e-book. Purchase links:

http://www.amazon.com/Rarity-Hollow-Robert-Eggleton-ebook/dp/B007JDI508

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Rarity-Hollow-Robert-Eggleton-ebook/dp/B007JDI508

http://www.doghornpublishing.com/wordpress/books/rarity-from-the-hollow 

http://inpressbooks.co.uk/products/rarity-from-the-hollow 

http://www.lulu.com/us/en/shop/robert-eggleton/rarity-from-the-hollow/paperback/product-20203207.html 

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/rarity-from-the-hollow-robert-eggleton/1118420669?ean=9781907133060 

http://www.mediander.com/books/9781907133060/rarity-from-the-hollow/?source=googleps# 

Reviewed by Temple Emmet Williams originally for the Warrior Patient blog

The most enjoyable science fiction novel I have read in several years

Rarity from the Hollow by Robert Eggleton is the most enjoyable science fiction novel I have read in several years. Who could think of an intergalactic handbook for entrepreneurs? Who could turn a tree-hugger into a paranormal event of death-defying significance? Who could create characters so believable, so funny, so astonishingly human (and not)?

Robert Eggleton, that’s who.

I put this book on my iPhone, and it followed me everywhere for several days. Strangers smiled politely at my unexpected laughter in the men’s room toilet stall. They looked away as I emerged, waving the IPhone at them as if it might explain something significant.

Oddly, the novel explains a great deal that has become significant in our society. Rarity from the Hollow is satire at its best and highest level. It is a psychological thriller, true to traits of mankind (and other species). It is an animal rights dissertation (you will laugh when you understand why I write that). It celebrates the vilest insect on earth (make that Universe).

The characters created by Robert Eggleton will bug your brain long after you smoke, uh, read the final page. Thanks for the laughs, the serious thoughts, the absolute wonder of your mind, Mr. Eggleton. A truly magnificent job.

MORE ABOUT THE REVIEWER:

Temple Emmet Williams is an author and former Reader’s Digest editor. He reviews books for the blog, Warrior Patient. 

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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.