Author: blogespresso

Posted on

She Stood By Me by Tarun Vikash

Book: She stood By Me

Author: Tarun Vikash

Genre: Romance Fiction

Format: Kindle

Rating: 4.5/5

She Stood By Me by the author Tarun Vikash is an emotional romance fiction. The protagonist of the story is an upper middle class girl Aparna who is ambitious. Another main character is Abhi, a guy from lower middle class who believes in love. 

Abhi met Aparna in IIT Dhanbad. Slowly, they became friends. Abhi soon started considering Aparna as more than a friend but for Aparna he is just a friend. Will Abhi be able to tell Aparna about her feelings? Grab a copy of this book and read the story to unveil the suspense yourself. 

Although I have read so many romance fictions but this book is really amazing. I was totally intrigued by the plot. The ending of the book is what I really like.
I would recommend this to romance fiction lovers.

Posted on

Seeing Things in Black and White by Antoine K. Stroman

Book: Seeing Things in Black and White

Author: Antoine K. Stroman

Publisher: AuthorHouse

Pages: 99

My Rating: 5/5

Seeing Things in Black and White by the author Antoine K Stroman is a short read. The book has three parts and each part has many chapters. It is the journey of a young black man who was treated differently by the world because of his skin colour. 

The story begins in the mid 90’s and continues to the present. Reading about how a man was forced out of the neighborhood due to his skin colour is really painful. Our skin colour is given by God to us and nobody should judge anyone based on it. 

Below lines are really impactful: 

I grew up in a predominantly black
neighborhood, and didn’t
understand the power of being
black until I was placed in
an environment where black wasn’t
predominant. It was
then that I realized just how
beautiful black truly was…

It was really a great read and I recommend this to all my fellow readers. The title of the book is apt and the cover of the book is simple but decent.

About the Author:

As a writer, poet, songwriter, teacher and director, Seeing Things in Black and White is my most daring work. Written over the course of 9 years, I’ve drawn inspiration from various points in my life. Throughout this 9 year period, I became an educator, a writer for theatre, and a director, which all served as an influencing factor in the composition of this story. It is for this purpose that I believe that this work should be picked up.

Posted on

Fluid by Ashish Jaiswal

Book: Fluid

Author: Ashish Jaiswal

Publisher: Wisdom Tree

Format: Paperback

My Rating: 5/5

Genre: Non-Fiction

Fluid by Ashish Jaiswal is a non-fiction book. I always love to read non-fiction as they help me to grow. 

Since beginning, our parents force us to top in class so that going forward we can take science after class 10th and this put us in a rat race to be an engineer, doctor, etc. This book tells us to be free like fluid and choose our own path of success. 

Author has given various examples of famous personalities from whom we can learn something as they were fluid in their approach. It is very important to be fluid so that we can follow our own path that we think is right for us. 

This is the book that is written well and gives us vast knowledge. It is written after well research. The cover of the book is simple and decent. I recommend this book to everyone who wish to see a change in themselves and who wish to grow and achieve something in life.

Posted on

Interview with Maxi James Carter, author of Red Flag

1. Please introduce yourself so that the readers will get to know you better.

I’m 32, just, yesterday in fact! I live in a place called Chelmsford, outside London but still close enough to go in and get into an adventure. I spend a lot of my time with my friends, talking absolute nonsense, which occasionally leads to a story, which I wrote down and now it’s a book!

2. What do you enjoy the most about writing?

I love that it’s a pastime that encourages daydreaming and just spending quality time with your own imagination. The best part is that I don’t need anyone, or even anything (maybe my laptop, love my laptop) to do it, I can do it alone… All I need is me and some time, fantastic. It’s the antidote to boredom.

3. What do you hope your readers take away from your book “Red Flag”?

I hope they have fun and judging by the reviews that word keeps coming up, so I’m thrilled with that. I also love the idea that the reader will form a bond with some of the characters, because I plan for them to be around for a long time!

4. What do you like to do when you’re not writing?

I’m a big music fan, love live shows though obviously this year they’ve all been put on hold, so I’m watching a lot of music documentaries and full shows on YouTube. Love a good crime documentary, or film, or show. Yeah a lot of Netflix, too much perhaps but it’s all research isn’t it? That and spending time with my amazing friends, honestly their lives are mad enough that if I were to write their stories down they would be panned for being unrealistic!

5. Are your book characters inspired by any real person?

Absolutely. I’ve said before I feel almost like I cheated really because the main crew are all lifted from my friends. They’re such great people, and they’re all so eccentric and wild, I’m very lucky to know them at all and glad I could include them all in this.

6. What is your favorite Quote?

John Lennon – Time you enjoyed wasting was not wasted time. I live my life by that

7. Red Flag is plotted in so many beautiful places. Which is your favorite city in real and why?

I do love my hometown, which is now technically a city: Chelmsford. I was born outside Edinburgh which is stunning! But in my humble opinion, London is where its at, every type of human and every kind of adventure is waiting there for you!

8. How you got your book published?

I decided to self-publish, mainly because I wanted to have a little more control over the process and timeline. I started the publishing process at the beginning of lockdown and I wanted it to be released before I went back to my day job!

9. How do you come up with the idea to write a fiction based on jewellery heist?

It’s my favorite genre, and I think its underrated. I always believed id be a great cat-burglar as well, I loved the imagery of one woman doing the job of the entire oceans crew. I felt like without glamorizing it I could show it as a lifestyle choice of one very intelligent and skilled group of misfits.

10. Lastly, how do you come up with names for your characters?

A lot of my friends named their own characters without knowing it, we were having a quiet night out at a pub and we started talking about becoming a criminal organization (we were 90% joking) and they all picked their own names. Saying that, I’ve had to introduce some more characters in the sequel and picking names is a nightmare, having to google them all to make sure they’re not a real person!

Red Flag by Maxi James Carter

Posted on

Interview with author Alyssa Milani

1. Please introduce yourself so that the readers will get to know you better.

I’ve been a writer all my life. The moment I was able to hold a crayon, I’d invent pictures with stories behind them. When I was able to write, the stories just poured onto the page and never truly stopped. I wrote my first novel in high-school and eventually self-published it as my second release. I went on to study Law for two years, and then decided that I needed to nurture my passion fully and switched Majors. I graduated in 2014 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Creative Writing and English Literature. Since then, I’ve been writing non-stop, day in and day out. I make sure to try and write a minimum of 500 words per day, be it a continuation of a novel, or just a blurb of something new. I self-published my first novel of assorted works from my years at University. The novel features short stories, poems, and plays, with a few drawings I had done throughout the years as well. The more time went on, the more my writing flourished and grew to what it is today. A Truth Be Told is my most successful novel, and seeing my work on a bookshelf in an actual chain of bookstores is beyond belief, and I couldn’t be more proud of myself.

2. When did you first realize you wanted to be an author?

When I saw how easy the words flowed out of me…the bizarre and interesting things I was able to create and put onto a page, I thought ‘if I can do this, and create such stories and such worlds, people need to read them’. There is no other explanation than that. I always felt like I was born to do this. 

3. From where did you have the idea/inspiration to write “A Truth Be Told”?

It started as a dream. I found myself locked in a room with a strange person I didn’t know, and their face was so blurry, but the feeling/connection to them was so strong. I remember waking up after seeing one of the creatures lunging at me, and when I woke up the clock read just passed 5:00AM. My husband was still sleeping, so was my son, and I just started writing and my fingers couldn’t stop.

4. What do you like to do when you’re not writing?

Aside from playing with my three-year-old son, usually I read (currently tackling IT by Stephen King), or watch movies. We’re big movie buffs in our house, only problem is our taste in movies are so entirely different. I love the thriller/horror type, my husband is more comedy/fantasy/sci-fi, and well, my son is any cartoon that makes him laugh.

5. What are grotesque creatures? Have you seen them in real?

No I haven’t seen them in real life, although while browsing the internet, I came across artist Jerad Marantz, and his artwork of the “Blind Ones” is literally what I had seen in my dream and what I had created the creatures to be. It amazed me how distinctly accurate his drawings were and how simply frightening the similarities were as well. 

6. What is your favorite Quote?

It is the end line of a Stephen King story “Secret Window” (as you can see I’m a major Stephen King fan), the quote goes as such: “what happens to the wide-eyed observer when the window between reality and unreality breaks and the glass begins to fly?”

7. What are you working on next? Are you planning to release another book soon?

Yes, I have two in the works. One is to be released this fall called ARCANE, its another thriller/horror/sci-fi type novel. The other is a compilation of all the pieces I wrote during the quarantine (from novellas to short stories) and that’s called ASYLUM OF DICTION, this will be released next year.

8. What do you hope your readers take away from your books?

I love when people get a reaction from things they read. So if my work can spark anything from fear, to uneasiness, to anything in between, I know I’ve done my job and my words truly spoke to them.

9. Who is your favorite horror author?

Stephen King, Edgar Allan Poe and H.P. Lovecraft.

10. Lastly, do you want to give any advice to readers and aspiring writers?

Advice I was given from many of my professors, who were also writers, was never give up. Even if you’re having an off day and you think the words you wrote are complete and utter garbage, don’t erase them, keep them and move forward. That’s what the editing process is for. Write every day, and don’t let writer’s block get you down.

Books by Alyssa Milani:

What Is And What Once Was: A Series of Assorted Works

Lylie

A Truth Be Told

Posted on

Book Review: Palera Dawn by AH Washington

Book: Palera Dawn

Author: AH Washington

Publisher: Xlibris US

Format: Ebook

My Rating: 4.5/5

Pages: 135

Palera Dawn is the fantasy fiction that will take you to the world of dragons. It is the debut novel of the author AH Washington. Palera Dawn is the first book of the Dawn Series. 
The story revolves around a young woman Kalera suffering from depression and grief after the loss of a loved one. She felt too lonely and didn’t find life worth living. This made her to attempt a suicide. 

Kalera was lucky as her boyfriend Zoran reached her at the right time. When she woke up from therapy, she found herself in a different realm that is colder. In Rhodes, she met a stranger named Jessup who has much resemblance to Zoran. Kalera find it difficult to understand the terminology of the different realm. 

As we continue to read we find Kalera meeting new characters and having new experiences and challenges. Read this story and unveil the suspense yourself. I was so intrigued by the story. 

Author has very well maintained the suspense. The twist and turn of events made this more interesting. I am very curious now to read the sequel ‘Dawn of the Dragon‘. Dragon fans you should definitely read this.

Posted on

Interview with Natalie Nascenzi, author of Out Of Chaos

1. Please introduce yourself so that the readers will get to know you better.

Hey there! I’m Natalie! I’m a poet, copywriter, and author living in Manhattan, New York City.

But I’m also a sunrise enthusiast, sunset chaser, word collector, ukulele player, and amateur astrophysicist. Oh, and a veggie lover, big-time science geek, and the neighborhood bird lady. (Team #feedthebirds !)

I’m a total word nerd. My love for alliteration, word play, and rhyming patterns is displayed loud and proud through my writing style. If you’re interested in “dancing with words” then you’ve found the right poet! I like to believe that a sentence is like a symphony…to which the words should dance; with each other, off of the page and around in your mind. 

My goal is to inspire others, promote hope, and deliver the message: No matter what you go through, you are not alone. There is always a light at the end of the tunnel and a shoulder to lean on.

You can follow me on Instagram: @nncenzi
or reach me at nnascenzi147@gmail.com

2. What inspired you to start writing poems?

I’ve always been a writer. It’s in my bones. When I was younger I loved writing poems but somehow I fell away from it. My love for words led me to pursue a career in advertising as a copywriter, but I continued to write short stories and prose as a hobby.

Then, chaos happened. Poetry fell back in my lap. Through a series of wonderful chance encounters, I was inspired to continue writing poetry (but that whole story is in my book!) Here’s the main message everyone!! Fate always finds a way to bring you back to where you’re meant to be!!

3. What do you hope your readers take away from your book “Out Of Chaos”?

My greatest hope is that my readers are inspired to do the thing they’ve always been afraid to do. I hope they find that no matter what they go through there is always a light at the end of the tunnel. There is always hope. Above all, they are not alone in any hardship they may face.

My goal is to connect with each and every reader on a personal level and deliver the message: Out of any chaos, there is change. There is hope. There is victory.

4. What do you like to do when you’re not writing?

You can usually spot me wandering the streets, making friends with strangers, or writing in random spots all over New York City.

OR, I’m seeing the sun somewhere, playing my ukulele, and learning about physics. Mostly, I find places to sit around the city to read and think. I love to lay in the park and watch the clouds pass.

5. Which is your favorite poem from your book and why?

Ahh!! I like all of them for different reasons. Usually, I’ll get a random poem stuck in my head (kinda like a song!) and that will be my favorite poem for like, a week.

Right now, I have two poems stuck in my head “The Inverted City” and “The Duality of Selves”

The Inverted City is very special to me! I consider it the turning point in my entire poetic journey. The story of this poem and it’s importance is in the back of my book! So, when you read it, you’ll find out!!
Hint: It was inspired by a painting 🙂

The Duality of Selves is just stuck in my head lately. Not sure why!

6. What is your favorite Quote?

“If you remain calm in the midst of great chaos, it is the surest guarantee that it will eventually subside”
-Julie Andrews

7. What are you working on next? Are you planning to release another book soon?

Another book?Hmmm…Maybe. Who knows what’s next!!

Other than that, I’m working on a few side projects with ii Publishing! They are currently accepting submissions so if you’re interested in becoming an author, hit them up on Instagram! @iipublishing

8. Who are your favorite living poets?

My favorite poets are the ones I’ve met throughout my poetic journey. They are all exceptional writers and people!! Here are a few: Tonii (@tonii2eyes), Donavan McNeil (@macadonbk), TJ McGowan (@theeverydaybite), Kira Stephens (@Words4food) and Dara Kalima (@kaliskamera)!

9. How do you come up with the cover of your book “Out Of Chaos”?

The cover is one of my favorite stories of making Out of Chaos! Tonii, founder of ii Publishing, and I were sitting at my favorite coffee shop brainstorming ideas for a cover.

I was throwing out the CRAZIEST ideas (all of which were definitely not possible). We were having a blast laughing at all my wild ideas. Then, Tonii opened his iPad to show me some of his ideas. His background caught my eye (it was an image very similar to the cover now.) He said it was his original artwork.

In that moment, we both KNEW it was perfect.

The cover is mean to be art. That’s why there is no title! The image is an abstract interpretation of the sun over the ocean and it represents duality. It’s colorful (like me!) but it demonstrates the juxtaposition of darkness and light. Not only is this cover extremely symbolic in many other ways, it’s downright… REALLY pretty!!! So, shoutout to Tonii for his amazing art!

10. Lastly, do you want to give any advice to someone wanting to write and publish poetry?

This is my favorite thing to say to everyone:

Write.
Write.
Write.
As much as you can!!
Believe in yourself.
Don’t second guess.
Trust the process.

Don’t be discouraged by the setbacks. Any challenges and obstacles that you face will make you stronger, but only if you refuse to let them hold you back or stop you from reaching your dreams. It sounds cliche’ but trust me when I say, absolutely anything and everything you put your mind to is POSSIBLE. 

ABOVE ALL, never stop writing.

Posted on

Book Review: Kurt Danger Retired Monster Hunter

Book: Kurt Danger Retired Monster Hunter

Author: Leroi Randin Reed

Publisher: Henceforth Publishing Co.

Format: Ebook

My Rating: 4.5/5

Pages: 148

I got introduced to the concept of Vampires, when I saw the TV series ‘The Vampire Diaries’ and then my interest in vampires magnified gradually. 

Kurt Danger is a fantasy action fiction by the author Leroi Randin Reed. The story features Kurt Danger who was once the greatest monster hunter but now he has grown old and is in pain for losing his wife 10 years ago due to Vexor. 

Kurt’s family was a victim of vampire attack. Kurt was adopted by a monster hunter Mr Danger. At a little age of 13, he learnt how to kill beasts like vampires, werewolves, gargoyles and ghouls.

As we read the story ahead, Kurt has to protect a little girl. He along with Baxter, Elizabeth and Scarab Knights go to save her. Will they be successful in rescuing her? 

The plot is intriguing and the characters are well developed. The author has written it well but with little improvement in writing, this book has the potential to stand out more. 
A story full of vampires, werewolves, courage, fantasy, action, etc is something you shouldn’t miss to read. I am definitely looking forward to read next book from the author. 

Posted on

Interview with author Zachary Ryan

1. Please introduce yourself so that the readers will get to know you better.

My name is Zachary Ryan. I’m a LGBT, Young Adult, Coming of Age author. I’m thirty years old, and I currently live in Chicago. I recently got married to my husband.

2. Congratulations for your recent book Silent Screams. How do you come up with names of its characters?

Thank you so much. I honestly just randomly come up with the names. I’ll be on Instagram, and I’m like I like that name, so I’m going to go with it. The only one that I was hard press was Zachary. I’ve always wanted to do a female character named Zachary, and I was like it’s my 50th novel, so I might as well.

3. What are your favorite part and least favorite part of the publishing journey?

I think my favorite part is hearing people say how connected they get with my books. I think that is why I want to write. I try my hardest to write characters that are relatable. I think the hardest for me is when I first started out, I was writing novels that I didn’t really enjoy. People destroyed me for that. The reviews can be hard sometimes.

4. What are your hobbies apart from reading or writing?

Going out with friends or binge watching the Housewives franchise.

5. Which is your favorite season to write in and why?

My favorite season of all time is Fall. I think it’s nice to go to a coffee shop and sit outside and just write. But I also love when it’s snowing, and you have your bag full of your writing stuff. I love the romance of it all.

6. What is your favorite Quote?

“What do you plan to do with this one wild and precious life,” Mary Oliver. I might have butchered the exact wording. I discovered it in Beginning of Everything by Robyn Schneider.

7. How many books have you written? Which is your favorite?

I’ve written 52 novels at this point. I have two favorites because I have two different styles of writing. Silent Screams would be one because it’s my 50th novel, and it’s something extremely special to me. The other would be my newest novel that I just finished called Cutthroat Cheerleader. It’s super campy, and I love it.

8. How do you do research for your books?

I usually don’t do much research for my novels. I will look up people on Instagram and use them to describe my characters.

9. Can you share something your readers don’t know about you?

I’m actually a twin, and I have six brothers. Everyone always is stunned when I tell them that.

10. Lastly, who inspires you the most and why?

I think music inspires me the most. With Silent Screams, I heard this song called Prom Queen by Katie Turner, and I was instantly thinking of this novel. Music puts me in the mood to write. It makes me feel my characters, and it makes me connect with the emotions I’m going for with each chapter. My goal with one of my books is to write as the chapter names the song I listened to when I wrote the book.

Zachary Ryan Author’s Profile

Posted on

Book Review: What’s Left Unsaid

Book: What’s Left Unsaid

Author: Deborah Stone

Publisher: Matador

Format: Ebook

My Rating: 4.5/5

Pages: 312

What’s Left Unsaid is the debut novel of the author Deborah Stone. It’s a family drama fiction. The main characters are Joe, Annie, Sasha and Zac. 

The book is narrated by three characters: Joe, Sasha and Annie. Zac is a teenager and son of Sasha and Jeremy. Sasha’s mother Annie has a drinking problem and her father Joe Stein was well known and a bone fied celebrity. 

Mother daughter relationship between Annie and Sasha is not so simple. It has the complexity of deep secrets and lies which makes the story interesting. 

Every family has some drama and the story of Stein’s family seemed so realistic to me and I could relate well to it. I always love to read about family dramas even though they make me emotional many times while reading. 

It was the first book by Deborah but the writing seems so polished and the story narration is amazing. I really liked this book. It was a long read but the plot was so gripping that I binge read it and finished it in two sittings. It’s a must read.

Amazon.com What’s Left Unsaid

Amazon.co.uk What’s Left Unsaid

About The Author:

Deborah Stone is a leading expert in the field of elder care. Through her website, she provides information and advice for families caring for older people, as well as advising companies on the effective development of products and services for older people. Her debut novel, What’s Left Unsaid was published in 2018.

Design a site like this with WordPress.com
Get started