#BookReview – #Beastly by Alex Flinn

Book ReviewWrite a comment

BeastlyBeastly by Alex Flinn
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Alright folks! I hated the movie trailer. Stupid was one of the main reasons. The cute guy becomes ugly and finally realizes there’s more to life than looks. Ah. Thank you for such a keen observation, Mr. Holmes!

But the book, I honestly found it great. Once you remove the movie images from your head and you understand the true difficult journey the male MC undertakes until he finds his new self, you appreciate the story for what it truly is: a great tale. Beauty and the Beast is a classic story that has been revamped many times, yet, it never lost its flavor.

Kyle is popular. He attends the best high school in town. He’s rich. He’s handsome. He’s a jerk. He despises everything that is not him because he thinks he’s perfection. But one day, he meets Kendra. Kendra is a witch and she casts a spell. Kyle becomes a monster. He loses his beautiful appearance and is doomed to live sheltered from the outside world in a five story house in Brooklyn, because his father is too busy to deal with his own son. The father-son relationship will never heal. Kyle learns to live without anybody besides his maid, Magda, and his tutor, Will. To break the spell and go back to normal, Kyle must fall in love and be loved in return. How will he meet the girl of his dreams? How will she accept him for he is? Every day that goes by, Kyle changes his perception of the world. He accepts his condition. He even believes he’ll remain an animal forever, until a junkie tries to break in on a fateful night and Kyle makes a deal with the man to not say a word to the police in exchange for his sixteen year old daughter, Lindy.

I devoured that book. I enjoyed every minute of it. I accepted Kyle and I gave him a second chance. Will you?

View all my reviews

#BookRelease – Wilde’s Fire by Krystal Wade @KrystalWade

Book ReleaseWrite a comment

Hi everybody!

Krystal Wade just released her first book Wilde’s Fire from her series Darkness Falls and she’s here today to tell us more about her stories, her writing and herself.

Welcome Krystal and thank you again for choosing The Manicheans as your platform!

Let’s get started, shall we?

Hi Krystal!

Hi Johanna!

As always, thanks for passing by! You must be very excited about your first book release, and so are we. So naturally, what inspired you to write a YA fantasy story?

I read YA, so naturally, I write YA. I’m not 100% positive where the story came from, but for years, I’ve seen an image of a girl reaching out to touch something shimmering in a dense, green forest. That was all I had, and it took me about two years to give in, sit down, and write. I wrote a few chapters, decided I sucked at writing, read about a hundred books, then BAM, the full story hit me. I haven’t stopped writing since. 

Well, I’ve read some of your writing and I can definitely say your writing doesn’t suck. Did you use real events and real people as inspiration for your trilogy?

LOL. Thanks. 😉 Wilde’s Fire begins in modern-day Virginia then ends in a world more closely related to the 1500s than the 2000s. There are references to real people, things, places, etc, but most everything is made up.

Some of my characters do take on personalities of people I know, but I won’t tell you who. You can’t make me. 

Hahahaha. Ok. Well I know what you mean because I also take inspiration from people I know. What is your favorite scene in Wilde’s Fire? 

Can I give a blanket “This book rocks” to answer this questions? *Sigh* I think my favorite is when Arland takes Kate to his special place and gives her information that makes her head spin. This scene is layered with so many emotions. We really get a glimpse into the softer side of our fearless Leader Arland. (I can’t give too much away.)

*Sigh* Arland is a hottie. *Double sigh* I guess we’ll have to wait until we read the book to know more about him. Do you consider Kate your alter ego in the fiction world? What do you and what don’t you share with her?

I didn’t realize Kate and I share a lot of personality traits until after I edited Wilde’s Fire for the hundredth time. Her fascination with nature and her strength to keep moving, no matter the situation, is definitely from me. But if I were faced with the horrors she encounters, I’d probably crawl in a hole and die. (Did I just admit that?)

Well you never know what you’ll do, honestly. You might grab a heavy sword and start slaying relentlessly… Now, who are you favorite YA authors?

My favorite YA authors change frequently. Pretty much every time I read a new, amazing book. Suzanne Collins has probably been the most influential author I’ve read. The Hunger Games blew me away, and I reference them often. I recently read The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer (as you know because I told you I wanted my book to marry that book and have babies. I’m also Michelle Hodkin’s new, unofficial, stalker.) I love The Hobbit (Tolkien), The Chronicles of Narnia (Lewis), The Twilight Saga (Meyer, and I don’t want to hear it. She touched the hearts of millions.). Maggie Stiefvater is another author I love to follow. She is talented in so many ways. From her writing, to music, to art. She’s so creative. I usually spend hours digging around her blogs or vlogs. 

I agree about Michelle Hodkin. The book she wrote is fantastic. I recently posted a review of The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer you can find here if you’re interested. And I must admit, I don’t like Twilight but I respect Stephanie Meyer’s work tremendously. Naturally, who would you consider your mentor/strongest inspiration in the writing world?

Wow. This is tough. I’ve heard writing is a lonely profession, but it’s not. I’ve met so many amazing authors, musicians, artists, and readers. I don’t really want to say who’s been the most helpful. It’s a collaborative effort. Every one of my friends has helped develop ME and my writing. You are on that list, too.

Aw!!!! *Blushes* Well, you’re definitely a strong inspiration in my writing too. Here, I’m sending you flowers. LOL Would you write fantasy stories for the rest of your career or are you interested in other genres as well?

I don’t choose the genre. I write whatever I see. I’d like to finish writing My Life. The novel is a story about me and the struggles I endured to get where I am. One day, I’d like to see my painful past be a positive light in young people’s lives. Aside from that, most of the stories I have are fantasy/paranormal. I do have The Crow, which is more of a suspense, but I’ve been rethinking that one a bit. (Who knew this was a loaded question?)

I like that answer! And I’d like to see more from you in a different genre too! I could call you a writer with many faces. How do you juggle writing and everything else in your life? 

Coffee. Patience. More coffee.

I do tea, patience, and then more tea. But the result’s the same. 😉 Do you have any advice for other aspiring authors who’d like to write fantasy?

Don’t try too hard. Write what you feel and what you know. Find a critique partner and a bunch of beta readers/friends who aren’t afraid to tell you like it is. And most importantly, don’t be afraid of constructive criticism.

I agree! Red pen marks all over a piece of paper are the best learning tool! Last but not least, is there anything you’d like to say to your readers? And how will you react if Wilde’s Fire gets bad reviews? 

Cry. Hide in my closet for a month. Start smoking again. Haha. Just kidding. Smoke free for six years, and I have no intention of going back. Here’s the truth: Everyone has an opinion. I don’t expect everyone to have the same opinion. Some people will like my book. Some people will hate my book. There will be quite a few who think it’s so-so (I hope). If I get a bad review, I go on with my life. Negativity will not stop me from writing. In fact, bad reviews will probably make me work harder.

To my fans: I love you. I hope Wilde’s Fire is everything you’re looking for in a novel.

Well, all I have to say is congratulations and thank you so much for being such a wonderful writer! Who knows? Maybe you’ll find yourself in one of my books! 🙂 

Everyone – go buy Wilde’s Fire. You won’t regret it. 

++++

To read or re-read Krystal’s character interview of Katriona Wilde in Wilde’s Fire, please click here.

For more information about Wilde’s Fire:

Trailer: http://krystalwade.blogspot.com/p/vlogs.html

Will be available on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and in print soon.
@krystalwade

#Guest Post: How To Deal With Negative Reviews?

Guest Post2 Comments

Hi hi!

I haven’t been blogging much lately, but I got an explanation for that. I’m working  on my book… Therefore, I hope you don’t miss me too much. I promise to be back soon.

In the meantime, why don’t you enjoy the company of John Kenworthy? He wrote about how to deal with negative reviews. Thanks John for using The Manicheans as your platform today. Ladies and Gentlemen, without further ado, John Kenworthy!

+++

For new writers, one of the most difficult things with which to deal are negative reviews. They are bound to happen and frankly it is hard to get around it – they hurt. How can they not. For months, years even, we as writers have toiled away often in the solitude of our own workspace to write the best book we possibly can. We have laboured hard. We have been too close to characters, situations, voicings and all the multi-varied elements of our little tomes and have finally taken that leap and put it out there for mass consumption.

As it trickles out there – typically the first reviews are from family, friends and colleagues who somewhat may know us as fellow human beings traversing this lovely planet. They tend to be overtly positive, a bit effusive, somewhat generic and make us feel darned good about ourselves, our book and the cosmos in general. And it is not that these reviews are wrong – they just are based within a context that is different from a truly unbiased reviewer.

But those unbiased reviewers will surely come – and Lord help us – the inevitable scathing review will pop up as well and slap us back to cold, harsh reality. As with any setback in life, it is how we handle it that matters.

The first response for me is almost always – WHAT??? WHAT KIND OF IDIOT ARE YOU???

My second response is to take a deep breath and realize that this world has lots and lots of different kinds of idiots. And some aren’t truly idiots at all. Most people who review books do so thoughtfully and even in a deeply negative review attempt to share their own personal opinion based on their own context, persona, taste, and motivations.

“The Missionary and the Brute” recently received a negative (2 Star) review from an unbiased reader and I want to dissect for you how I synthesize the comments into being a positive for me as a living breathing evolving writer. Here is the review en toto as posted on GoodReads:

“I won this book from Good Reads Giveaways and just finished it.

John Kenworthy is a fairly good writer – he is very good at setting the stage and vividly describing Tanzania without being too verbose or losing the reader’s attention.

However, two things prevented me from really enjoying this book. First, is I found the main character “The Missionary” entirely unlikeable. I didn’t care about what was happening to him, which made me less interested in finding out what was going to happen to him. Second was the pacing – in a matter of 3 days I am supposed to believe that a group people who have never decide to make a bunch of major life altering decisions – including 2 who fall in love and 1 who wants to change her family life back home in the US. It felt like an unbelievable time line and distracted from the story the author was trying to tell.”

Okay, dissection time. The first line tells me that this is someone who entered a contest. She may or may not have truly had much interest in my book, the genre, or subject area. But she won it fair and square, got it in her hands and read it. This in many ways makes her a great audience for truly unbiased opinion. She had no real preconception as to what it was.

Click. Plop. Read.

The next line – kind of faint praise but when you are grasping to find the positives, you’ll take it. I credit her for not doing some blithe comparison to other writers – even ones that I might admire. I also credit her for doing what I often do myself in critical reviews – I start with a generic positive statement – move to specifics that reinforce that claim and then get into the meat of it. She does this very adroitly. I can glean from this some perceived strengths I may have in the descriptive work I have done, not to mention the twin accolades of not being verbose (When has THAT ever been attributed to me in any way? Woohoo!) and keeping – or at least not losing – the reader’s attention. Both of those are really important to me as a writer. I am quite lyrical with my language in “The Missionary and the Brute” and that might be perceived as verbose by some, but this reviewer felt it not. Also to be able to hold her attention throughout is a major plus. Especially in light of her following comments. To not like a book, yet be propelled along anyway says something in a positive way to me as its author.

The first negative comment comes in and I have to assess that from my own context and from other readers who have shared their thoughts. This reviewer found the Missionary Jadwin Ross to be wholly unlikeable. She is precisely right in this. I planned it that way and explicitly intended it to be so. I actually recoil much more strongly when folks who are mid-way through reading tell me how much they enjoy him! Really? Yikes!

This reviewer gleaned the exact correct response from Ross that I intended. My intent was to create a transgressive character not unlike Frank Norris’ McTeague or Chuck Palahniuk’s Tender Branson. Not likeable – but hopefully memorable and engaging enough to propel the narrative along. I bounce this off her comments regarding holding the attention and take away a positive. Therefore I don’t see this as too much of a negative in MY context – but it of course is in hers. Not every one is going to appreciate the thought behind an unlikeable protagonist. I surely understand that. But for me it is affirmation that she got it. Part of my intent with the Missionary character was to play with that concept that we are all too willing to believe in and give psychic breaks to protagonists that they don’t deserve. I toy with that even more with the device of the first person narrative which when stripped away at the end reveals even less that is personally admirable.

The next criticism is interesting to me. She thinks the pacing moves too quickly. Hm? That too was my intent to a degree. All of my fiction tends to whirl along at a breakneck pace with what I hope are well timed bits of respite to alleviate temporarily that tension. But the intent is that I want to propel the reader forward – to jolt with non-stop lightning bolts of thought, concept, action, sensuality, life to move the reader to the next equally thrilling section. I try to do what Walt Disney used to do in the theme parks – to PLUS the experience. I think I have done so and unabashedly so. But the worry now lies that I may have done so at the expense of natural pacings and realism.

This is a valid critical element. I know the craziness that ensues upon any journey to the parts of Tanzania that Jadwin and the Americans are traversing. It is high trauma in ways that are often subtle and devastating. For me, I know that to put a group of travelers together in those conditions for even a day – establishes a bond and a heightened sense of emotion than can be imagined in our workaday lives here. Imagine it. You are with a group of people for 24 hours a day. You eat together, you travel in discomfort together, you get sick together, you squat around the same hole pooping together – there is a complete dissheveling of the strictures of normalcy in those situations. I know that. But she didn’t feel that in what I have written.

That is on me as the writer then.

If she did not sense the reality of that even amidst a compressed time frame of three (or was it four?) days, then that is on me for failing to adequately share that through my writing. I need to watch that in future writings that I don’t assume my own sense of context and project that onto the reader. It is therefore valid on her part.

What else I can gather from this review is what she did not write about. This book is complex. It has three distinct non-linear timelines and two POV’s. That those didn’t register strongly as negative or positive gives me heart that they were simply unobtrusive and that they were accessible. That she wasn’t knocked out by the myriad twists and turns, can be seen as either positive or negative, but tells me that they weren’t restrictive for her accessibility to the book.

Overall, while the review is a two-star critique, there are things to be happily learned about the book and about myself. Life and art are learning adventures to be sure. I’d prefer to try to find the path to grow. Not wallow in the malaise of self-pity and doubt.

I have far too many books that need yet to be written.

+++

Guest blogger John Kenworthy is author of the chilling new novel “The Missionary and the Brute”, a thriller set in Tanzania, East Africa. His previous books have included “The Hand Behind the Mouse: an intimate biography of Ub Iwerks” and “Bungee Jumping & Cocoons”.

His latest work:

The Missionary and the Brute on Amazon (paperback)

The Missionary and the Brute on Amazon (Kindle)

The Missionary and the Brute on publisher’s site

The Missionary and the Brute Blog

Note to Self (125) My Confidence’s Back Up

Friendship, Note to SelfWrite a comment

I’m going to sound corny. I know I am. Because to a perfect stranger, I look like I know what I’m talking about every time I open my mouth. Well… I feel intimidated by a lot of smarter people all the time, and I hide my nervousness by just staying silent and observing, like I’m in a deep concentration state or something. It’s easier to look pensive than to say something stupid.

I sometimes don’t feel as confident as I should be. It’s normal. I express doubts like everyone else. But I don’t like to show I don’t know. I don’t like to feel ignorant, and when I actually feel challenged, I force myself to swallow my pride and I step up my game.

I started law school when I was seventeen. In France, once you graduate high school you go directly to university, and you study whatever you want, and this includes law. College and grad school are combined. I never studied anything else than law and political science until my twenty-third birthday. I spent six years reading law books and taking law finals. My life revolved around law. I even forced myself to forget I loved to write for fun. If I wanted to become a lawyer, I had to make a few sacrifices.

I never was the star of the class. I did my work and I got good grades, but I wasn’t an A student. I maintained a nice B average throughout my years, and the more I progressed on my journey to becoming a lawyer, the less I felt confident about my real abilities to work as a lawyer. Paradoxical. But true. When I decided to move to the US to finish my legal studies, I felt even less confident. My first few classes gave me a reality check, and I knew right off the bat I had to work my ass off if I ever wanted to pass and graduate. I certainly worked hard and I got my degree. And then I worked harder to study for the bar and I became an attorney. But what did I know about being an attorney? Nothing. I was clueless. All the moot courts and mediation classes wouldn’t change a thing. I needed a real attorney job now.

Another reality check hit me in the face when I started job hunting. My resume looked nice, but so did millions of other resumes out there. Some candidates’ credentials were impressive. I didn’t graduate from Harvard. I didn’t have a 4.0 GPA. I didn’t clerk for a judge. My father wasn’t a lawyer in town. I had nothing but my brains and my determination to make it through. After many months of searching, I finally landed a great job, but not as a lawyer. I work as a paralegal. Still, the title doesn’t mean I can’t do legal work. I learned so much, and I’m grateful for the chance I was given because it’s honestly the best experience I could ever have asked for. My ex used to always criticize the fact I didn’t have the title of associate. But a title is only a title. It doesn’t define anything besides your paycheck.

I swallowed my pride and I embraced the opportunity. I’m proud of where I work. I’m proud of how far I’ve come, knowing I grew up in a small town where nobody ever gave a damn about me, and I didn’t know anyone in the law business. I never doubted my intelligence, but for a long time I was intimidated by big shot lawyers because I knew these guys weren’t only smart, they were brilliant. Yet, I fought and I never gave up. My first experience working for a big law firm was a disaster, but I learned nonetheless. I sharpened my blades little by little, until I reached the level I’m at today.

Nothing comes easy. I have to prove myself every day. And because I love challenges so much, I decided to participate in more activities at work, and one of these big challenges was Moot Court. I remember my Moot Court days many years ago. But it was a different setting, and a different logic. When I entered the conference room for the first Moot Court session, I honestly wondered if I’d ever be able to speak one word during two hours twice a week. I was surrounded by brilliant minds. Could I stand that new environment and prove I could do this too? You bet I could.

It took a few sessions, but it finally happened. I felt so great, and so proud of myself. I worked hard, I read and reread the material, I took notes, I watched and listened, and finally, I held the reins and I rode my horse to victory. I could do this. I could actually think like a lawyer. I could actually speak like a lawyer. What a blast.

For the great opportunity that was given to me, I’d also like to thank a very talented and brilliant mind who’s definitely smarter than me, but I won’t tell him. Between us, a woman should never admit a man is smarter than her. You didn’t do anything besides letting me in these Moot Court sessions, but that experience truly changed my life. Thanks again pal. I know I can really do anything now.

Note to Self (124) My Fairy Tale Wedding

Note to Self6 Comments

I haven’t looked at these pictures in a while. It feels weird to look at them now. I think they belong to another world, and the girl wearing the white gown and the veil isn’t really me.

I guess it’s me after all. I never believed in fairy tales, and the prince charming story didn’t make much sense to me. Yet, when the day of my wedding finally came, I did everything the way every little girl dreams her wedding to be. I had the big white gown, the veil, the castle, the great food, about one hundred guests and what else… ah also a huge cathedral.

So here we are. The scenery couldn’t be more perfect. The weather, the sky, birds, trees, squirrels, they all sang the melody of love just like in Cinderella. And I believed for one moment bliss would last forever.

I felt so impatient to start my new life, I was eager to know when it’d begin! Oh give me details, fill me in, come on, I’m dying here!

We ate. We drank. We danced.

Everything felt just right. I accomplished everything a woman could ask for and I was meant to live happily ever after.

Two souls became one, and as long as love belonged to the picture, possibilities would be endless.

But love didn’t last.

I got thrown against a wall of pre-conceived ideas and when the wall finally broke, I realized the fairy tale had only been a dream. I had opened a new chapter in the book of my life and I didn’t know what to expect. I hoped a lot. I prayed a lot. And at the end of the journey, I turned the page of my book and I left all the fairy tale illusions behind.

Women believe in lies. They believe the size of the ring matters. They want a big diamond and a big dress, and a big cake, and a big ceremony. But what for? Will everything big bring you the true happiness you deserve?

I learned one simple thing from my failed relationship; at the end of the day when you close your eyes and fall asleep, if your heart still aches, there’s something wrong. No fairy tale wedding will ever change that. You’ll end up sad, depressed, and angry. You’ll ask yourself a million times the same question: why did I get married? You’ll look at yourself in the mirror and you’ll beg for a way out. Any way out. Some people will cheat. Some people will run. Some people will hurt. But as long as the ache’s still there, you’ll never really be free.

Think about it. Your fairy tale wedding is what you make of it. Not the bling. Not the wow effect. You only need true love. Nothing else.

Note to Self (123) Words of Wisdom

Note to Self2 Comments

There are days with and days without. Today was with and without. I got to write, make some progress on my novel and I also entered an argument with my former office mate. No name needs to be given. No details need to follow. I just feel awful and that sentiment won’t die until I put these words down.

I’m sorry. I’m sorry because I hurt you and I did it because I cared. If I didn’t care, I wouldn’t have bothered. I should have known better and been wiser. I let the best of me go and for a few minutes, I turned evil. I hate getting mad. I hate raising my voice. I just wish none of it had happened, but unfortunately it did.

I hope you understand my lack of composure wasn’t personal. I seriously never had anything against you. My reaction was triggered by your negative attitude and your inability to understand your role in this environment. You’re surrounded by sharks. You have to learn how to walk fast, but instead you wanted to simply crawl and vegetate in a perpetual childish state. I can’t babysit you. I can’t protect you from the outside aggressions that will come your way. Someday, you’ll thank me. If you ever realize I wanted you good. I helped you. I did everything so you could learn from your mistakes and become a better individual. But will the truth of my feelings ever register with you?

This I don’t know. Maybe you’ll hate me forever. I did my deed. I did what I was supposed to do. I won’t be hated in vain if you really want to hate me, because today I showed you what it feels like to be an apprentice.

#CQ – Chocolate and Armageddon

Curiosity Quills, Food, FunnyWrite a comment

This week on Sweet Fantasy Bytes, we’re talking chocolate and end of the world.

Chocolate comes from fermented, roasted ground beans of the Theobroma cacao, or cocoa tree, and can be retraced to both Mayan and Aztec royal and religious events. Priests offered cocoa seeds to the gods and presented chocolate drinks during sacred ceremonies. Cocoa beans were so valuable that all of the areas conquered by the Aztecs that grew cocoa beans were ordered to pay a tax, called ‘tribute’.

The Europeans sweetened and fattened chocolate, and in the nineteenth century, Briton John Cadbury created the first chocolate bar by developing an emulsification process to make solid chocolate. The rest is history. Chocolate spread during the industrial revolution to the entire Western world and our little taste buds learned to adore chocolate in every dessert and bonbon manufactured and sold in fancy containers of all shapes and sizes.

Given chocolate’s Mayan sacred origins, the idea of a fantasy story involving chocolate and the end of the world came naturally to me. You could draw an entire outline aimed at plotting the end of the world through the eyes of a character destined to receive a mysterious assortment of chocolates, and every piece he or she’ll pick would trigger a series of events that would eventually seal the fate of the universe. Imagine the elements you could incorporate in a story like this. Possibilities would be endless! I’m thinking time travel, a crazy love story between the two main protagonists and a villain ex-boyfriend/girlfriend who’s chasing the female/male MC everywhere she/he goes.

I’d like to draft a prologue for next week’s post, and I’d love to hear your suggestions, so comment away! Mostly, I’d like your input on the kind of MC you’d like to read about, and what sort of challenges she/he will meet on her/his fantastic journey. And remember, chocolate may be evil, but it’s still horribly delicious.

#Book #Review – The Unbecoming Of Mara Dyer by Michelle Hodkin

Book Review1 Comment

The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer (Mara Dyer, #1)The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer by Michelle Hodkin
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

So here it all began. A friend of mine advised me to read this book and you know, every person’s taste is different, but I said ok. I bought the book without knowing what the story was about. Verdict? I DEVOURED IT.

The writing blew my mind. It starts fast and furious, the first paragraph takes you right down a road you can’t stop following until the very end, and when you finally reach the end, you simply want more. I almost wished I didn’t finish the book so the pleasure could last forever, and I want to start the book all over again and pretend it’s my first time reading it.

The MC is brilliant. Mara Dyer plays the perfect troubled teenager who isn’t obnoxious and gets under your skin, quite on the contrary, she invites you and makes you feel perfectly at home in her disturbed reality. High school awkward moments, first crush, first love, first everything but not the way you think. Mara doesn’t depict the picture of a character you’ve seen somewhere else. She’s unique in her own insanity, or should I say extraordinary ability to control life and death? Her boyfriend Noah struck me in awe from beginning to end. First he’s stunning. He’s smart, he’s handsome, he’s sexy, and he’s a gentleman. Second, he has powers too. Third, he’s simply irresistible. Nobody will tell you Noah sucks. Oh no, he doesn’t suck.

What about the plot? After a tragic event involving the death of her friends, Mara suffers from PTSD and her family decides to move from RI to Florida. New environment, new school, new life… Despite the move, Mara’s still haunted by her past. She needs to find answers in order to stop experiencing awful visions and hallucinations. She sees dead people everywhere. But mostly? Not only does she have nightmares, but she also realizes she’s a murderer. Noah falls head over heels for her and tries to help her the best he can, but will Mara follow his advice and resist the urge to use her evil powers?

Read this book. You’ll love it.

View all my reviews

#Book #Review – The Zona by Nathan Yocum

Book Review, Curiosity Quills2 Comments

The ZonaThe Zona by Nathan Yocum
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Picture the end of the world as we know it. Imagine our civilization vanished into thin air. Think of a world where the infrastructure and the government are gone. Chaos? Not so much.

A new order has arrived. The Church controls western territories that haven’t been subject to floods, pandemics, and nuclear radiations. The Zona is one of these territories. Lead is a Preacher. He knows how to spread the word of the Lord. His mission? Kill the infidels. Kill men who don’t abide by the Church’s rules anymore. The Church sends him to punish – by the blanket or the rope – a former Preacher, Terrence. But Lead can’t kill him.

Lead has now failed in his holy mission. Cruisader Eliphaz comes after Terrence and him, hunting them like animals. Lead must repent for he has sinned.

The chase forces Lead and Terrence to stick together. Lead has no faith in the Church anymore and wants a way out. That way out is called New Pueblo, a hidden town away from the Zona where life like before the apocalypse is possible.

Will Eliphaz get hold of the fugitives before they reach New Pueblo?

The Zona is a gripping and dark tale that’ll haunt your thoughts until the last chapter. Lead is a stunning character who searches for his true identity in a world where superficial dreams don’t survive.

Back to basics. Be ready to start a journey into the bowels of the human nature.

View all my reviews

Note to Self (122) My Perfect Guy #MaraDyer

Book Review, Note to Self4 Comments

I stayed up late reading a book that was so good it actually gave me awesome weird dreams. I dreamed of the main character, the sweet and rebellious Noah Shaw from The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer (like a friend of mine already said, I want to have this book’s babies).

Ok. If Noah Shaw’s real, please contact me immediately and let’s have a serious talk. Because buddy, you’re the man of my dreams (and you’ll probably remain the man of my dreams because I’ve sincerely never met such an amazing soul like yours in real life). I feel like a man drooling in front of a Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue and I can’t take my eyes off these almost naked girls wondering how much of their beauty is real, and how much has been altered with Photoshop. Sigh. Why does my imagination need to play such evil tricks on me? I didn’t want to fantasize about a book character. I didn’t want to feel all mush inside like a thirteen year old girl every time I read a chapter and there’s a scene involving him. I don’t even like the name Noah. I actually love the last name Shaw. Sigh again. Can I eat a full bucket of ice cream now?

Why is Noah Shaw so perfect you’ll ask? Well, here are the reasons: he’s tall, he has blue eyes and apparently he has a killer body (oh dear Lord!!!), he’s eccentric, he speaks with an English accent, he’s smart, he’s rich, he’s protective, he’s an awesome lover and he has a dark past… *plants a huge spoon into the bucket of ice cream and gulps a big scoop… chews patiently until the cold of the ice cream goes up to my head and I need to take a break* The absolute mix of a bad boy with a generous heart, the guy that will fight for you and will make sweet love to you and make you melt until you disappear between the cracks of your creaking wooden floor (let’s just imagine you live in an old mansion too and you’re haunted by your dark past)… I want him. I seriously will travel the world and look for him. Where are you Noah Shaw!!! At least with models, you know they exist because their picture can be taken. My Noah Shaw is only the product of somebody else’s imagination – what an imagination though! – and I have to suffer in silence because I know I’ll never find him in any magazine. Maybe there’ll be a movie based on the book and then, I’ll officially die, but my taste is so picky, I fear the actor chosen to play the role won’t be good enough.

Have I gone back to my teenage years where all I thought about were boys? I didn’t have a boyfriend until I turned seventeen, and he didn’t even count as a boyfriend. Sure he had a dark past and he was rich. But he wasn’t tall, he didn’t have blue eyes, he wasn’t eccentric, he wasn’t particularly protective, I can’t say about his loving abilities, he didn’t speak with an English accent and he was somewhat smart but not smart like Shaw. *grabs the spoon again and gulps more ice cream* I cannot say it enough, I’m so in love right now, it’s not even funny.

For those of you who don’t wish to be spared, just go read this book. It’s the best I’ve read in a while.