I love the awesome cover and stories that take place on the water, in the water, or around the water. I am also a huge fan of Stephen King and Dean Koontz, so it was a no brainer to grab Look At Me by Hash Black for review. I did enjoy the story, but never connected to any characters or found myself hanging by my fingertips wondering what comes next. There are two novella/short stories that are quick, easy reads. I won’t spoil anything by telling you why you need to Look At Me, but BEWARE….
2 Stars
GOODREADS BLURB
I SEE HER EVERYWHERE I GO
Cinder Bay is a rotting dump and Harry wants out. A boat ride with the richest tech genius in town and a foolproof pitch is exactly what he needs to change his life forever.
If only he knew how right he would turn out to be.
Sea and Ocean Horror stories have never been this scary! LOOK AT ME is inspired by a real traditional folklore story off the coast of East Africa.
If you enjoy reading Stephen King, Jack Ketchum, Paul Tremblay, and Dean Koontz, then you’ll love reading Hash Black.
ABOUT HASH BLACK (from Amazon)
Hash Black is a horror author with an affinity for the vile and the ungodly. Ironically, his educational background is rooted in marine biology and has an innate love for coral reefs. However, he has always enjoyed writing his heart out as he grew up. R. L. Stine was a major influence during those days, with Goosebumps and Fear Street series getting lots of traction among his peers. Finally, at the age of 30, Hash gave in to his passion. A passion for writing.
More recently, Hash has taken up exploring books from other renowned authors, with Dean Koontz’s ‘Nameless Series’, and Stephen King’s ‘The Stand’ being his most beloved at the moment. His other favorite authors include Peter Straub, Clive Barker, Anne Rice, and Neil Gaiman.
Enjoy the fruits of his efforts here and support his journey along this winding journey of writership.
Ever since I binged on the Lucifer TV show, I look for books like The Devil In Disguise by Cynthia Eden. I loved everything about the TV show and this book. The writing was easy to read and the pace unputodwnable. The story sounded so familiar, yet was filled with twists and turns of its own. I loved the characters. Of course, we have the devil and his twin brother,good and evil, BUT, we also have a unique individual in Mina James. She is strong, determined, and in love with the devil. I hope to continue the series.
4 Stars
GOODREADS BLURB
Don’t make the devil angry…
Luke Thorne loves having one hell of a good time. As the ruler of every dark creature to walk the earth, he certainly has more than a bit of a bad side. He lives for danger and isn’t the type to lose his heart—mostly because he doesn’t have one. Then she walks into his life.
Mina James is seduction in the flesh, a perfect temptation that the devil himself couldn’t pass up. Too late, Luke realizes he’s let a real siren into his life, a woman who is bent on using his dark powers to free herself from hidden enemies. Since Luke isn’t the type of man to be used, he should walk away from her, but…something about Mina draws him close.
Soon he’s realizing that she isn’t who she appears to be. Not dark and cold, but burning red hot. Mina is a woman fighting for her life—and the Lord of the Dark suddenly finds himself in an unlikely role…hero. Luke isn’t going to let her enemies destroy Mina. He will fight heaven and hell to keep her. But in the end, the secrets they both carry may just rip apart a love that should never have been…
There are Bad Things in the world…very, very bad. Are you ready for them?
Grady Whill and the Templeton Codex by Carole P. Roman
GENRE: YA adventure
MY REVIEW
Grady is in middle school with his best friend Aarush, who is on the autistic spectrum.
Kids…autistic, asthmatic, overweight, bullies, insecurity…This coming
of age fantasy has it all. I was captivated with the world and
characters that Carole P Roman has created. I loved watching them learn
and grow.
Grady, Aarush and many of their classmates want to go to Templeton
Academy, a place to discover your ‘hidden talents and develop them into
formidable powers.’ Sounds a bit Hatty Potterish, doesn’t it?
The kids who gravitated to Grady learned to work together for a
common goal. I can see a moral to the story and I feel all who read
Grady Whill will leave with a smile on their face.
It is hard to describe the story without spoiling it, but I will say it was…unputdownable.
I voluntarily reviewed a free copy of Grady Whill and the Templeton Codex by Carole P Roman.
5 Stars
BLURB
Templeton Academy- the
superhero high school is finally open!
The prestigious academy
is recruiting the best of the best to enroll in its student body.
The school is as
mysterious as it is exclusive.
Grady Whill thinks
there is nothing special about him to make the grade.
However, his best
friend, Aarush Patel has been selected and thinks Grady has the right stuff.
Even school bully Elwood
Bledsoe is attending.
If Grady is fortunate
enough to be picked, his guardian has forbidden him to attend.
Will a family secret
prevent Grady from becoming the superhero he was destined to be?
EXCERPT
There Whill Be Blood
A barely cooled lump of lava hardened under my feet. One of
my sneakers was stuck between two small rocks in the solidifying mess. I stared
at my foot in disbelief. Instinct told me I should be a human torch, my legs
nothing more than toasted stumps. I glanced up, my heart beating wildly. We
were trapped on the side of the mountain facing our school, separated by a
burning sea of molten rocks.
The world around me steamed, the lava staining the sky burnt
orange. Trees swallowed by molten rock looked like skeletal hands emerging from
a grave that glowed beneath the blackened crust. I saw heat waves shimmering
from the earth but felt none of its intensity. I pulled fiercely, feeling my
ankle twist. Aarush steadied me as I nearly toppled over. He was shirtless, his
back slick with sweat and covered with scrapes. His fingers worked feverishly
to free my foot.
Overhead two helicopter-sized pterodactyls circled the
craggy summit. The wind from their leathery wings buffeted the two of us. I
think the air they circulated stopped the patches of lava from cooking us
alive, but what do I know?
“We better get moving, Grady. Leave your sneaker. We are
risking getting burned by staying too long in one spot.” The ever-practical
Aarush reasoned as he pulled the velcro releasing my foot. I wobbled, then fell
to one knee.
“Do you think they’re real?” I hollered to my friend over
the noise, pointing upward.
AUTHOR Bio and Links
Carole P. Roman
is the award-winning author of over fifty children’s books. Whether it’s
pirates, princesses, spies, or discovering the world around us, her books have
enchanted educators, parents, and her diverse audience of children of all ages.
Her
best-selling book, The Big Book of Silly Jokes for Kids: 800+ Jokes! has reached
number one on Amazon in March of 2020 and has remained in the top 200 books
since then.
She published
Mindfulness for Kids with J. Robin Albertson-Wren.
Carole has
co-authored two self-help books. Navigating Indieworld: A Beginners Guide to
Self-Publishing and Marketing with Julie A. Gerber, and Marketing Indieworld
with both Julie A. Gerber and Angela Hausman.
Roman is the
CEO of a global transportation company, as well as a practicing medium.
She also writes
adult fiction under the name Brit Lunden and has created an anthology of the
mythical town of Bulwark, Georgia with a group of indie authors.
Writing is her
passion and one of her favorite pastimes. Roman reinvents herself frequently,
and her family calls her the ‘mother of reinvention.’ She resides on Long
Island, near her children and grandchildren.
I have been reading books in Tony Bertauski’s Claus Universe since Claus: Legend of the Fat Man came out in 2012. I have missed some of the books, but I am always eager to enter the fantasy realm Tony as created.
Hiro’s world expands when he finds the dreams he has been having are of Toyworld. He finds friends he never would have made, danger that could keep him trapped in Toyworld, and the reason the real world is so gray and dreary. Christmas has disappeared. Hope and happiness has been stolen.
Dreams aren’t just dreams, they’re windows. Not windows, doorways. Most nights we’re just looking through the, seeing what’s over there. But you can crawl through a window if you open it.
People say anything is possible even when we know it isn’t true.
It’s hard to review a book like Toyworld by Tony Bertauski without giving all the good parts away. The adventure is definitely something a reader would want to experience on their own. The world building is out of this world. HA HA HA The descriptions are vivid and detailed. The characters are richly developed, and, if you are anything like me, you will find it hard to choose a favorite. They all have a role to play and it will take all of them to save Christmas.
Can the villain be redeemed? Isn’t that always the question?
I find it hard to name an age group. I got lost in the adventure, but it has been so long since I have had a youngster in my home that I can’t remember their reading level. I did some searching, so I would recommend middle grade and up.
I voluntarily reviewed a free copy of Toyworld: Home of the Christmas Thief by Tony Bertauski.
4 Stars
GOODREADS BLURB
Book 10 in the Claus Universe.
Hiro’s parents rearrange the furniture every December.
They make space in the corner for something tall. They plug in string lights and leave them on the floor. Sometimes, they cut down a tree but don’t know what to do with it. It’s not just Hiro’s parents. Everyone does it. Come January, they all straighten up their living rooms and everything goes back to normal. They do this every year.
No one knows why.
Something’s missing and they all feel it, but they never wonder what it is. And every year that passes, the world becomes colder and grayer. Until Hiro has a dream.
It’s a world of magic, where he can taste sounds and hear thoughts, see things that defy the laws of physics and biology. It’s a place where trees are decorated and stockings are hung above the fireplace. Every day is celebrated with gifts.
It’s the last place where joy exists.
Someone has stolen the Christmas spirit from the universe and hidden it in the dream. Hiro doesn’t remember a jolly fat man or flying reindeer, or elves on the North Pole. No one in Hiro’s world remembers Christmas at all.
Hiro and others like him need to free the Christmas spirit. This is their one and only chance. If they fail, his world and all others like it will stay cold and gray without Christmas… unless they discover the thief’s true identity.
My grandpa never graduated high school. He retired from a steel mill in the mid-70s. He was uneducated, but he was a voracious reader. I remember going through his bookshelves of paperback sci-fi novels, smelling musty old paper, pulling Piers Anthony and Isaac Asimov off shelf and promising to bring them back. I was fascinated by robots that could think and act like people. What happened when they died?
I’ve written textbooks on landscape design, but that was straightforward, informational writing; the kind of stuff that helps most people get to sleep. I’ve also been writing a gardening column with a humorous slant. That takes a little more finesse, but still informational for the most part.
I’m a cynical reader. I demand the writer sweep me into his/her story and carry me to the end. I’d rather sail a boat than climb a mountain. That’s the sort of stuff I wanted to write, not the assigned reading we used to get in high school. I wanted to create stories that kept you up late.
Fiction, GOOD fiction, is hard to write. Having a story unfold inside your head is an experience different than reading. You connect with characters in a deeper, more meaningful way. You feel them, empathize with them, cheer for them and even mourn. The challenge is to get the reader to experience the same thing, even if it’s only a fraction of what the writer feels. Not so easy.
I love the cover and it is perfect for the story. I have read a lot of NIck Clausen’s books and he never ceases to amaze me with his ability to add a fresh twist to a familiar tale. Translating his books to English has not been an issue for him. They read seamlessly. The characters wormed their way into my heart, especially Louis. He gets lost in his nightmares and it is through his own ingenuity that he finds his way out. Do you believe in ghosts? Do nightmares haunt your sleep? Maybe Louie can give you some hope.
I voluntarily reviewed a free copy of Dreamland by Nick Clausen.
4 Stars
GOODREADS BLURB
Dreams can come true. So can nightmares.
In his sleep, Louie starts visiting a magical world where he meets his father, who died when Louie was still a baby. But nothing turns out to be what it seems, and great horrors loom very close by …Welcome to Dreamland
A mysterious teen ghost story about fear and loss and losing yourself in dreams, Dreamland was originally published in Danish to great reviews, and is now available in English.
ABOUT NICK CLAUSEN
Born 1988 in North Jutland, where I still live with my wife, who also happened to be my earliest childhood girlfriend. From 2017 I have lived as a full-time writer. Up until then, I had different jobs beside the writing. I have been studying as a carpenter for three years, and have also read two years of psychology at Aalborg University. It turned out that the writing had a much more powerful pull on me.
I decided early on that I would be an author when I grew up. In fact, the decision came to me already when I read my first book, Snevampyren by Dennis Jürgensen. My first “real” stories I wrote at 14-15 years of age. They were rejected by the publisher, but still got praise. There were some years when I was busy with being a teenager and trying to get an education before I suddenly remembered that I should be an author.
That day I made a promise to write 1,000 words a day until I got a book published. I sat down and started writing. I continued to write every single day for a year and a half. I sent the finished manuscripts to different publishers, and the rejections piled up. Twelve of them by the end. But each time I could feel it was a little bit better. The criticism became more positive. The thirteenth story was called Tidevandet, and it was adopted by the publisher and came out a year later.
I have always enjoyed writing, although in the beginning I put a lot of pressure on myself. My approach to the process has become much more free over the years. For example, I no longer plan my stories. That way, I feel that I’m experiencing the story while writing it and the characters feel like real people. I do not know where the ideas come from, but I’ve never had trouble finding them.
I love the cover of The Final Winter by Iain Rob Wright…and who doesn’t love a story that takes place during a fatal weather even…in this case, a blizzard.
I began Final Winter eagerly. I love the cover and the blurb drew me in. It started out slow, for me. I kept thinking, will I finish it. My mind wandered and I kept bringing myself back. I am sooo glad I did. What began as a two, or maybe even, one star read, turned into a solid three stars. I would love to give it more, but I didn’t get into the story until I was halfway through. I thought…this is a story of our humanity…how low can we go…and that’s okay. Then, the last quarter of the book SAVED it. Final Winter was definitely worth reading.
There’s also some great bonus content: seven short stories of Final Winter, each spotlighting a family during the apocalypse and the standalone short: The Peeling of Samuel Lloyd Collins, which may be short, but, most assuredly, is not sweet.
I believe I have a couple more stories by Ian Rob Wright hanging around on my Kindle. I’ll be checking that out.
3 Stars
GOODREADS BLURB
Critically acclaimed début novel of bestselling author, Iain Rob Wright.
What would you do if it started snowing in every country in the world? Would you panic? For a ragtag group of strangers gathered at a dilapidated English pub, the best solution is a pint of beer with a hearty shot of denial. The truth is too strange to admit; but, one by one, they will be forced to accept reality – that something sinister is lurking outside in the snow. Something no one could imagine.
Amongst those at the pub is Harry Jobson, the local drunk. Nobody would ever look to him during a time of crisis, but as things deteriorate he is forced to get a grip on his past and be the man he was always meant to be. It will be up to Harry to find answers to questions like: who just threw a body through the window with the word SINNER carved into its chest?
Not everyone is going to make it through the night – and those who do will wish they hadn’t.
Special edition bonus content – seven additional short stories set during the events of The Final Winter, plus one additional stand-alone tale: The Peeling of Samuel Lloyd Collins.
ABOUT IAN ROB WRIGHT
One of Horror’s most respected authors, Iain Rob Wright is the writer of more than twenty books, many of them bestsellers. A previous Kindle All-Star and a mainstay in the horror charts, he is a prolific producer of unique and original stories. From his apocalyptic saga The Gates to his claustrophobic revenge thriller ASBO, Iain writes across a broad spectrum of sub genres, creating both beloved series and standalone titles.
With work available in several languages and in audio, Iain Rob Wright is one of the fastest rising stars in horror, but when not writing he is a dedicated family man. Father to Jack and Molly, and husband to Sally, he is often seen sharing his family memories with his fans on Facebook.
I love Jane Blythe’s ability to spin a tale of darkness and I am super excited to delve into her new series, Storybook Murders. Nursery Rhyme Killer takes those childhood poems we all know and love to a whole new level, and you will never look at them the same way. We will meet some familiar characters from a previous series, the Candella Sisters.
Summer and Luke both have tragic childhoods, but that is nothing surprising when it comes to a Jane Blythe novel. Summer has her secrets, lets no one know of her past. She has made friends in the past ten years, but, until Luke, let no one know the heart of her. Luke is the opposite. He has a check list and checks it twice, looking for the future Mrs Sleigh. 🙂 He wants the complete package…wife, house, kids, white picket fence….
The first part of the book, Jane Blythe lulled me into complacency. She has a tendency to do that. To let me think I know what’s coming next. Just reading along, a little mystery here, a little romance there, a little blood and guts. Then, WHAM! The plot thickens. Most of the time she has a couple of subplots going on at the same time, throwing out red herrings.
It’s hard for an author to catch me with my mouth open, but Jane Blythe can do it, Not only did the villain stay hidden for the longest time, Jane managed to throw me a couple twists that had me wanting to jump up and down with joy, though they were tragic and horrific. And she did it without Summer running off and doing something stupid. You know what I mean. In most romantic suspense novels, ‘she’ just can’t help doing something that gets in her deep shit. Am I twisted because I love the deeeeep, darrrrrrrk side of humanity? To wallow in the filth with some of fiction’s best villains?
WHEW! That ending was intense. The last quarter or so of the book bounced the rating an extra star. When you read the book, you will know why. I can hardly wait to get my hands on Fairy Tale Killer by Jane Blythe and see what damage she can to fairy tales and princesses. HA HA HA
I voluntarily reviewed a free copy of Nursery Rhyme Killer by Jane Blythe.
5 Stars
GOODREADS BLURB
How can she ever trust another man after what her ex-husband did?
Summer Height isn’t sure it’s worth it to risk her heart again in another relationship, not after what happened with her ex-husband and the debilitating guilt it left her with. When she meets her best friend’s husband’s brother she doesn’t know what to think, she likes him, but she’s not sure she wants to take a chance on him after what she’s been through, especially when it looks like history is repeating itself.
Luke Sleigh wants to find someone to love him, everyone else in his life has always walked away and he’s desperate to find that forever person. He has a list, when he meets a woman he mentally checks off whether or not the woman meets his criteria, but that gets thrown out the window when he meets Summer.
He might be swept off his feet but he’s about to face the challenge of a lifetime; proving that he’s not guilty of multiple murders in time to save Summer’s life.
ABOUT JANE BLYTHE
USA Today bestselling author Jane Blythe writes action-packed romantic suspense and military romance featuring protective heroes and heroines who are survivors. One of Jane’s most popular series includes Saving SEALs, part of Susan Stoker’s OPERATION ALPHA world! Writing in that world alongside authors such as Janie Crouch and Riley Edwards has been a blast, and she looks forward to bringing more books to this genre, both within and outside of Stoker’s world. When Jane isn’t binge-reading she’s counting down to Christmas and adding to her 200+ teddy bear collection!
FIRST, I feel bad because I missed the Launch on the 18th. I was under the weather and it got by me. I know how important it is for independent authors who depend on us bloggers to spread the word.
I am going to start by saying I LOVE the gorgeous cover. Once I finished the book, it became even more pertinent to the story inside. I fell in love with this trilogy as soon as I met Kali and Tiamat in the first book, Wormwood. At that time, I had not read very many angel and human novels and was just getting hooked on apocalyptic and dystopian novels. Now, I say bring ’em on. I can’t get enough of them and D H Nevins is part of the reason why.
The first two books of the series, Wormwood and Angel of Shadow, blew me away! The characters came to life on the pages, as the Earth began to die. Just because a character does something horrific, does that make them an evil person?
Kali: I was darkness and death, shadows and pain.
Tiamat commanded the Nephilim, half angels/half humans, who had destroyed the world and most of humanity. Tiamat’s Shadow is a parasite that forces them to stay apart.
Kali is the leader of the encampment, a position that was foisted on her. The Shadow is her weapon, an extension of her, though she refuses to call upon it. It frightens her.
Her father, Richard is a demon. What is his ultimate goal? Is it to destroy them and everything left on Earth?
Bram is a special character, a youngster that I have come to love. He is a ninja, secretive, sneaking up on people, spying on them, now you see him, now you don’t. I can picture him climbing through the rocks and looking around corners.
I am always curious how an author will end a series…and to know the complete story, you need to read the entire Wormwood Trilogy. D H Nevins kept me reading as I tried to figure it out. I had no idea how the story would finish and who would be left standing. It took her telling me to find out.
D H Nevins shocked me. She saddened me. She made me smile. She made me tear up.
I keep mulling over the ending. Yes, I am satisfied. Yes, I am super happy that I was unable to figure out how it would end. Yes, D H Nevins did a fantastic job of wrapping it up.
I voluntarily reviewed a free copy of Angel of Ashes and Dust by D H Nevins.
4 Stars
BACK COVER DESCRIPTION
The end of her people and the death of a planet are looming over her. Kali Michaels must choose between the illusion of safety and the danger of her own power in this anticipated and heart-stopping finale to The Wormwood Trilogy.
Kali learned the hard way that her abilities cannot be trusted if they can be used against her. In an effort to protect those she cares about, she is determined to let the power of her Shadow lie dormant, despite the dangers rising up around her.
Now, tormented by an unstoppable enemy, she and Tiamat Wormwood must try to lead others while doing the impossible—ensuring the survival of humans and half-angels alike.
But how can she partner with Tiamat, when her proximity could kill him?
And how can the Nephilim, Tiamat, be trusted to save a planet, if he is the one who shattered it in the first place?
Little do they know that sometimes, for new beginnings, that which they love must first be destroyed.
Title: Angel of Ashes and Dust, Book 3 in the Wormwood Trilogy
Author: D.H. Nevins
Release date: October 18, 2022
Link to Wormwood (book 1 in the series, which is FREE right now): https://amzn.to/3TqDD6g
Link to Angel of Shadow (book 2 in the series, which is only $2.99): https://amzn.to/3CYfNYR
Link to Angel of Ashes and Dust (special pre-order and release week price is only $2.99):
D.H. Nevins was born in Toronto and currently lives in a quiet area of Ontario, surrounded by forests and lakes. By day, she is a personable, friendly school teacher. By night, she silently chuckles as she writes about destroying the world. When she isn’t writing, she enjoys hiking, camping, flying around on her motorcycle or dabbling in live theatre.
A Puppet Scorned is one of the wildest horror stories I have ever read. I don’t even know where to start. Sock puppets having sex? It had me laughing out loud and wondering what would happen next. It may be a quick read, but it was chock full of wickedness.
4 Stars
GOODREADS BLURB
Enter a world where needles are sexy and knitting is deadly…
Camille and Brad are sock-puppets trapped in a dusty old attic. One day they find needles, and Brad teaches Camille how to knit sensuous and arousing patterns… but what begins as a journey of sexual awakening leads to the unravelling of Camille’s perfect world in a strangely twisted nightmare of obsession and betrayal.
Rock A Bye Baby by Willow Rose will tug at your heartstrings. It took me a moment to catch what was really happening, and I felt for her. Things are not what they seem…or are they. A lot is packed in this novella and Willow Rose did not let me down. 4 Stars
GOODREADS BLURB
Lisa Rasmussen just had a baby and everything in her life seems perfect at this point. Only she wishes that everyone else around her would be as flawless as she is and stop getting in her way. And if they won’t listen, then she’ll make them.
You can see my review for Nibble Nibble Crunch HERE. I didn’t review Eenie Meenie but rated it a four, the same as Nibble Nibble Crunch.
Another success story for Willow Rose. Humpty Dumpty may be short, may not be sweet, but it sure had my blood pumping. Graphic and brutal, Karma comes to those who did wrong. 4 Stars
GOODREADS BLURB
They thought it would be easy. Four boys from a nearby boarding school planned on attacking and killing a family – just for the fun of it. But they hadn’t prepared themselves for the terror of what they would meet inside of the house in shape of a little girl with a very special gift.
