Q1. Hello Sir, can you please introduce yourself? Readers would love to know more about you.
Hi I’m Marcus Abston. I’m the author of Bloodlines (A Dying Truth Exposed, Book One). I’m from the south-side suburbs of Chicago, and an alumni of Southern Illinois University-Carbondale.
Q2. What were the key challenges you faced while writing ‘Bloodlines’ book?
The key challenges I had was deciding on an editor. Editing can be very expensive, and then you have to look at the editor’s past work. Also advertising is difficult because it’s the only way people know your book has been released.
Q3. What books or authors have most influenced your own writing?
I have to say C.S. Lewis, Michael Crichton, Stephen King, Maya Angelou, and J.J. R. Token are some of my favorite authors. I haven’t actually been influenced by any.
Q4. What’s your favourite spot to visit in your own country? And what makes it so special to you?
Going to certain parks in the city of Chicago are meaningful to me. There’s a lot of good memories in the city of Chicago.
Q5. Is there lots to do before you drive in and start writing a book?
Not for me. The stories really come from the heart.
Q6. How long did it take you to write ‘Bloodlines’ book?
It took me about three years because I was also balancing school at the time.
Q7. On what all platforms readers can find ‘Bloodlines’ book to buy?
My book will be in the ebook form and as a paperback.
Q8. Tell us about the process of coming up with the book cover and the title ‘Bloodlines’?
Looking at the over topic of the storyline and discussing with my editor with the suggestion of a friend.
Q9. When writing a book how do you keep things fresh, for both your readers and also yourself?
I always have to remember everyone is my story has a different personality, and that helps keep the story fresh.
Q10. Are there any secrets from the book (that aren’t in the blurb), you can share with your readers?
The secret I can tell is that Annabelle and Judy Mays will meet again.
Side Adventure written by the author Artin Nazarian is a kinda book that gonna help many youngsters of today. In a job, once I had put so much hard work but I didn’t got anything in return. So, I totally agree with the author when he mentioned that even though he was climbing corporate ladder, it was slow and not equal to the value he was adding.
In this book, he has shared his own story. He has also given tips to readers on managing time, personal relationships, finances, fund raising, etc. He has mentioned once we are financially stable, we can even quit our job.
This book will increase your chances of promotions thereby making you successful in the corporate world and also it will guide you towards fulfilling your entrepreneur dreams.
Title of the book is appropriate. Author has named this book as Side Adventure because a side venture is like an adventure in itself. If you are excited to find your path to happiness and to become the best version of yourselves, then grab this book right away. Language of the book is lucid. Cover photo is nice. I like to recommend this book to all those who are in the corporate world. Such a great guidebook that is full of author’s own experiences.
The Deadly Disguise is the debut novel of the author Nora Valetta. Story features Francesca Russo who had lost her loving and caring husband Troy in a tragic accident due to harsh weather. Francesca has a son Brodie who adore his father but he is too young to understand that he won’t be seeing his father again. Troy was a great husband and father that resembles the image of every girl’s expectation from their partner.
Francesca works at The Centre for
Child Protection and Family Aid. Her boss Gilbert Pierce is a lonely widowed man who liked Francesca the moment he saw her. Francesca reminded him of his niece who visits him sometime. Francesca is working to provide good future to children by protecting them from domestic violence. She is currently looking at the case of Corey Hess who abuse his girlfriend Lia and their son Julian. Francesca finds it hard to swallow how can a woman put her child career at risk by staying in such a toxic relationship. Grab a copy of this novel and finds out what happens next in the story.
It’s a rollercoaster read that is full of mystery. Cover of the book looks spooky. Storyline is so captivating that it kept me on the edge of my seat the whole time. Narration is smooth and easy to follow. Characters are well written. Storyline is so intriguing that I didn’t feel like it’s the debut book of the author. Her writing is polished and I am definitely interested to read more books by her in future.
Book: NewBee: Lessons Learned while Cross-Pollinating my Life, Discovering my Passions, and Creating my Honey
Author: Ernesto Mandowsky
Available On: Amazon
Language: English
Rating: 5/5
“NewBee: Lessons Learned while Cross-Pollinating my Life, Discovering my Passions, and Creating my Honey” is a great book penned by the author Ernesto Mandowsky. Like most of us, Ernesto had no idea what he was going to do after growing up. He had multiple interests and passions. He didn’t want to follow the path laid in front of him by his family as his interests are different. So, he decided to create a rewarding career experience made up of his various interests. This is Cross-pollinating.
I loved Ernesto’s idea of creating a vision board by looking at which we will realize everytime what we actually want to achieve in life. I loved when family was also a part of his vision board as I also wanna stay around my loved ones. This book takes the readers on author’s journey as he explored different areas during his school, college life, while volunteering, etc. I could connect well to this book as even I had done engineering and have tried my hands at various options in life.
If you have the curiosity to discover your passion and create your own one-of-a-kind honey then this book is for you. This book motivated me to read SECRET as well to know about the Law of Attraction. Through this book, author is inspiring readers to face their fears in life. I am gonna now create my own vision board and will work towards achieving my goals so one day they could become real components of my life. It’s a well written book that I like to recommend strongly to today’s youth.
“Too Many Visitors For One Little House” is the debut picture book of the author Susan Chodakiewitz. Story features neighbors of El Camino Street who don’t like big families, kids, pets, etc. Recently a new family moved in the neighborhood and they had so many visitors one day. The neighbors haven’t seen so many visitors in one little house. They didn’t like the babies, laughter, music noise, etc that were coming from the little crowded house.
Pick this book and find out what the neighbors gonna do. This is an interesting story that will inspire kids to mix up with others instead of spending time alone – “The more the merrier”. It’s a unique story that I enjoyed reading. I am glad to add this book to my collection. Great job by both author and illustrator in this book.
Q1. Hello Sir, can you please introduce yourself? Readers would love to know more about you.
Absolutely. I’m a husband and father of 5 (Mae-11, Elsie-9, Charlie-7, Sam-3, and Henry-9 months), and I work at a local middle school as the assistant principal. I grew up on the east coast, moving with my parents and two sisters from Chicago, Illinois to Jacksonville, Florida to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, to Winchester, Virginia. We moved around a lot, but I loved every place we lived more than the last. I went to Clemson University for college and when I graduated, I became a teacher. I’ve taught everything from 3rd grade to 8th grade, the majority of my time spent in middle school. I met my wife Shannon while we were teaching in the same school. We got married, I became an assistant principal and we started our family soon afterward. I had always enjoyed telling stories to my students and coming up with creative outlets as a teacher. Once my wife and I started having children, I found it even more fun making up stories for them. Eventually I realized writing some of these stories down might be a fun way to preserve some of the ones my children liked best. That’s why I started publishing and why I wrote York the Yowie and Mr. Plopper.
Q2. What were the key challenges you faced while writing ‘York The Yowie And His New Recepies’ book?
I think the most challenging thing about writing ‘York the Yowie and his New Recipes’ was deciding on which story to tell for that second York the Yowie book. I had a lot of ideas, and even more input from my kids. But once I decided that the challenge for York was coming up with something new (just like the challenge I was having in real life), it became the natural next story for York the Yowie.
Q3. What books or authors have most influenced your own writing?
I grew up and still absolutely love books by P. D. Eastman and the books he illustrated. Books such as ‘A Fish Out of Water’, ‘Are You My Mother’, ‘Go, Dog, Go’ and others are the ones I remember most fondly as a child, and I love to read to my kids as a dad.
Q4. What’s your favourite spot to visit in your own country? And what makes it so special to you?
I haven’t travelled to many of the places I know I’d love to see in this country (and the world), but as far as the places I’ve been, I love the north eastern area of the United States like Maine and Vermont. I also love the beaches on the east coast, like Hilton Head, SC.
Q5. Is there lots to do before you drive in and start writing a book?
Absolutely. It takes me a long time to figure out how to start a book and how I want it to make its readers feel. The York the Yowie books took a long time to revise and make just right, and even now when I read them I’d love to be able to make changes. The Mr. Plopper book was easier because I had been telling that story to my children for a long time before deciding to make it a book.
Q6. How long did it take you to write ‘York The Yowie And His New Recepies’ book?
To actually write the book, it took me about three months to get it right from start to finish. But it took me about 6 months to arrive at the final idea before writing it.
Q7. On what all platforms readers can find ‘York The Yowie And His New Recepies’ book to buy?
I believe all my books can be found on Amazon as paperback books or e-books. They can also be found on google to download or order as paperback.
Q8. Tell us about the process of coming up with the book cover and the title ‘York The Yowie And His New Recepies ’?
Luckily I’ve been very fortunate to work with two very talented and helpful illustrators on my books. The covers have come together with their collaboration and ideas. The idea for the cover of ‘York the Yowie and his New Recipes’ came from the illustrator and I working together to imagine what way to best show what the book was about inside. We wanted York to be standing at a table with new foods and we decided to have the illustration wrap around to the back of the book.
Q9. When writing a book how do you keep things fresh, for both your readers and also yourself?
That’s one of the toughest parts about writing, but I’m lucky to have children who like to share their ideas with me as well. Keeping things fresh and exciting, especially for yourself isn’t easy, but when you have help, that makes it fun.
“THE ROYAL VISIT” is an interesting Children’s Book written by the author Ranti Akintobi.
This is a story of Queen Lara who was the first Obabirin, a female king of Lafiya. Queen Lara had inherited Lafiya’s magical powers. She has an adopted daughter Vicky who could talk to animals by the blessings of her mother.
She goes on a royal visit with her daughter Vicky to her brother Adeyemi who lives in Rugare kingdom. King Adeyemi had two daughters, Princess Tara and Princess Tori. One day Queen Lara took all the three girls to the zoo.
Read the story to know what they will experience there and how they will feel by talking and listening to animals.
The illustrations are lovely. It’s sometimes hard to find a good books with chapters that are exciting. The story is fast paced and exciting. Strongly recommend this book to the little readers. They could enjoy it with their siblings or cousins.
“Princess Podockee and the Land of Ting” is an amazing story written by P.W. Doodle and illustrated by James Marchant. Princess Podockee is special and different from a normal princess. Story is set on an island Ting that has many interesting inhabitants.
Princess Podockee visited the magnificent structure of Gomowwa
Garwinkle to meet a dragon Gomowwa. Gomowwa told her that there is a large creature who needs their help. But Podockee’s concern is that soon fishes of Ting will be making their deep sea descent and all the members of Ting have to be present or they will be lost out there forever”. Grab a copy of this book and read this adventurous story to know will Princess and her friends be able to help the creature who is in need?
This story has wonderful lesson for the little readers. Find it yourself by reading this book. Cover photo of the book is nice and this story is different from usual princess stories. I enjoyed reading this book. If stories based on self-discovery are of your interest then don’t miss to read this one.
Book: Wipe The Slate Clean: The Story Of Nester The Pester
Author: Lauretha Ward
Available On: Amazon
Language: English
Rating: 5/5
“Wipe the Slate Clean: The Story of Nester the Pester” is a Children’s Book written by the author Lauretha Ward and illustrated by Pardeep Mehra. Story features a school boy Nester the Pester who is mean. One day his teacher narrated him a wonderful story that made Nester realize that he didn’t care about others’ feelings in the past but now he wanted to live a kind life.
Grab a copy of this book for your little ones. This book teaches about forgiveness to them. Story is wonderful and author has written it nicely. I am glad to read this book to my nephew. He enjoyed it a lot. Language of the book is lucid and illustrations are eye catchy. It’s a must read book. Strongly recommended for little ones.
Q1. Hello Ma’am, can you please introduce yourself? Readers would love to know more about you.
Thanks so much – it’s a pleasure to be with you. I started writing children’s books back in 2015, when I lost a ball of yarn in Paris! I thought it would make a great plot for a children’s book and decided to write and publish one as a creative challenge. My first book, “Lulu and Lainey … a French Yarn”, was published in 2016. It is about a little French girl who is going to knit with her grandmother and loses her favorite ball of yarn in the park. The yarn has an adventure and (spoiler alert!) eventually returns to Lulu. Sadly, I never saw my yarn again. Today there are six Lulu and Lainey books and each one recounts an adventure that the yarn (Lainey) has. While I was writing these books my long-time friend, Jackie Bunn, was creating and selling party supply merchandise online and contacted me about an idea she had for a group of racially diverse mermaids, as there was little to no diversity in children’s party products at that time. I thought it was a great idea and we agreed that I’d write the children’s books to support these mermaid characters, who we named the Five Enchanted Mermaids. We then developed the character and personality of each mermaid to include a specific super-skill that each mermaid uses to help their undersea friends and children ages 3 – 7 develop socio-emotional skills.
Q2. What were the key challenges you faced while writing ‘Tales Of The Five Enchanted Mermaids:You Can Do It!’ book?
“Tales of the Five Enchanted Mermaids: You Can Do It!” was our first book about a situation that needs a solution and looks to all five mermaids for their advice. It was an interesting challenge to use each of the mermaids’ super-skills and have them offer tangible advice to Otto the octopus, who is learning how to control his frustration. Establishing the differences among developmental skills such as independence, honesty, courage, confidence and kindness really made me think about different approaches to use for each of them. Five mermaids can’t all offer the same advice, after all! Another challenge I have in all our books is to set up visual scenarios for illustrations that can work with undersea creatures, who may not have physical arms and hands. The octopus, Otto, is easier, but fish, dolphins, sharks, seahorses, sea turtles and an oyster each presents a different challenge.
Q3. What books or authors have most influenced your own writing?
I’m quite independent when it comes to finding inspiration in works from other authors. I never wanted to imitate or copy someone else’s style. I can say I admire some of the authors from earlier times such as Ludwig Bemelmans, Francoise Seignobosc, and Margaret Wise Brown. Jean-Jacque Sempé has always been a favorite illustrator.
Q4. What’s your favourite spot to visit in your own country? And what makes it so special to you?
My favorite spot in the US is the Napa Valley in California. We have relatives who are growers in the valley and it’s a very special place to visit in all seasons. I love the peace and tranquility up in the hills among the trees and vines.
Q5. Is there lots to do before you drive in and start writing a book?
Mostly thinking and imagining. As I’m working out the plot I’m also thinking in images. By the time I sit down to put my thoughts on the page I’ve usually sorted out at a high level what I want the book to say and how I want it to look.
Q6. How long did it take you to write ‘Meet the Mermaids: Hi, I’m Sofia’ book?
This book was written during the pandemic in 2020. As I mentioned earlier these books start out in my imagination so I can’t really quantify that time. By the time they get laid down onto the page I generally know what I’m aiming for, but I’m constantly tweaking until the last minute – usually working to shorten the text. Since other people are involved in the production I’m also constrained by their schedules.
Q7. On what all platforms readers can find your books to buy?
All my books are available on Amazon.com. Most are in both English and Spanish. We also offer doll and book sets, which encourage role playing in children, to coordinate with the books. We also have a great line of Five Enchanted Mermaids dolls, gifts and party supplies. The complete Five Enchanted mermaids line can be purchased at the Amazon Five Enchanted Mermaids store. You can also reach our Amazon store through our website: http://www.fiveenchantedmermaids.com.
Q8. Tell us about the process of coming up with the cover and the title of your books?
For the cover I work with the same illustrator who did the Lulu and Lainey books (Tanja Russita). We wanted a unique look and one that complements the interior images. It’s not easy getting 5+ characters onto a cover in a meaningful way. We ended up with great images that look like selfies, which I love. The covers for the individual mermaids are more like portrait shots, showing off each mermaid at her best. The colors all work beautifully against the shimmering jewel-like tones of the blue background.
Q9. When writing a book how do you keep things fresh, for both your readers and also yourself?
.I change the focus. Each book highlights a different subject, mermaid or undersea friend. We’ve covered Otto’s frustration, birthdays around the world and first school day jitters. Each of the mermaid books focuses on a different mermaid and her super-skill. I research the individual skill and generally find that they have many unique aspects. Sometimes a subject comes up more often, such as the fear of making mistakes, but I work to present it in an individualized way. Also, over time we’ve added more information about the mermaids and their home, Atargatis, as well as new undersea friends, such as Sally, Charlotte and a soon-to-be-named sea turtle. With these beautiful fantasy mermaid characters there are so many ways we can take the theme that it is unlikely I will every be bored. The mermaids have become like family!
Sassy Reviews 