Thursday 24 March 2016

Sun Sea and Secrets: A novel set in Greece by May J Panayi

This was a nice easy read and I gave it a generous 5 stars. It could have been a bit shorter as we didn't need to know what Ella the main character had for breakfast and the word delicious was overused. But I think it makes a great holiday read and a fun introductory guide to Greece. Well writen and edited.
Sun Sea and Secrets: A novel set in Greece by May J Panayi on amazon.com


It’s unusual to feel the sun on your back when you read a book indoors, but this is exactly what I felt reading Sun Sea and Secrets. I also felt very hungry as May Panayi described all the wonderful Greek food in great (maybe a bit too much)detail. This is a story about a woman coming to a Greek island hoping to discover more about her mother who died when she was only five. She hopes to discover what happened during the summer when her English mother worked in a Greek tavern and find out who her father is. Ella retraces her mother’s footsteps and in doing so, falls in love with the island, its people, the cats and its wonderful food. I particularly enjoyed the anecdotes about the cats; anyone who has visited Greece will have been affected by the legion of scrawny little cats desperate for food. I don’t think I was the only sunburned tourist getting funny looks from the checkout girl when I went into the supermarket to buy cat food. I could hear her think, “do British people eat cat food?’
This is a very warm portrait of a visit to Greece and would make an excellent travel companion as it teaches some basic Greek and introduces the many dishes on offer. Feel good sunny read.

Tuesday 15 March 2016

Beyond the Pale by Senan Gil Senan

It is good to be back reading books, especially if its an enjoyable book like this one. I rated it 5 stars.
Beyond the pale on Amazon.com


Senan Gil Senan has created in Beyond the Pale a very believable world, were two sets of humans have evolved in two very different ways. The character of River; a young Native American or outlander who lives a hidden existence outside of the city bounds and its controls; is the embodiment of the group that have re-embraced a more tribal way of life. He seems to be in tune with his environment and his own body. The differences between the groups become clear when River saves Nathan Carlson; a security officer from the fortified city of New Denver. Even though Nathan is grateful for River saving his life, he can’t avoid him being taken captive by the cities forces. He does however succeed in taking custody of River and he brings him home to live with his family. Here the differences become even clearer when we see how the somewhat dysfunctional Carlson offspring deals with life.  Both children had their intelligence artificially enhanced at birth, but in their society social skills seem less important. Anton the son is so involved with all his gadgets that he rather deals with a virtual woman than a real girl.  Audrina is the epitome of a hedonistic society that needs technology, drugs and sex for entertainment. River falls in love with Audrina and a relationship develops. It doesn’t make for comfortable reading, when Audrina plays games and pushes River into her dysfunctional world. Here our hero shows his moral fibre and stands up to her.
There is plenty of action in this book and I found it hard to put down. I wanted to rush to the end to find out how River ended up. The descriptions of the new ‘advanced’ world are vivid without overwhelming the reader with techno-babble. The writer also brought the Colorado landscape (or the outlands) to life for me. There are plenty more questions to be answered at the end of the book and I’m pleased that there is already a follow up to this book; The Fifth Seed.
 


Tuesday 8 March 2016

Seer of Souls by Susan Faw

I'm happy to announce that Conversations with Tom is finally finish and has been send to my editor Penny Hunter. I'm sure there are still some things that need to be changed, but we are on the home straight. I hope I'll now have a bit more time to read and review, but also to get some more exercise. Sitting typing does nothing for the waistline or general condition. The weather here is warming up and I look forwards to many fine walks and swims.
This time I'm reviewing an fantasy adventure, fantasy is not my favourite genre, but I do enjoy a good adventure. This one was action packed and a good read. I gave it five stars.
Seer of Souls by Susan Faw

If you’re a fan of fantasy adventure stories set in a magical kingdom, then you’ll like this. I have to admit that I was bored to tears by the Hobbit as it had at times overlong descriptions of the things found in Middle Earth. Seer of souls thankfully doesn’t do this, the pace is fast and there is lots of action. I could have actually done with a bit more explanation as there remain many questions; like who exactly is the evil Queen Alcina, where did she come from, and what made her go to the dark side? There is a second book planed so I think we’ll get to know the kingdom of Cathair more in depth. I liked the character of Cayden as we see him developing from simple farm boy who likes to carve flutes, to reluctant leader of men. I look forwards to reading the next book as I want to discover more about these magic lands, the primordial people and Avery, Cayden’s twin. I hope the follow up in the Spirit Shield saga is equally action packed and exciting. This impressive debut novel is well written and edited and I think we will hear more of Susan Faw in years to come.

Sunday 6 March 2016

Reblogged from Lurking musings

I've been busy doing many things to promote the Language in the Blood series. One of these was doing a guest spot and interview on the following blog. You can read my interview on the blog and I copied my guest spot below.
Lurking musings

I mentioned in my interview that I’m not very comfortable with self-publicising. It was about two years after publishing my first book that I decided to put a headshot on my author page. If I can give one piece of advice to a new writer, it’s to be conscious of your and your book’s image. Readers want to know who you are, what you look like and preferably what your pets look like too.vampire cat
So here is a picture of Clicquot the cat, and me, reluctantly venturing into the limelight. He was also reluctant to dress up as a vampire bat, but mummy’s career demanded it.
Before you shout ‘animal cruelty!’ I’ll tell you that the wings and tie only stayed on a few seconds; just long enough for the photo.
It’s my little revenge for him getting us up at 4am most mornings.
The biggest mistake I made early on is trying to do everything myself. (Except editing, I knew I needed help there!) This is no problem if you’re good at everything book related. If you decide to go the self-publishing route there are so many jobs you then need to do. Graphic designer, web-page designer, blogger, editor, marketing and advertising expert are just a couple of skills you’ll have to learn.
catI soon realised I was out of my depth. The best decision I’ve made, probably, is joining an independent writers’ group. This group was very open with sharing their experiences and when I saw some of the covers my colleagues were using I knew I had to change mine. My group recommended several avenues and after a few emails I went with Paradox Book Covers. If you shop and ask around you’ll find that professional is not always expensive. People really do judge a book by its cover, so make sure yours stands out.
I’m next hoping to tackle my website, because you’re not just a writer, you are a brand. If your reader loves your books they want to know more about you, so make sure you present you, the writer, in the best light.
Amazon author page: Author.to/authorpage
Blog: http://languageintheblood.blogspot.fr/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CruftsloverAkaCameronBlair/?ref=hlSlide1
Twitter: @LitBCameronB
Webpage: http://www.cruftslover.adzl.com/

The Bio
Angela Lockwood-van der Klauw was born in the Netherlands. She learned her trade as a jeweller and gemmologist at the Vakschool Schoonhoven before moving to Edinburgh as an apprentice jeweller. There she met and later married her husband Adam. Angela ran her own jeweller’s shop in Edinburgh for ten years before she and her husband moved to the south of France in 2011. Like her vampire character Cameron, Angela prefers the climate there, but often thinks about the town she left behind and its people. Cameron’s story was born in the spring of 2013, a very wet spring during which Angela found herself climbing the walls, frustrated that she couldn’t go out and have her usual long walks along the seafront. Seeing his wife’s frustration, Adam suggested ‘Why don’t you write a book?’ Angela thought about it for a few days, then switched on her laptop and started writing Language in the Blood. Blood Ties is the second book in the series and Angela has also published a collection of short stories Something Short with her friend, Elspeth Morrison.