Beautiful Blogger Award

Thank you to MC Lavocat and Jennifer Howard for the Beautiful Blogger Award! These are so much fun :)

These are two awesome ladies I am so pleased to know. Both are wonderful writers with new books out (hint, hint, go check them out on Amazon) and MC Lavocat has a fabulous blog she was so kind to host me on not to long ago. Click on their names and check them out! 

So...the rules. 

Copy and place the Beautiful Blogger Award in your post.

Thank the person that nominated you and link back to their blog.

Tell 7 things about yourself.


Nominate 7 fellow Bloggers, tell them by posting a comment on their Blog*.

7 Random Things About Me

1. My favorite candy right now is the Ghirardelli Dark Chocolate and Sea Salt bar. 

2. I am a Star Trek fan, and not just the new ones. I can't say I've watched every episode, but I've seen every series from the very first from Star Trek with Captain Kirk up to the 2001 Star Trek: Enterprise, and all the movies in between. 

3. My favorite video game is Uncharted, and I can't wait for the movie!

4. My favorite TV show is The Mentalist. 

5. One of the best indie movies I've watch recently is Safety Not Guaranteed. Red Lights was also really good, and they're both on Netflix for anyone who wants to check them out. 

6.  My name comes from my two aunts' names, Delsie and Sheri, getting smashed together

7. My little sister and I could practically be twins even though we're four years apart. Some of our baby pictures are impossible to tell apart. 

Moonlit Blog Tour: Guest Post (Jadie Jones)

Welcome to the Moonlit Blog Tour! 

Author Jadie Jones is here today for a special guest post, talking to readers about how her work with horses influenced her writing of Moonlit. Welcome Jadie!

***

To me, horses are as close to tangible magic as there is in this world. They represent every element: earth, solid and strong, air, lightning fast - they can fly across a field like a gust of wind, fire, brilliance of spirit and always a spark of unpredictability, and water, their movements fluid and powerful.

They're also home to me, a sanctuary from any kind of trouble. Even though what I appreciate most about them is the wildness, I am drawn to the steadfastness of their hearts. They can trust and love, and they can also fear and retaliate. They are creates of both light and dark: capable of incredible acts of empathy, and capable of deadly force.

Most interesting though, is the way horses read people, and the relationships they have with specific handlers. These bonds can last years of absence, a horse recognizing a favorite person when their paths cross somewhere else. I'll test that bond later this summer. I gave up my one-in-a-million horse in college. She had an aggressive kind of cancer, and I ran out of money to treat it. So I gave her to a women in Florida who had the means and the connections to try experimental treatments. It worked, and my horse survived. I haven't seen her in ten years, and I am going to visit her at the end of June.

I tell you that story, because writing about losing her was the best way I knew how to cope. I journaled. I even used the experience to develop a risk analysis report for my college senior project. I sketched her. I wrote short stories, longer stories. I never did anything with them - they were just a place for grief to find a way out. Then I started working on Moonlit. Before I knew it, my main character had a gray, one-in-a-million mare that she loses under extreme circumstances. But this story I got to control, and it gave me a wonderful peace.

Horses are a part of me at a soul level. When I was a child, my grandfather would tell me stories about a girl who belonged with horses, and I felt like I'd found my place in the world. Writing about them allows me to explore the brightest and darkest parts of my own mind and heart. They give me courage and strength, and remind me that it's okay to fail, because 99..9% of the time, you get to try again. That's incredibly liberating.

Moonlit is available now from: 

Amazon Kindle * Amazon * Goodreads

WiDo Publishing * Barnes & Noble

***

Author Jadie Jones

Georgia native Jadie Jones first began working for a horse farm at twelve years old, her love of horses matched only by her love of books. She went on to acquire a B.A. in equine business management, and worked for competitive horse farms along the east coast. The need to write followed wherever she went.
She currently coaches a hunt seat equitation team that competes in the Interscholastic Equestrian Association, and lives with her family in the foothills of north Georgia. When she’s not working on the next installment of the Moonlit series, she is either in the saddle or exploring the great outdoors with her daughter. Moonlit is her first book.

Blog * Facebook * Twitter * Pinterest

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Review: Here, There and Otherwhere Vol. 1

Phyl Manning spent much of her 45-year career in education in overseas schools, and the adventures she recounts in her narrative nonfiction novel, Here, There and Otherwhere Vol. 1 shares her experiences with readers in a way they won't soon forget. 

The main reason I don't usually care to read memoirs is that it is incredibly difficult to cover an entire lifetime without the story becoming choppy, or worse yet becoming uninteresting at times and losing readers attention. For those who stay away from memoirs for similar reasons, you will find no such problems with this book. 

Manning approaches her life's story differently than any other memoir-type book I have encountered. Rather than detailing chronologically her experiences as a teacher in Southeast Asia and the West Pacific, she captures moments of her life that impacted her and shares each one individually. The whole book is laid out as a series of short stories. I found this style to be a wonderful way to share her adventures. Because each story was self-contained, it never felt disjointed, and each one was absolutely captivating. 

It would be impossible to share what I enjoyed about each story without this review becoming incredibly long, but I loved how each story held its own particular meaning. Some showed the simple beauty of the wildlife and vegetation, others captured the humanity of a situation. Every time I finished a story I found myself pausing before moving on to the next one, thinking about why Manning included it in her book. The beautiful thing about the stories is that each reader can glean something different from them. They have a way of impacting the reader very personally. 

Manning's writing was impeccable. Not only are her mechanics spot on, but her ability to describe an environment fully immerses the reader in the setting. She is able to communicate emotions very effectively, drawing readers into the experience even more. I also enjoyed the humor she was able to insert into man situations. She is not afraid to laugh at herself for screaming at the top of her lungs in fear only to find out later that she was never in danger at all. It is hard to express in just a few words how this book affected me. I can only say that it is one that will stick with me for quite a long time. 

Here, There and Otherwhere is available now from Amazon and B&N. 

Stay up to date on Phyl's books at KalanaPress, Phyl'sBooks, email: filmafrica40@gmail.com, Phone (603)654-9240, or Mail: 374 Burton Hwy, Wilton, NH 03086

You can also enter to win a paperback copy of Vol. 1&2 below!

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AND...stop by Phyl Manning's blog to find out more about the Elephant Themed Contest Phyl is sponsoring. 

ELEPHANTS*PACHYDERMS *ELEPHANTHOLOGY* ELEPHANTS

Sure, they can paint—but only YOU can write. Yes, about elephants. We’re hosting a two-level contest with (a) modest $$ winnings and (b) possible inclusion in Elephanthology, a planned anthology of elephant lore—short stories of fiction or narrative nonfiction (imaginative writing, not articles per se), poetry, flash fiction . . . all published with author’s name for each piece.

To find out more, check out Phyl’s website. 

Review: Revelations

Kendika seems to be adjusting to her new life in the "strange fishbowl world," but even though she has learned to follow the rules, that doesn't mean she is happy to let everything remain as it is. Kendika begins a careful friendship with one of the sets of eyes that watches them, testing their willingness to allow change. 

In this, the third installment of the White Swans series of short stories, Kendika is once again the main star, which I enjoyed, but troublesome Jillian hasn't been forgotten. Jillian plays a lesser role in this book, but it won't be the last we see of her. 

To me, this book felt very transitional. The first two books mainly focused on introducing the world and the two female lead characters. This book begins to test the boundaries of the world they live in and makes readers ponder the current limits and how they may change. It seemed that Bazzi was setting up the series for big changes in the next book when it came to both characters and plot. It didn't have as much of a stand alone feel as the first two, but I think Bazzi has done a good job of priming readers to want to go out and snatch up the next book as soon as it's released. 

Kendika shows a lot of growth as a character, and I enjoyed seeing her become stronger and influencing those around her. Her growing relationship with Lord Deverow progressed a bit more in this book as well. They were so tentative around each other at first, Kendika especially because she was frightened and unsure. They were becoming friends during the first two books, and now they are starting to realize that they may be able to find real happiness in this world if they are together. The romance is very clean, and for now more in the background, but I look forward to watching it continue to develop. 

Jillian showed development as well. She was a little less self centered, though the changes in her were more subtle. In the second book she came off as quite spoiled and bratty, whereas now she is becoming more devious and cunning. I am looking forward to seeing how Jillian's plans unfold. Bazzi did a great job in this book at setting the stage for future conflict between these two young women. I am eager to read the next installment. 

Revelations is available June 5th from Amazon. 

Random Acts of Kindness Blogfest

As a part of the Wayman Publishing "Random Acts of Kindness" blogfest, I wanted to share a quick story. 

***

Three years ago I decided to go back to school and work on becoming a registered dental hygienist. After a year of prereqs I got accepted to the program. That's when the real worked started. The program was harder than I ever expected and consumed nearly all my time. My poor family put up with endless amounts of homework and late nights while I tried to power through my classes. 

Along with my family's amazing support, a sweet lady in my church took it upon herself to find a way to help me and my family and make getting through school a little easier. What Charlotte decided to do made such an impact on me that I will never forget her kindness. Charlotte brought us dinner once a month for two entire semesters. I was so blown away by her thoughtfulness. Every meal was homemade and delicious, but what really made them special was that she did it with so much kindness. It was one night we didn't have to worry about cooking when my husband and I were both getting home late. It took away so much stress and made spending a little more time with my family possible. I am so grateful for Charlotte and the kind person she is!

Stop by and check out the other wonderful stories!

Review: Mann of War

Robert Mann thought he had left his days of carrying weapons behind him, but when his life long friend presents a plan to dole out justice to those who truly deserve it yet keep skirting the law John finds himself contemplating death in its various forms on a regular basis. The questions becomes, though, what is John willing to give up in order to make evil men pay? 

What struck me about this book right away was the complexity. The characters themselves are well developed and carefully crafted. The main characters had backgrounds that helped create rounded characters, and they progressed throughout the novel with subtly I don't always see. I found myself interested in their lives from the very beginning. Even the cast of bad characters, even though each only made a brief appearance were memorable in one way or another. 

The plot itself was also fairly complex in the depth of planning and development it entailed. It was obvious that Brantingham researched many aspects of this book. He managed to created complete scenes and believable situations. Robert's travels take him all over the world, making brief stops in places like London and Canada, and in each area the scenes drew me in. I was particularly intrigued by the stop in Canada when Robert begins to contemplate the neighbors of the criminal he is tracking and how the man's presence and then absence would impact them. 

Throughout Robert's quest to rid the world of horrible people who have escaped the law, a romance attempts to side track him, and does a fairly good job of it at times. On Robert's second mission he meets Charlie, a waitress working her way through college. Charlie somehow draws Robert out of his solitary life. She affects him in a way no other woman has, but she believes he is someone else. Their relationship begins based completely on lies, and Robert soon finds that keeping up the lies is not as easy as he expected. When he realizes he doesn't want to lie to her, and that hurting her is really the only option, he has no idea what to do. I enjoyed the relationship between Robert and Charlie. It was really key to seeing the changes in Robert as he goes about his missions. There wasn't a lot of sexual tension, but that was fine because the relationship was not the main focus of this book. It was more about Robert looking at his life and really beginning to understand what he wants and where he wants his future to take him. 

My only real complaint about about the book was that Robert handled the killing so well. Even though he was in the military, being in a wartime situation is much different than killing civilians. Robert even mentions this, but I thought he lack of internal struggle over the majority of his actions was a little unexpected. The men he was killing were bad men, so it wasn't so much a sense of guilt I was looking for, but more the effect it had on Robert personally. There are subtle changes as he jumps to thoughts of murder for everyday annoyances before reigning himself in. I just expect more turmoil about the actual act, but other readers may find Robert's reactions to be exactly what they should be. 

Overall, this was a very enjoyable book. I am looking forward to watching these characters throughout the series and seeing the path Robert takes throughout his story. 


Mann of War is available now from Amazon. 

Connect with John online at his blog, Amazon, and Goodreads. 

Interview: John Brantingham

Today, John Brantingham is here telling us more about his new book, Mann of War. 


1.   What was your inspiration for this book?

 I’ve always liked crime fiction. I spent much childhood reading Elmore Leonard or watching terrible but wonderful movies like Dirty Mary, Crazy Larry. I don’t know why, but it never occurred to me that I could write that kind of fiction if I wanted to. I built a career writing poetry and literary fiction -- which I also love.

 I was halfway through a Dick Francis novel when I told my wife that being a crime writer would be about the best possible possibility in a universe of possibles, and she talked me into writing one.

 Of course, that’s the inspiration for the job, not really the book. The book came out of a few things. I’ve always been fascinated by evil. I don’t think that there are a lot of people who think of themselves as evil even when they are committing it. I wanted to get a likeable character, committing evil, but completely blind to the fact that he’s not good. 

 So he’s going around seeking vengeance on those people who have gotten away with crimes. Because the people who he is killing are terrible human beings, he can’t see that he’s become a serial killer, and I hope for now that the audience doesn’t see it so clearly either. It’s the first novel in a series that’s going to lead inevitably to him coming face to face with what he is.

2.   Would you classify your writing as plot driven or character driven?

 Definitely character driven. I like plot driven stories, but I love to explore people and their motivations in my stories. It’s so much fun.

3.   Can you tell us a little about your main character?

Robert Mann is a history professor and former Army Ranger. He finds out that one of his best friends -- a police officer -- has been killed and that the person who killed him made a deal to avoid jail time. So he goes on a quest for his own revenge with the help of his other friend Dean Cooley, an FBI agent. When they kill the man, Cooley tells Mann that there are many more people out there that need to be dealt with, who have gotten away with the same kind of thing, so Mann goes out on a series of mission with information given to him by Cooley.

 He’s based a little on my friend Mick, a former Navy Seal, who teaches college now, but Mick would never do this. He’s also based on me, and the questions I ask myself about what it would take for me to become a really dark person. Nothing is darker than revenge after all. It is premeditated and calculated.

 4.   Which of your supporting characters was the most challenging to write?

The bad guys were all terrible people, and I had a hard time getting into their heads. I had to get into the minds of con-men, rapists, killers, drug dealers, and treasonists. Talk about dark. I’m a pacifist by nature, but I found that by the end, I was buying into Mann’s philosophies to some extent.

 I can’t watch movies like The Sting any longer -- movies that celebrate con-men. Getting into their heads, I realized what kind of a craven mindset a person would have to have to do something like that. There are no loveable con-men as far as I’m concerned. It made me sick to do the research I had to do to get into them.  What I learned about them was that it’s not about the money they’re getting. They could make that more easily working anywhere. It’s that feeling that they’ve destroyed another human being that motivates them.

 5.   Without giving away too much, tell us a little about the main conflict in this book.

 The biggest conflict is that Mann has never killed anyone before, and he kind of bumbles through his murders. It would be easy just to shoot all his victims, but he wants to do each murder differently so the police will never catch on to what he’s doing. By the end, he realizes that he’s really not the right person for covert operations.

6.   Why did you choose this genre?

 I love the genre, love working in it. I love the mental challenge that it takes to at once identify with a character and dislike him. One of my favorite shows ever was The Shield, which followed a corrupt police officer. He commits a murder in the first episode -- he kills a police officer investigating him. In the second episode, you find yourself buying into his logic and justifications and at that moment, you realize how close to evil you are yourself and how seductive it can be. 

7.   What do you hope readers take away from this book?

 Murder is easy. Good is difficult. That’s the basis of the entire series.

8.   Who are your favorite authors?

I write in lots of genres and have many literary heroes: Dick Francis, Lawrence Block, Rex Stout, Graham Greene, Sue Grafton, Elmore Leonard, Julian Barnes, John Steinbeck, so many in fiction. These are just the start. I love all of the old crime and mystery writers too.

 9.   Do you have any interesting rituals or habits when you write?

I have to write in the morning, and I have to block out everything else, all my worries. I teach, so there are a lot of them, but for those two hours, that’s all I do. It becomes more like eight hours in the summer.

 I don’t suppose that’s all that different than anyone else’s rituals, but someone like me who’s a born worrier, that’s a hard thing to do. Also, generally drink tea by the gallon while I do it.

 10.   Can you tell us about any future projects?

 Yeah, I have a lot of poetry projects going a couple of collections that should be out next year. If you’d like to check out my latest poetry collection, East of Los Angeles it’s on amazon. I also am writing a sequel to Mann of War, Mann of Action. Finally, I’m writing a novel about a regular guy who just snaps and starts committing crimes for the thrill.

Mann of War is available now from Amazon. 

Connect with John online at his blog, Amazon, and Goodreads.