Goodbye, Paris by Anstey Harris

Title: Goodbye, Paris
Author: Anstey Harris
Pub. Date: 7-Aug-2018
Rating: 4 Stars

Goodbye, Paris by Anstey Harris is my Book of the Month (BOTM) pick for August. As part of my reading challenge for myself I am to read my BOTM each month. While I did read my pick this month, other months I have not been as successful. That aside…

What drew me to this book, from among the choices available, is the idea that this young women, Grace, is having an affair with a married man and waiting for him to leave his wife. I could just see all the possibilities in my head and I knew this was not going to turn out well. Therefore, before I even started reading I wanted to shake some sense into her. So needless to say, I hooked before I even opened the book to read the first page.

Well, I was right, things were not what they seemed in Grace’s world. When her lover, David, becomes the media darling for saving a pregnant women’s life in Paris, their years of careful secrecy are laid open for the world to see. The fallout of this event forces Grace to look at her life in a new light and she is shattered.

The man she thought she knew so well does not really exist. She has put him on a pedestal and now that pedestal has fallen over and left her only the broken truth. It is a fortunate thing for Grace that she has a couple of allies on her side. With their help she will have to remake her business, herself and her life.

This is a wonderful debut novel for the author. She obviously wrote this story with a lot of empathy. She made a character that you could not help but like even though there were times you want to shake her to make her see the truth of the situation she has created for herself. It is obvious to everyone, except Grace, that “DISASTER” is written all over this affair.

The plot moved along nicely and there were surprises along the way to keep me interested. The only negative for me was the ending. I think she recovered from the affair much faster than is possible. I do not want to give anything away here, but I will say that Grace needed longer to mourn her loses.

This would make a great beach read. I also recommend this as a book club choice. There are lots of topics that would make for great discussion.

Foundryside by Robert Jackson Bennett

Title: Foundryside
Author: Robert Jackson Bennett
Pub. Date: 21-Aug-2018
Rating: 4.5 Stars

Foundryside by Robert Jackson Bennett has all the ingredients to make it a winner with fantasy readers. These ingredients include: A loveable main character, excellent world building and a well-executed plot with unexpected twists throughout.

Sancia Grado is a well-known thief with special abilities that allow her to be an expert in her craft. She is highly sought after for those most difficult and delicate jobs. She has just accepted a job to steal an item from a highly guarded safe in the port area of Tevanne. Unbeknownst to her, the item is not only highly valuable but is a powerful ancient artifact and there are people willing to kill to possess it.

The job is proceeding nicely and Sancia has managed to break into the safe and steal the artifact. Her problems start when she makes her escape from the warehouse that housed the safe. She finally makes it back to her hideaway and stows the box she has stolen into her secret hiding place. Then curiosity gets the better of her and she has to look in the box. What she finds is a key. All this for a key? Then the key starts speaking to her. She quickly realizes that very powerful people will be looking for her and that she is in grave danger. In order to survive, she will need all her abilities and those of others she would never have trusted with anything let alone her life.

In the main character of Sancia, the author has created a strong female heroine that is loveable and to who the reader quickly develops empathy for. Sancia is tenacious, loyal and of course an underdog and you will not be able to resist pulling for her even though she is a thief. Actually I quickly forget that she was basically a criminal. It helps, of course, to know that this harsh world has left her no choice.

The world building is solid and information is doled out perfectly. In addition, Foundryside felt very original to me. I read a lot of fantasy so to have something this original was very refreshing. Add to this a fast paced plot and twists to keep the reader engaged and you have a winner.

Hands down I highly, highly recommend to all fantasy lovers.

I received an ARC from the publisher, via NetGalley, in exchange for my honest review.

The Clockmaker’s Daughter by Kate Morton

Title: The Clockmaker’s Daughter
Author: Kate Morton
Pub. Date: 9-Oct-2018
Rating: 4 Stars

The Clockmaker’s Daughter by Kate Morton is a historical fiction story that centers on a murder that occurred in the summer of 1862 at Birchwood Manor. There are multiple narrators, each has a connection to Birchwood and they all play their part in the history of Birchwood, thus making the house, as much as the murder, the focus of the story.

In 1862 Birchwood Manor, sitting on the banks of the Thames, is owned by Edward Radcliff, an artist with exceptional talent. He is the founding member of the Magenta Brotherhood a group of London artists who are eccentric and whose works are considered ground breaking. He invites the members of the Brotherhood to come stay at Birchwood that summer to create and be inspired. Unfortunately, before the summer is over Edward’s fiancée is murdered and his muse Lily Millington has disappeared along with the Radcliff Blue a unique and highly valuable diamond. The police discover that Lily was a thief from early childhood and it is believed she and the diamond made a swift exit to America. However, the diamond has never turned up again in over 100 years. Which leads one to ask, what really happened that summer? Continue reading “The Clockmaker’s Daughter by Kate Morton”

Author Theasa Tuohy’s thoughts on writing her latest novel

Title: Flying Jenny
Pub. Date: 1-May-2018

Just like reading a book, writing one is an adventure for me. I don’t work from an outline, as many writers do, so I just go for the ride to find out what’s going to happen. Sometimes I speed along writing at a fast clip, other times I spend ages searching for the right word or diddling with a sentence or paragraph. Since my novels are historical, I also do a tremendous amount of research, which in some ways is as much fun as the writing. It’s all about finding out = what has happened or what’s going to happen. Continue reading “Author Theasa Tuohy’s thoughts on writing her latest novel”

Bright Ruin by Vic James

Title: Bright Ruin
Author: Vic James
Pub. Date: 9-Oct-2018
Rating: 5 Stars

Wow! Loved the Dark Gift series by Vic James and Bright Ruin was a fantastic finale. I have waited so long for the last book! Now that the last page is read, I am left with that crushing feeling caused by end of series withdrawals. I can only hope the author has more in store for readers (aka me) in the future.

Going into this last book, I was wondering how all of the political intrigue was going to end and who would be the winners and who would be the losers. Therefore, it was great that the book picks up right where Tarnished City ends. I am happy to report that some characters got what they deserved and yet others did not. Of course, this is a dystopian series, so I expected this along with the deaths of characters whose actions warranted a better result. Continue reading “Bright Ruin by Vic James”

The Paris Wedding by Charlotte Nash

Title: The Paris Wedding
Author: Charlotte Nash
Pub. Date: 12/Jun-2018
Rating: 4 Stars

After reading the blurb, I thought The Paris Wedding by Charlotte Nash would be about the main character, Rachael, putting her past behind her and finding love in Paris. In other words, a beach read that is heavy on the romance. Boy was I wrong. It is really about a young woman finding her place in the world.

Rachael West has been caring for her mother for the past ten years, ever since she was diagnosed with a rare form of MS. Rachael has sacrificed going to college, a career and her first love, all to care for and watch as her mother slowly succumbs to the disease. Just after her Mother has passed away, she receives a wedding invitation to Matthew’s, her high school sweetheart, wedding. He is marrying Bonnie Quinn, the daughter of a billionaire and the wedding is in Paris with all expenses paid. Continue reading “The Paris Wedding by Charlotte Nash”

My Five Sisters by Pam Franklin

Title: My Five Sisters
Author: Pam Franklin
Piub. Date: 30-April-2015
Rating: 5 Stars

My Five Sisters by Pam Franklin is one of those rare books you will think about long after the reading is over. I found myself caught up in the story; yet, there were times I wanted to put it down because of how distressing the subject matter was.

The book is based on the true life experiences of the author and her childhood growing up in a home in which she was abused and tortured by her sister. Her sister suffered from Multiple Personal Disorder (MPD) and one of these personalities, the author calls Angry, beat and threatened to kill her repeated while they were growing up. Continue reading “My Five Sisters by Pam Franklin”

The Marketing Woes of an Indie Author

Needle in the Haystack by Steve Dressing

I’m a new, self-published author with a book I think will be enjoyed by many if they can just find it. “Game Keepers” is the first of what I hope will be several books I publish over the next few years through my own publishing company, Number 6 Publishing. Turning from my career as an environmental scientist to a publisher and author of books for kids is quite a change. It has been a lot of fun, but there have been many new things to learn, most of which come with an unpleasant price tag. The world isn’t particularly kind to authors in my situation, but we’re a group that doesn’t give up easily.

Getting to the point of selling the book was probably the easiest part of the journey for me. Marketing has been a huge challenge, particularly after purchases by friends and family dried up. I know that the faithful have told others about the book but even with my large family that only takes you so far. It feels like my book is simply a needle in a huge haystack competing against the thousands of books neatly displayed in huge bookstores and featured on major websites. How do I get people to even bother to check the haystack to see if there is something worthwhile inside? Continue reading “The Marketing Woes of an Indie Author”

Song of Blood and Stone by L. Penelope

Title: Song of Blood and Stone
Author: L. Penelope
Pub. Date: 1-May-2018
Rating: 2 Stars

The first thing that drew me to Song of Blood and Bone, by L. Penelope, was the cover art and once I read the blurb I was super excited to read. Now I feel let down and under whelmed. I never felt a connection to the characters and the plot did not draw me in.

Normally, at this point I do a synapsis. Right now I am finding myself at a loss for words. This is so unlike me and speaks volume. I usually have to control myself and not go on and on about what I have read. I should not be surprised since it took me three tries to finally get to the end. Continue reading “Song of Blood and Stone by L. Penelope”

The Book of M by Peng Shepherd

Title: The Book of M
Author: Peng Shepherd
Pub. Date: 5-Jun-2018
Rating: 3.5 Stars

The Book of M, by Peng Shepherd, is a quirky, out-there, grab you by-the-pants debut novel. I think it will be one of those books that will leave readers thinking long after the last page has been turned. I predict some will be so-so about it and some will love it. Personally, I fall into the former and I will explain why later.

Sometime in the near future it will happen. People will start to lose their shadows and with it they slowly lose their memories. With the loss of memories comes the ability to perform a deadly and dangerous magic. It starts slowly with one man in India and as it spreads across the globe whole societies began to collapse. Continue reading “The Book of M by Peng Shepherd”