1/31/2016 0 Comments Catching Up on My "To Read" List
A Twist and Two Balls by Clare London
My rating: 4 of 5 stars I was so happy to finally have some quiet time to read this. I've been dying to read it since I read the blurb--a Turkish cab driver and an underemployed actor? No super rich people? YES! If you've read some of my reviews, you no doubt expect me to follow that up with, "so I was disappointed...." but I wasn't! It's an unbelievable treat to have a story be every bit as good as I'd hoped it would be. Although I've read this author before, so I had a reasonable expectation she wouldn't let me down. Clare London has a way of writing that just draws me in and this story was no exception. By chapter two I literally breathed out a sigh, the sound of a reader who trusts the writer to deliver and is settling in with all the happy feels. Although it was a novella, at no point did it feel like the writer skimped on details, this story was as long as it needed to be, the characters as realized as I needed them to be to feel for them. I will re-read this one, in a few months, just for the sheer joy of it. This is my favourite so far, from this author. View all my reviews
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1/28/2016 0 Comments Book Trailers...I admit, I'm old enough to find the idea of book trailers...odd. The highly professional ones cast actors as the characters, which in my mind is a big no-no. The whole point of a book being better than a movie is that the reader is free to imagine the characters as they will--even as themselves! But it's not my book and it certainly isn't my money. Whatever works, but I think even if I had a million dollar contract with a Big Five publisher, I'd protest using actors. Ask me again, if I ever get that contract! Book trailers on YouTube seem to fall primarily into three categories, those flashy professional ones mentioned above, Wattpad book trailers filled with stolen video and music (because only a Wattpad writer's creative output is worth copyright protection; nay, their very ideas are pure gold one mustn't steal! But someone else's music or video? No problem!), and Windows Movie Maker slide shows made by indie/self-pub authors with no money. Why am I blabbering on about book trailers? I made one--naturally. And although I watched far too many book trailers before making my attempt, I'm sure I still left out things that ought to be included. And I am presently doubting book trailers will ever be a service I offer indie authors. There is a learning curve. I slipped many times. I am accepting all tips from other WMM users, and critique from everyone--I'm a writer, my ego is already calloused!
Now, if I could remember what I'm supposed to do with the trailer, now that it's done.... 1/25/2016 0 Comments Vintage SydneyIn the early spring of 2003, a local entertainment paper ran a contest for stories told in exactly one hundred words, including title on the theme of love and redemption. Or maybe it was love or redemption. Six stories from thousands were selected for publication, in no particular order. We won glory and a gift certificate to City Lights Bookstore. In March 2003, this was my second published work: LOVE UNWANTED All I really wanted to do was sleep with you. I didn't want to know about the deck you built or your problems with your ex. I didn't want to know about your kids, the woman you had an affair with, or your Reflexology classes. I didn't want to know about your paper route, your out of body experience, or the I Ching.I didn't want to like you; I didn't want to care. I didn't want to let you go. I didn't want it to hurt. All I really wanted to do was sleep with you. Not sure how I feel about it from this remove...but once, somebody like it enough to print it.
1/19/2016 0 Comments Steampunk M/M
There was a lot of unrealized potential in this story, to the point, I wanted to write the next draft myself. But I already waste too much time writing stuff that will never see the light of day! I suppose everything is an exercise. Anyway, I hope one day the author finishes this story and republishes.
However, the science in it all seemed plausible and well-researched, unlike my first Steampunk story review.
Wes and Kit by Hollis Shiloh
My rating: 3 of 5 stars I really wanted to like this more than I did. It really felt like I was reading the first draft, with corrected spelling. It had a very unfinished feeling to it that had nothing to do with the plot, per se, or the characters, per se...it all just felt very...unpolished. I would very much like to read a polished, final draft of this story. View all my reviews 1/10/2016 0 Comments New Year, New Book Reviews
The Viscount's Christmas Temptation by Erica Ridley
My rating: 4 of 5 stars This was one of those stories that I downloaded in spite of the cover. We are told we shouldn't judge a book by the cover, but we all do. Seriously, a modern prom dress for an historical? My expectations were that I would not finish this novella. So I was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed the story. I loved the humour and the heroine; and the hero was actually a decent human being, which for an historical romance lately it seems, is damn near miraculous. And unlike many holiday romances, it wasn't overly saccharine. It was a lot of fun to read once, and just as much fun to skim over again for this review. View all my reviews |
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