Yay! I am very excited to announce our first Stephen King review today. No, we’re not starting at the beginning and no, we’re not starting with a novel. Where we turn instead is, perhaps, his most important piece of non-fiction. On Writing is a very personal essay on what Stephen King believes makes a writer, a writer. On Writing has sold millions of copies and it is regularly brought up in writer’s groups as one of their favorite texts. It’s a split between two styles of writing. The first …
Giveaways
Bird Box
The Netflix movie version of the book has been one of the year’s more controversial movies. It’s been simultaneously hailed as ground-breaking and as not very good by different groups of critics. I don’t have an opinion on the film either way – I prefer to read and it’s fair to say that Josh Malerman’s Bird Box is a suspenseful, compelling novel that you’re going to want to see through to the end. The premise is a peculiar one. There is something out there. Something that if you catch …
Cut And Run
Mary Burton is going to be a star. She’s already one of the elite group of writers who can claim to be a New York Times bestselling author and the sky’s really the limit. There may be no better master of suspense around today. Her novels not only keep me on the edge of my seat; they leave me wondering if I will ever sleep again sometimes. Cut and Run is no exception and this story of twins who were separated as children but are reunited by horrific crimes is unputdownable. Faith McIntyre is a …
Fahrenheit 451
Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury is considered to be one of the all-time science-fiction classics. It was written in the middle of the 20th century but unlike many of its contemporaries; it’s not feeling its age. It takes very little time to realize that there are parallels with the modern era here and that the world it describes is much closer to ours than might be comfortable for you. The “hero” of the tale is Guy Montag. He’s a fireman. That’s not the kind of fireman who rescues cats from …
Blood For Blood
Victoria Selman’s Blood For Blood is on the shortlist for the CWA Debut Dagger Award which is a very prestigious position to be in. There’s a lot of competition in the thriller market today and rising above the background hum is a real challenge. This novel stands out for the unusual idea that a police profiler might, in turn, be profiled by a serial killer. Ziba Mackenzie, this is the first book in a two book series featuring this character, is our profiler. She is caught up in the …
I Am Watching You
Teresa Driscoll’s I Am Watching You has been one of the biggest hits of the last year. It has nearly 9,000 positive reviews on Amazon now! It will come as no surprise that it’s also an Amazon bestseller. It poses a simple and beguiling question of the reader “What would it take to make you intervene?” A woman on a long train journey spots two young men flirting with some young girls. Naturally, she doesn’t think anything of it – isn’t this how young people are? However, as she listens to …
What Have You Done
Matthew Farrell is a rising star on the thriller scene. What Have You Done is already a Washington Post bestseller and an Amazon Charts smash hit. It seems likely that there’s going to be a point in the future where Matthew is one of the biggest names in the industry. More than 2,000 positive reviews on Amazon indicate that for many people – he already is. We begin in a motel room where the body of a woman has been discovered. It’s been mutilated and near destroyed. Liam Dyer, the local …
The Running Dream
Wendelin Van Draanen’s The Running Dream was an engrossing and emotional story. After losing her bottom part of her leg in a bus accident, a high schooler, Jessica Carlisle, was told by the doctors that she would never run again. Before she got on the bus to a track meet, Jessica's life was perfect. Not only could she set a record, she had friends, a wonderful family, and was well respected by her teammates. However, when the bus was hit by a truck that would not only claim the life of the …
Listen to Your Mother: What She Said Then, What We’re Saying Now
Listen to Your Mother: What She Said Then, What We're Saying Now presents the importance of motherhood. This collection of stories was born from a live event asking women to share their stories about motherhood—now the show happens in more than 20 cities across America. This frank, funny, and touching anthology puts many of those stories down on paper and discusses the complex and diverse array of parenting experiences, from step-motherhood to infertility, and everything in between. An …