Reviews

Read my reviews on the latest releases in the both fiction and non-fiction.

Book Review: Death Made Me by Keeley Webb

Last week I had the pleasure of reading Death Made Me by Keeley Webb and I’ve posted my review below along with the book cover and description.

I absolutely loved this book and was gripped from the very first page. The author weaves an amazing tale of love and loss and the lessons learned in death. The writing is flawless and I loved the tone and style. The first half of the book tells Barry’s story and I loved all the characters and how they interact. I also loved the end of his section where he took his mother upon her death to be with his father. There were lots of moments throughout where I had tears in my eyes. Part two of the book is Emily’s story and once more I was gripped. I loved everything that happened and how all the characters grew and matured as the story continued. I found everything so believable as if I were a part of the story and this is what makes a great book for me. Being able to immerse myself in the story and become the characters. This truly was an amazing book and I can’t wait to read the sequel. This is one author I am adding to my watch list. If you are looking for something a little different that will grip you from the start and have you turning the pages, then this book is a great choice.

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Longshot Island Magazine Open For Submissions

Longshot Island Magazine ReviewLongshot Island Magazine Review

Longshot Island magazine is relatively new and I had the pleasure of reading the first issue. On their website, you’ll find plenty of information including:

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Book of the Month February 2017

Book of the MonthWelcome to my new “Book of the Month” post. As a writer, I read a lot, so I thought it would be a great idea to share my favorites. I tend to read at least 4 or more books each month. Some I love, some I don’t. What I want to do with this post is share my favorite book from those I’ve read each month. I’m hoping it will help you find some great new reads. Today’s post is my book of the month for February and it’s my pleasure to announce that it’s Midnight Rose by Author Dani Hart.

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Dolores Keaveney Childrens Author and Artist

Dolores Keaveney Children's Author & Artist

Yesterday evening as part of Oldcastle Writers Group, I had the privilege of meeting Dolores Keaveney children’s author and artist. It was a wonderful night and this lady is such an inspiration. Dolores is a self-published author and her books are beautiful. She told us all about the self-publishing process from start to finish and even read from one of her books. It really was eye opening and I hadn’t realised there was so much to do when it comes to writing and publishing a children’s picture book. You have to write the book, design a front cover, create the book in InDesign, print a mockup, edit, edit, edit, and then have print copies done for reviews. There really is a lot involved including getting your ISBN from Nielsen, a UK company. You also have to find someone to do you a bar code if you are self-publishing too.

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Book Reviews 2016 – A Thousand Boy Kisses

In the last couple of weeks I read two excellent books that I am adding to my best book reviews 2016 list. The first of these is A Thousand Boy Kisses by Tillie Cole. The second is Reckless by Maggie Shayne.  Below are my reviews for these books.

A Thousand Boy Kisses by Tillie Cole (Book Reviews 2016)

A Thousand Boy Kisses Tillie Cole

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My latest 5* Book Reviews for April/May 2016

Following on from yesterday’s post about helping authors by writing book reviews, I thought I would share my latest 5* book reviews for April/May 2016.  I tend to read quite a lot, but I only share books that I love. Below are the books that really stood out for me over the past two months. One is a complete series, the others although part of a series are all standalone reads.

Eternal Love: The Immortal Witch Series (Immortal Witches #1, 2 & 3)

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How to Help Authors: Book Reviews

how to help authors book reviewIn today’s post I wanted to talk about how to help authors by writing book reviews. There are so many books out there now and especially with the introduction of eBooks. How do you choose what to read? If I go into a bookstore it’s the cover that will attract my attention first. After that I read the back cover to see what the book is about, and if I’m still interested, I will open the book on a random page and start reading. Why do I do this? I like to see if a random page will draw me in enough to buy the book. I also like to see the writing style of the author.

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On Books That Stir The Emotions

quotes on reading

I love to read. That’s probably a given seeing as though I like to write, but I do love a good book. There are some amazing authors out there and self-publishing has brought even more of them to the forefront. I am never without my kindle. It comes everywhere with me. I love how small and neat it is as well as the fact that it can hold thousands of books. I own a paperwhite edition and it wasn’t something that I thought I would like as much. You see, I love books. I love the feel of them, the smell of them, and just everything about them. My husband bought me a kindle for my birthday about two years ago now and since then I have devoured some many amazing books that I never would have had the pleasure to enjoy. So many of the books have been free too. I have discovered some really talented writers and I just couldn’t imagine life without my kindle now.

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My Experience with The 30 Day Weight Loss Challenge

weight loss challenge

photo credit: blog.yvettesalva.com

Yesterday, I spoke about the journey to smoke freedom that I had been on this past year. I also mentioned the weight gain I had experienced too. Today I want to tell you about one method that I have been using to help me shed the pounds that have crept up. This method isn’t a diet or starvation technique. It’s not a “spend an hour at the gym everyday” method either. This is actually a natural method to weight loss that actually makes a great deal of sense and works.

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Beyond The Pale: Dark Fantasy Anthology Review

I was delighted to receive an advance copy of this book in return for my honest opinion. First off, I have to say that I love fantasy and it has always been a favourite genre of mine. This book is a compilation of short stories, something I very seldom read. I was a little apprehensive but I’m glad I received this book and it has changed my opinion of short stories completely. I always thought of short stories as being too short to actually capture the mind or attention. I didn’t feel that they would build the characters or allow me to become engrossed. I was terribly wrong and Beyond the Pale has proven that to me.

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