“Dalilah & Dexter Journey Through Japan” is an interesting children’s book penned by LaBrittini Mone’t and illustrated by Aniba Sajid.
Story features twin bunnies Dalilah & Dexter who love playing games, reading colorful books and most of all, using their imagination to explore the world. Come along with Dalilah & Dexter to find out how they together explored the outside world in a fun and exciting manner. Readers will definitely love this story. Read the story yourself to know how Dalilah and Dexter enjoyed their day in Japan and how excitedly they enjoyed their day?
The story is unique. I enjoyed it from the first page itself. Cover photo of the book is attractive and the language of the book is lucid. Kids can understand it easily. Pace of the story is fast. Illustration is lovely and catches the kids attention in the first go. This is a great story that I recommend not only to little readers but to adults as well. Great addition to the children’s bookshelf.
“Grim Nora and the Sign of the Ouroboros” is the second book that I have read penned by A M Albaugh. Main character of the story is Nora Youngblood. She is back on the Argo Navis and she met Aidan and her friends. Aidan Woulfe is an orphan boy from Ireland with healing powers who helped Nora develop her magic skills and taught her how to fight.
When the warlock kidnapped Raynor, Nora stepped up to save her brother. Vincent Reznick, who owns Oculus, the most powerful company in the world, is after the Morrigan. Kabos was just his pawn. Malachi told Nora that they may need to leave Crimson Falls soon. Nora is hiding the truth from Raynor that she is connected to the Morrrigan. Nora wants Aidan to be focused on becoming a wizard. What Nora is gonna do to save the people of her world? Will she be able to prevent Reznick from getting hands on the next clue that will lead to Morrrigan.
This is a great read. Cover photo looks attractive. Pace of the story is fine. The story is full of action from page 1 so fantasy readers won’t be bored at all while reading this. Language used in the book is lucid and I was able to follow the story easily. Narration is so strong that I forgot the outer real world around me and was totally into the story. I enjoyed the writing of Albaugh and I am looking forward to reading more of the author’s work in the future.
Fable written by Troy M Williams is the second installment in the Realms of Shadowblood book series. At the beginning, the map of Faelynn is given which will help the readers to learn better about Faelynn.
Three forest gnomes Grilif, Melex and Darf were picking berries when they noticed a strange behavior. Felvora helps in protecting the realm. The gnomes and tree sprites looked for Felvora but couldn’t find her around. In the middle of the day, the forest has become unnaturally dark. Grilif could feel the presence of dark magic around the place.
The gray sinister creature took Mella, Stella, Stixx, etc. Soon Felvora reached the place and asked the gnomes to go to Vylaas, a large tree of the sprites with her. She saw Queen Villara and others were in fear. The Queen was worried because she couldn’t find her daughter Stella. As told to Villara, Felvora and a few others started the journey to Faelynn palace seeking some solution from the queen or the princess.
This story requires more concentration as it is not for light reading. A lack of concentration can make you miss an important detail about the story. I like to recommend this book to avid readers. Cover photo of the book is attractive. World building is unique and the story is interesting. I enjoyed reading it and would like to recommend it to my fellow readers. Great work by Troy in this one.
“Ryder and Piper the Puppy” is an intriguing story written by Kathy Duffy and illustrated by Fedd Kahn.
On Southern Seasons Farm, many animals like horses, goats, cats, chickens, and bees roamed freely. Ryder is a shy dog who loves his personal space. The only other animal with whom he felt comfortable with is Sienna, an eight-year-old cat. It is Christmas Eve and Ryder is curious to see what present his family will give to him. But when Ryder’s mom and dad gifted him a puppy named Piper as a Christmas gift, Ryder wasn’t happy. He doesn’t want his privacy to be disturbed by the new family member.
Piper is not at all shy. She wants to learn a lot from her big brother Ryder. Will the two of them be able to get along?
Story is interesting and has valuable lessons for kids. Cover photo of the book is lovely and the title is suitable. It’s a fun story and I enjoyed every bit of it. I appreciate Kathy’s storytelling skills. This is a wonderful story and kids would be delighted to read it.
“Sweet Dreams and Other Lies” penned by the author C Streetlights is an amazing read. In this book, the author Streetlights takes us on a journey in which she releases her grief, anger and lies to find peace and acceptance.
I loved the titular poem Other Lies: Emotion so vibrant its colors laugh. Passionate whispers carry through the wind only to shudder instead on leaves with anticipation. The night falls silent and stars hold their breath. Broken dreams gather on the dark side of the moon. Standing still, Time holds its breath waiting while….
I could really relate to the story Lost. It’s about the time when the author was a kid and she hid in the departmental store. But soon she was found and her mother never lost sight of her again. I could totally relate to this as something similar happened to me as a kid.
The language used in the book is lucid and I was able to understand it easily. Cover photo of the book is well designed. Those who love to read poetry, musings, etc should get their hands on this book. This is the first book that I have read penned by Streetlights and I am surely interested to read more of her work.
Q1. Hello Sir, can you please introduce yourself? Readers would love to know more about you.
Hello readers! I’m Len Handeland. I am a new author who specializes in fiction books, specifically horror (vampire and paranormal) and murder, crime, dramas. I’ve always enjoyed writing and am drawn to being creative—as far back as I can remember. Back in middle school, when my classmates and I were assigned a book report, and the others groaned, I cheered—not only being given an exciting novel to read but also the opportunity to compose the essay assignment as well. Everything had to be perfect, the spelling, grammar, and accuracy regarding the subject matter. Later on—in my late teens, I attended FIT (Fashion Institute of Technology) in Manhattan studying fashion illustration; years later, I decided to pursue a career in the hair industry using my artistic training and creativity to excel in hair. I decided to pursue writing after reading many of Anne Rice’s work (having read all of her Vampire chronicle books) and after having attended many creative writing classes and attending the San Francisco International writers’ conference—decided it was time for me to write a Vampire story of my own; in my words, given my affinity for vampires. A different story—where love and companionship is the only thing that matters. When I’m not writing, I enjoy reading and enjoy vegetarian cooking. Some of my other hobbies include hiking, biking, and billiards. I enjoy the performing arts and I have trained in Martial Arts for over 25 years. I call Palm Springs home which I share with my husband, Byron, and our two adorable tuxedo cats, Felix & Felicia (who are brother and sister)
Q2. What were the key challenges you faced while writing ‘The Darkest Gift’ book?
I wrote “The Darkest Gift” as I felt no other author had written an enthralling vampire romance novel since Anne Rice, which was a breakthrough in featuring two vampires of the same gender as a couple. Being a life-long fan of vampires starting when I was a small child and into my adult years, I wanted to write a compelling and enthralling book where the characters are complicated (both humans and vampires) and that the same-sex couples are far less ambiguous about their sexual orientation than in vampire books of the last century. Where the emphasis is on love, whether human and vampire or two vampires (of the same gender), it was vital for me to avoid anything graphically sexual, so that I would describe was my biggest challenge in writing my book. I wanted the focus instead to be on the sensual aspect of two men together. Also noteworthy was addressing stereotypes regarding vampires and some of the gay men in my book. That all vampires are evil and unfeeling creatures, that all gay men are effeminate, couldn’t be further from the truth. I utilized the classic tale of good versus evil (in this case, vampire against vampire) and how one of the human characters, Jack, despite his struggles with sexual orientation, finally learns to accept and embrace who he truly is. The message I’m trying to deliver is: do what is right and be true to yourself. In my novel, that applies not only to humans but vampires alike.
Q3. What books or authors have most influenced your own writing?
My favorite genre is fiction, specifically horror. I have many authors who I not only admire but also have read their books extensively throughout the years. They include Stephen King, Clive Barker, and Anne Rice. I consider Anne Rice who wrote all of her brilliant vampire books so eloquently (“Interview with the vampire”, “The vampire LeStat”, and “Queen of the Damned”) to be my main inspiration. In fact, some readers have commented that my book, “The Darkest Gift” reminds them of her writing style.
Q4. What’s your favourite spot to visit in your own country? And what makes it so special to you?
My favorite place to visit in my country (the US) is New York City. I lived in Manhattan in the early 1980s and that is where I met my husband as well. The city is rich in history, diversity and as they say, “it’s the city that never sleeps” as it has never-ending energy.
Q5. Are there lots to do before you dive in and start writing a book?
Every author has their own technique. For me, I like to have an outline of my story before I sit down to write it. It needs to have a flow, it needs to have structure as well as an interesting plot, and characters that are more than one-dimensional. Character development is extremely important so that your readers will identify with, and become enthralled with the entire story.
Q6. How long did it take you to write ‘The Darkest Gift’ book?
I was in another profession altogether so I was not able to devote my time to writing full-time. I was a very busy hairstylist and hair salon owner. My first book “The Darkest gift” took 5 ½ years to write. I have since retired from doing hair and now can devote most of my time to writing. In fact, I started writing my second novel “Requiem for Miriam” two and a half months ago. It is a murder, crime, drama, with paranormal activity set in Manhattan, Westchester County, and Mexico in the 1980s. I am currently on Chapter 13 and should have it released by late January or the beginning of February (2022)
Q7. On what all platforms readers can find ‘The Darkest Gift’ book to buy?
My book is available on Amazon (in paperback, hardcover, and EBook for Kindle) as well as Barnes & Noble, Lulu.com, Target.com, and “Notion Press” (in India)
Q8. Tell us about the process of coming up with the book cover and the title ‘The Darkest Gift’ ?
I got my book idea title from vampire mythology. The Dark Gift is a term for vampiric power. When a vampire maker bestows the power to become immortal that is transmitted through the Blood on a fledgling, that maker is offering the Dark Gift. According to the rules of Santino’s coven, the Dark Gift was to be given only to beautiful mortals, as an insult to God. As far as the book cover, I wanted each of the male characters (vampire and human) to appear together as if they were all locked in battle. This way the reader can picture each character in their mind as well.
Q9. When writing a book how do you keep things fresh, for both your readers and also yourself?
I like to keep things “fresh” in my book by always having the reader guess where the story is headed. So that a reader not only becomes interested but also the reader becomes enthralled, almost addicted so the book is thought of as a page-turner.
Q10. Are there any secrets from the book (that aren’t in the blurb), you can share with your Readers?
As with many books, my story has a lot of twists and turns. There is a surprise ending that no one could have predicted, that’s what makes a great ending!
Q1. Hello, can you please introduce yourself? Readers would love to know more about you.
Hi, my name is Paula Longhurst, I’m an author, blogger and bookseller at indie bookstore the King’s English in Salt Lake City, Utah. I was born in the U.K and we moved over to the U.S just after we got married. I’ve been writing for a long time but being around authors and meeting so many of them encouraged me to start a local writing group and gave me the discipline to complete stories and get them published.
Q2. What were the key challenges you faced while writing ‘Rollover’ book?
I wrote Rollover back in 2007 and the key challenge was finding an editor and an agent that loved the book as much as I did. I was lucky to find both but as we started shopping the manuscript to publishers. I kept writing and completed a trilogy (‘Thunderball’ and the spectacularly named ‘Miss Scarlet in the Library with the Lead Piping’), this led to an offer of a three-book deal which we accepted and which, unfortunately, went nowhere. I published a different trilogy with Open Flame starting in 2017 which led to Rollover finally being published last year.
Q3. What books or authors have most influenced your own writing?
I’ve loved mysteries and spy thrillers since the age of 10 when I grew tall enough to reach my dad’s bookshelf. Raymond Chandler, Dashiell Hammett, Earl Stanley Gardener, Ian Fleming, Eric Ambler I was hooked. On top of that I’d started reading the gently homicidal works of Agatha Christie and I’d say she is still a big influence.
Q4. What’s your favourite spot to visit in your own country? And what makes it so special to you?
I’m a country girl but London is where I feel most at home. It’s a kaleidoscope of experiences and so full of history and mythology. You can walk past a soaring modern skyscraper and around the corner there’s a 15th century church complete with bells. My favorite walks are close to the Thames.
Q5. Is there lots to do before you drive in and start writing a book?
I know some writers who plan out the entire book before they write a word that is so not me. I have a general idea and a couple of main characters and when I need to do research it’s done as I’m writing. This sometimes coincides with a trip to see family, or I’ll use Google Earth and webcams which helps with grounding the story in time and place.
Q6. How long did it take you to write ‘Rollover’ book?
The first draft came together pretty fast as I wrote it during NanoWrimo (November is National Novel Writing Month – this is a yearly competition where the prize is a finished manuscript.) the editing and subsequent drafts took about another couple of years
Q7. On what all platforms readers can find ‘Rollover’ book to buy?
Rollover (and the sequel Thunderball) can be ordered in paperback from all Independent Bookstores (please shop local wherever possible) The bookstore where I work has copies in stock ready to ship through our web shop.(www.kingsenglish.com)
Q8. Tell us about the process of coming up with the book cover and the title ‘Rollover’ ?
The title for Rollover comes from the U.K national lottery, which is the organization Nikki Doyle works for in the books. A ‘rollover’ is a jackpot that isn’t won and rolls over to the next week. The book cover shows a scene from Rollover. I have been fortunate enough to be closely involved in the process of cover design which is one of the benefits of working with a smaller publisher.
Q9. When writing a book how do you keep things fresh, for both your readers and also yourself?
I do that by asking if a) I’m feeling bored during rereads because if I’m bored, then the reader will be too b) by asking myself ‘What if’ e.g. what if my protagonist did x, y or z, how would that affect the story? d) promoting a minor character to throw events off course – sometimes that minor character does something unexpected (you’ve heard writers say that the characters write themselves. It’s a rare gift but it does happen.)
Q10. Are there any secrets from the book (that aren’t in the blurb), you can share with your readers?
Well, the village of Storr Downs draws heavily on the place where I grew up and whilst most of the events in the book are fictional, a couple actually did happen… Also Nikki’s family is based upon my own; although we never did win the football pools and my brother is still very much alive.
“Grim Nora and the Secret of the Skull” written by the author A M Albaugh is an epic fantasy story. Main character of the story is a teenage girl named Nora Youngblood. On her sixteenth birthday, she lost her father. Nora’s mother died long back in a car accident. Now she is an orphan. Her boyfriend Connor cheated on her and Nora felt her world was falling.
At home, she saw a stranger who told her that he is her brother Raynor. He will be Nora’s guardian until she turns eighteen. Raynor took her to his home so she could stay with him. There, she again met the owner of Yggdrasil, Malachi. Previous night, Malachi saved Nora from Kabos, a warlock. Kabos is after the skull shaped pocket watch that Nora had received as a birthday present from her father.
Read this interesting story to find out what will happen next. Story is fast paced and I wasn’t bored anytime while reading it. I loved the writing style of the author. Cover photo of the book looks great. Characters are well written and the world that the author has built in this story is really impressive. It’s an amazing story that one shouldn’t miss to read.
“The Stories of Our Lives” is a short story collection written by Brandy Isadora. There are a total of eighteen short stories in this collection.
Rumors and Secrets is about a man Ira whose birth mother died in childbirth. Ira was raised by his father and mother Evelyn. Ira’s father got his cousin pregnant when she was seventeen and he was thirty-two. When Ira joined the army in 1943, he was presented with the truth.
Another story, Holy Water is about the holy water that is sold by employees of Castor Call Centre. Billy Gaston is a new joinee. One of the customers called to enquire about the Holy Water. Billy said that Manny’s Holy Mineral water helps people to have visions of the loved ones who had passed.
Stories are unique with interesting characters. Language used in the book is lucid. Cover photo is nice. I enjoyed all the stories. Writing style of Brandy is nice. These stories are thought provoking. Plots of the stories are very intriguing. Those who love reading short stories should definitely go ahead with this book.
Q1. Hello Sir, can you please introduce yourself? Readers would love to know more about you.
My name is Levi Rogers. I am a writer and former coffee roaster currently based in Portland, Oregon where I live with my wife and two daughters. I have been writing for over ten years, but this is my first novel.
Q2. What were the key challenges you faced while writing Utah! A Novel?
This was my debut novel so everything was new to me. Creating a plot and characters to sustain an entire novel was a challenge, as well as putting the final touches on everything and polishing it up so that everything connected and flowed and read perfectly.
Q3. What books or authors have most influenced your own writing?
Dave Eggers was an early influence on me. I liked his energy and humor. Also the more “classical” works of people like Cormac McCarthy, Vonnegut, DFW, all the Russian writers from Nabokov to Tolstoy. Then I was influenced by a lot of great women writers like Anne Lamott, Lidia Yuknavitch, Maggie Nelson, Karen Russell, Annie Dillard, and Leslie Jamison. Right now I’m loving some George Saunders, Rumaan Alam, Mitchell S. Jackson, and Kiese Laymon.
Q4. What’s your favourite spot to visit in your own country? And what makes it so special to you?
Two of my favorite spots to visit are Zion National Park and Yellowstone National Park. And they’re both in the book! That’s how much I love them. I enjoy the National Parks of the U.S. and these two feel vast and special to me, otherwordly almost.
Q5. Is there lots to do before you drive in and start writing a book?
My process is actually to just start writing and let the words and characters take me where they want to go. I lived in Utah for eight years and so I considered this most of my “research.” But I prefer to just write and be surprised at where the novel is going. Although next time I might outline a tiny bit more, ha! I learned a lot about writing through this project and have a much better feel for what works now and what readers in particular are looking for when they sit down to read a book.
Q6. How long did it take you to write Utah! A Novel?
The novel took me five years to write. I started it in 2015 and finished it in 2020.
Q7. On what platforms readers can find Utah! A Novel book to buy?
Q8. Tell us about the process of coming up with the book cover and the title Utah! A Novel?
I wanted the title to reflect the almost anthropological way in which I approached this novel, which was like an introduction to the state of Utah itself. I thought an exclamation point was kinda funny and would make it seem more exciting than it really was. I also wanted the cover to be like a vintage postcard from the state from fifty years ago. Shout out to Beste M. Dogan from Atmosphere Press for the design!
Q9. When writing a book how do you keep things fresh, for both your readers and also yourself?
Hmm, that’s a great question. One thing I’ve heard is that if you’re not having fun as the writer, then your reader probably isn’t having fun either. Now, that’s not to say that all of writing is fun. Most of it is tedious and can be a drag or slog to get through certain aspects and set things up and all the blocking, etc. But I also tried to keep it fresh in that I wanted to try to write something that had no pre-ordained outline or formula to it. Which ended up being both good and bad. I found out there’s a reason why people stick to certain formulas and pacing and plots for books, ha!
Q10. Are there any secrets from the book (that aren’t in the blurb), you can share with your readers?
I would say that while the novel is a slow burn there are some very exciting, surprising, and explosive things that happen in the end, and you’ll be glad you finished the novel once you do!
Sassy Reviews 