Entry Island by Peter May ** A Review

reviews, authors, writing  reviews, authors, writing 5 out of 5 quills  A Reviewreviews, authors, writingreviews, authors, writingreviews, authors, writing         Peter May has done it again and we should hold a parade because Entry Island is being released in the USA September 15th.
A bustling murder mystery to be sure…but as Sime Mackenzie is called to the crime scene he experiences an almost debilitating deja’ vu.

Detective Mackenzie is haunted by the certainty that he knows the widow of the murdered man, Entry Island by Peter Mayeven though rationally he knows he’s never seen her before, in this lifetime. His dreams are filled with a time long ago when he, as a young man, witnessed and then fled the ‘clearances’ in the Highlands of  far off Scotland.

Being a historian buff at heart, I adore any story that tells me a tale about a time that I was not so aware of…. Continue reading “Entry Island by Peter May ** A Review”

REVIEW…Ransom Canyon by Jodi Thomas

reviews, authors, writing reviews, authors, writingreviews, authors, writing5 out of 5 quills  reviews, authors, writingreviews, authors, writing   A Review  ** Ransom Canyon by Jodi Thomas

Jodi.book.coverCrossroads, Texas.  A 4-way intersection with one signal light.  Turn south to Abilene, north to Amarillo…you get the idea. Just a stop in the road to where you need to go.  As you sit at the light do you ever wonder about the people that populate this little one-horse-town?  Of course you don’t…your thoughts are about how big this state is and ‘will I ever get out of Texas?’ Come on, you know we’ve all thought it!

Thomas tells you all about the folks in the little village of Crossroads in a new series entitled Ransom Canyon Romance. And it’s great reading.  In my mind it’s not just about Staten and Quinn, two star-crossed lovers.  There were several main characters that stole this reader’s heart.  Yancy, a new parolee, Grandma Kirkland, and Lucas.  But that’s all I’m going to say as this reviewer does not write spoilers and give you the whole story, chapter and verse.

This is a charming and entertaining read and I highly recommend it as I do with all of Jodi Thomas’ books.

Jodi wrote in an e-mail: “Like most writers I get the same question again and again. “Where do your ideas come from? Sometimes I have no idea where the seed of an idea started to grow in my mind. But, then I get out Grandma Kirkland’s button box….
When I was little, her big box of buttons always fascinated me. I played with it for hours. Now, in an upstairs room off my office, I gather the grand-kids (6,5,4,2) around the old sewing machine. They all get excited as I open the box and let each one pick a button. Old rusty ones, bright diamond bling, tiny pearl ones, some still have tiny pieces of fabric connected from worn out clothes.
Continue reading “REVIEW…Ransom Canyon by Jodi Thomas”

Review…Her Lucky Cowboy by Jennifer Ryan

Cover.J.Ryan..ScanA Review  reviews, authors, writingreviews, authors, writingreviews, authors, writingreviews, authors, writingreviews, authors, writing5 out of 5 quills

Delicious!!  A flawed, compassionate heroine and a hunky, injured  bull rider!  Jennifer Ryan really delivered with this one!  I was fully engaged on page one! These two lovers meet in the middle of a rodeo arena with a maddened bull as a chaperon.

Champion rodeo rider Dane Bowden is eight seconds from winning under the Vegas lights, one last hurrah before reluctantly returning to his family’s Montana ranch. But his bull has other plans. When Dane wakes up, he’s sure he’s died and gone to heaven . . . because the doctor who comes to his aid is the same girl who saved his life years ago and then disappeared. Bell would do anything for Dane. He’s the fantasy that always kept her going. A child genius hidden away by her family, Bell was the secret no one talked about, the girl no one wanted.

Ryan weaves story after story.  This is an exceptional tale.  I loved it and you will too!!

Release date: August 25th.  Did you miss my Interview with Jennifer Ryan. Click here.Ryan.photo..32.58 (Small)
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DON’T MISS UPCOMING BLOGS featuring INTERVIEWS with  best-selling AUTHORS!     Jennifer Ryan,(Aug.), Grant Blackwood (Tom Clancy) Sept. and Julia London.
Don’t Miss it!  A bonus Interview with
Iconic comic book writer, Chuck Dixon, in September.
Coming Soon! Review of Entry Island by Peter May and Ransom Canyon by Jodi Thomas.
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Tom Clancy * Under Fire by Grant Blackwood * A Review

reviews, authors, writingreviews, authors, writingreviews, authors, writingreviews, authors, writingreviews, authors, writing Rating: 5 out of 5 quills A Review  UNDER FIRE by Grant Blackwood
for Tom Clancy

When I interview Grant Blackwood later this year, my burning question will be:  ‘how do you write so well that we believe the iconic Tom Clancy is really the one putting pen to paper?  These authors who write after the death of a beloved writer, like Ludlum, Parker, Fleming or Clancy, are really talented.  To be able to put their unique ‘voice’ on the shelf and write so successfully for another author?  It boggles this writer’s mind!

I’m the first to admit that espionage, shoot ’em ups are not my favorite pleasure read.  But UNDER FIRE engaged me from the start with its beautiful balance of modern politics, terrorist groups, and organizations like the CIA and even more covert groups. The story moves at a good clip and I didn’t want to skip ahead.  Continue reading “Tom Clancy * Under Fire by Grant Blackwood * A Review”

‘Blue Prints’…A Review

reviews, authors, writingreviews, authors, writingreviews, authors, writingreviews, authors, writingreviews, authors, writing  REVIEW  5 out  of 5 Quills     ‘Blueprints’ by Barbara Delinsky

Everyone across America loves the ‘how to’ TV shows.  How to flip it, how to gut it, how to cook it, how to not be the worst cook, how to lay tile, how to create curb appeal, how to love it or list it….there is something for everyone.

‘Blue Prints’ by Barbara Delinsky, will take you ‘back stage’ to experience all the intrigue, the politics, theBlue Prints by Delinsky back stabbing of a popular. home improvement reality show.   The joy of her writing is she quickly tells about the many characters and before we turn too many pages, we care about all of them and are rooting for them. Continue reading “‘Blue Prints’…A Review”

All The Single Ladies…a Review

reviews, authors, writing reviews, authors, writingreviews, authors, writingreviews, authors, writing reviews, authors, writing(5 out of 5 quills)     A Review  All the Single Ladies by Dorothea Benton Frank

I turned the last page with a hearty, well satisfied (but somewhat regretful) sigh, last night.  I think the ultimate compliment to a writer is when a reader says, ‘I didn’t want it to end‘.  And that’s how I truly felt having to leave best friends, Lisa, Suzanne, Carrie, and Miss Trudie. All the Single Ladies

Any woman over (oh, let’s say) forty years of age will really relate to these middle aged women.  They have had their failures and triumphs; they are now knocking along as best they can, having learned the hard way that nothing in life is guaranteed or forever. They come together initially to champion the memory of a friend… Continue reading “All The Single Ladies…a Review”

Slavery Isn’t Such an Ugly Word….

Rape, pedophile, shit, faggot, nig–r,….now those are ugly words.  You can taste the filth in your mouth if you say them.  You are repulsed when you hear them.  Slavery‘ doesn’t sound ugly enough.  The word is bland, safe, and doesn’t make us sick in the way that other words do. Dear Reader, please understand that I’m not writing about what the word represents….I’m talking about the actual word. What happened in this country, during the 1800’s,  when a whole people were enslaved is emotionally unimaginable…..unless and until you read,  The Invention of Wings by Sue Monk-Kidd.  Available now.

A Review    reviews, authors, writingreviews, authors, writingreviews, authors, writingreviews, authors, writingreviews, authors, writing5 out of 5 quillsThe Invention of Wings

The story is of the Grimke sisters; Sarah and Nina, high born, white, plantation girls.  Based upon a true story, the author tells how the slave owner’s lives intertwine every day with their slaves.  The very slaves who are a part of the family if you talk to the owners.  A prison full of punishment if you were to speak with the slaves.  Continue reading “Slavery Isn’t Such an Ugly Word….”

Chick-Lit At Its Finest! A Review

reviews, authors, writingreviews, authors, writingreviews, authors, writingreviews, authors, writingreviews, authors, writing   Rating: 5 out of 5 quills!    ‘The Cavendon Women‘  by Barbara Taylor Bradford
A Reviewgreat fiction

In preparation for writing this review, I first read Cavendon Hall (a real pleasure) so that I would understand the full dynamic of this family.   This story is Downton Abbey on steroids.  So if you are a fan of this historic era (WWI & the early 1900’s) you will love both books!

Set in the countryside of Yorkshire, this old, aristocratic family must move with the times or be destroyed.  The ‘downstairs’ Swann family has sworn allegiance to the Earl of Mowbray’s family for close to two hundred years and their families have intertwined for centuries. Continue reading “Chick-Lit At Its Finest! A Review”

One True Heart by Jodi Thomas…a Review

reviews, authors, writingreviews, authors, writingreviews, authors, writingreviews, authors, writingreviews, authors, writing  Five out of 5 Quills (rating)  ‘One True Heart’ ** A ReviewOne True Heart

This was a story that this reader didn’t want to end.   I found myself rationing the pages to prolong the enjoyment.  (I know some of my readers do the same when the book is just so good).
The author, Jodi Thomas, takes us back to the little Texas town of Harmony.  Home!
Where people grow up, move away and then (always) return.  Sometimes to heal, sometimes to hide, sometimes to reconnect with loved ones.
Captain Millanie McAllen comes home to heal the wounds of a warrior. Continue reading “One True Heart by Jodi Thomas…a Review”

Death in a Dacron Sail by N.A. Granger…A Review

reviews, authors, writingreviews, authors, writingreviews, authors, writingreviews, authors, writingreviews, authors, writing  Five out of 5 quills (ranking)  A Review ** ‘Death in a Dacron Sail’Noelle.Scan

It was a real pleasure to discover a new author….well, actually she found me..and we’ve become friends.  But our friendship doesn’t stand in the way of an honest review and telling my readers how much I enjoyed this story.  N.A. Granger is a crisp and clean writer.  In her second book she takes her readers to the coast of Maine where little girls are turning up missing and then found dead; the latest wrapped in a Dacron sail and washed ashore.

My dear readers know that I differ from other reviewers…. Continue reading “Death in a Dacron Sail by N.A. Granger…A Review”