adventure
The Light of Asteria by Elizabeth Isaacs
Instinct and intent. These are the two overriding concepts woven through The Light of Asteria. Instinct is when you listen to the small voice inside you, directing your actions. The voice that is not dominated by wants and needs. Most times in this hectic world, the noise of our existence drowns out the voice and we can no longer clearly hear it.
Castle Falcon by Tom Alan Brosz
The Spy Kids meets The Mysterious Benedict Society; Brosz has an excellent young adult novel on his hands. In 475 pages, the world is rescued, action is sought, friends are made, and heroes are born. Though may be a bit lengthy for some students, those younger dedicated readers will not be able to put this book down.
Review 221: Born To Be A Dragon by Eisley Jacobs
It’s not often I have the pleasure of reviewing a book prior to release, so I’m especially honored to have the opportunity to review Born To Be A Dragon the day before it launches.
Review 181: The Noble Pirates by R. L. Jean
Just as Sabrina Grainger falls off a party boat into the Caribbean in 2009, so the reader is dropped right into the action of The Noble Pirates. R. L. Jean (a.k.a. Fiction Chick) makes the reader and her protagonist fend for themselves. Much easier for the reader who is aided by the accomplished storytelling than for poor Sabrina Grainger—a mother, wife, and attorney—whose plunge sinks her nearly three centuries into the world of pirates.
Review 172: The Dead Don’t Cry by Mark Anthony Lopez
The Dead Don’t Cry. Sounds like a horror tale, perhaps set in a graveyard. The rest of the cover of Mark Anthony Lopez’s first novel proclaims it as a, “science fiction epic.” I’m not so sure about epic, but this is definitely science fiction, not horror.
Review 114: I Rode With Cullen Baker by RLB Hartmann
As I Rode with Cullen Baker opens, we are met with a scene evocative of Gone with the Wind with Tara burning in the background. Set in the South in the midst of the civil war, fifteen year old Jessica Linville watched while the Federal cavalry burned her house to the ground.
Review 86: Pumpkin Bunch
All of the pumpkins in Pumpkins Ville are disappearing and the pumpkin farmers are worried about not being able to support their families because unless they find the pumpkin thieves, they will have no crops for sale. Lilly overhears her father and is determined to do something to help him capture the pumpkin thieves. So, Lilly waits until her family has fallen asleep and then sneaks out of the house and goes down to the pond where the largest pumpkins are to wait for the pumpkin thieves. Her plan is to wait until they show up and then scream for her father to come and catch them.
Review 84: Trident’s Fury by Matthew Scott Baker
At the risk of sounding like a movie review, Trident’s Fury is an enjoyable romp. Suspend your disbelief for 335 pages and just go with the flow and you’re in for a riveting ride complete with pirates, explosions, and ancient runes to unravel. Reading the book, you’ll think you’re at the movies, watching Harrison Ford escaping time and again from avenging Nazis, bent on world domination. Only this time his name is Ethan Darringer.
Review 45: 30 ~ A Sense of Adventure and No Sense of Direction by Mark Callaghan
There are two types of dreams: those so bizarre and imaginative, and so out of reach that we think of them as nothing more but dreams. These sleep stories can be a buffet for a writer. Then, there are those dreams that are within our grasp, but often we are too busy to consider reaching for them. Maybe we choose to write about them as well instead of actually attempting to achieve them. Not Mark Callaghan.
Review 19: Sirocco Express by Tony Judge
Traveling to foreign countries is not a pleasure I’ve ever experienced myself, but I have always enjoyed reading about it. Christopher Isherwood and his writings about many trips to a war torn Germany remain at the top of the list of some of my favorite books. I can now add author Tony Judge to that list. When I began reading Tony’s book, Sirocco Express, I was immediately captivated by the author’s use of description. Here’s the very first line of the book: