Book Review: A Place Elsewhere

If you like internal monologue, stream-of-consciousness type writing, this is the book for you.

Nigel Joslin is an adventurous hiker whose wanderings take him through the Scottish moors, as well as through many topics of speculation in this book.  I found it a really interesting read.  The only drawback I found was that I couldn't focus on his words for a long time - the deep thoughts required breaks for mental digestion.

With a fiction story I can usually gobble up the chapters and I often have a hard time putting the books down.  This book didn't work that way for me.  I did feel the drive to read it, but it wasn't a story I could get lost in.  Too much philosophizing for me to concentrate on for a big chunk of time!

The topics Nigel discusses are hugely varied, and he approaches and explains his thoughts quite clearly.  Even though he delves into a lot of science, introspection, and even the meaning of life, he doesn't lose the reader (unless they're like me and just need to step away for a few minutes to assimilate all the information he's presenting.)

I didn't know what to expect from this book.  I opened it only knowing it wasn't a work of fiction like most of my other reads lately have been.  The layout is a year in Nigel's life, and each chapter is a month.  The book opens with - you guessed it - a new beginning.  He does reach back through the months as the year flows along to return us to ideas mentioned earlier that he then delves deeper into.

For those of you who like to get inside other people's heads, I'd recommend this read.  Some of the topics and ideas Nigel pulls up and explains do sort of blow your mind.  While this wasn't my most favourite book of the last year or so, it does have the distinction of being the most thought provoking.

Until next time!
~Jess

Book Review: After the Goode - A Jake Roberts Novel

*I was sent this book free of charge so I could read it and create this review*

After the Goode is the third book in the Jake Roberts series.  I have one more after this one to read and review.

This book is a story of what Jake Roberts gets himself into after retiring from the police force.  Seems these good detectives can't leave the detecting behind!

This instalment started out well, but with some characters I hadn't seen before.  This isn't a problem, I was just expecting to Jake Roberts to be more involved earlier on in the story.  He does show up, and he has a big role in the novel, but there was an adjustment period where I had to wade through a bit of slow character development with the new characters.

Once I got into it, the story rolled right along.  I was pretty hooked once the conflict (read: murder) happened, and all the characters rolled into one coherent storyline.

This is really the story of murder by accident; and then the intrigue of one character trying to hide it while the others are trying to solve it.  Heartstrings are tugged a little at the end.  And then it's left only slightly open for the next story. 

Again there were some (although less) editing errors.  An extra re-read of the copy would have been beneficial I think.  Now that I'm three books in, I don't notice the errors as much, but comma splices, incorrect quotations etc. are unfortunately still there.

I do look forward to finding out how Cary Allen Stone wraps up this series.  Jake is slowly growing older, and he's trying to leave his detecting days behind.  Maybe the last book will see him settle down somewhere more remote with his lady and have a quiet family life.  Who knows!  I guess there's only one way to find out.

Stay tuned for my review of After the Kill, coming after the book I'm wading through right now.

~Jess

Book Review: Splintered by Kelly Miller

*I was sent this book free of charge so I could read it and create this review*

I thoroughly enjoyed Splintered by Kelly Miller. This thriller is told from five characters viewpoints.  Fast paced storytelling combined with short chapters made it easy to read, even in short bursts of time.  Ideal for a working mom like me!

A teenage girl makes up a story about an attempted abduction in hopes to win back her father's affections.  Her mother is emotionally absent and as a result the young girl doesn't have anywhere to turn when the story gets out that she lied for attention.

A young man was raised by an abusive father who abducted young girls to "play with" at his whim.  He now feels his ability to restrain those feelings in himself crumbling.  Enter the young teenager on the news who lied about an abduction attempt.

The teenage girl does disappear not even a week later, but police label her a runaway, due to her home situation and lies about a previous abduction.  Can she survive until someone finds her?  Will the young man become his father?

I found it took the book a little while to create the suspense required for a thriller.  The backstory was very well fleshed out, but by halfway through the book I started wondering where the "real" conflict is - what kind of climax was likely to happen and when.

The book did not disappoint.  Once the pace picked up and the stories of all the characters began to come together I had a hard time putting the book down!  And after finishing the story I wanted to find other titles by this author.  I really enjoyed this story and all the characters involved.

Book Review: The Military Communications Unit

*I was sent this book free of charge so I could read it and create this review*

Gordon Smith approached me and asked if I'd read his work of Australian fiction.  Of course, I couldn't say no.  I don't read a lot of historical fiction, but I'm willing to try out any genre as a book reviewer.

The Ministry Communications Unit was an easy read.  The story layout was clear, the approach and flow was straightforward, and I felt like it really could have happened just the way it's written.

I did have a little confusion with the characters in the beginning as the character development was lacking in some areas.  A lot of names without a lot of backstory can create a tough environment to keep straight.  Eventually the names became more clear which allowed me to follow the story more smoothly.

This book evolves over a very long time span.  As it takes place during the second world war, we are quite invested in the characters over the time of the war and it seems quite natural to follow the characters to their logical endpoint.

The only real issue I had is the proofreading and/or editing is absent in this book.  There are misused commas and semicolons, as well as spelling mistakes and just wrong word usage and grammar mistakes.  I think this book would have benefited hugely by having a few other people read it to check for errors before it was published.

As a work of historical fiction I think The Ministry Communications Unit is a very successful story.  The plot is well conceived, the characters actions seem fitting for the time and the background of the war provides an easily researchable and acceptable scenario for this story.  With a little editing I would say this book could be extremely successful.

Book Review: After The Evil - A Jake Roberts Novel

*I was sent this book free of charge so I could read it and create this review*

Cary Allen Stone has created a series of books around a character named Jake Roberts.  This is the first book in this series.  Cary sent me all 4 books in this series but asked for them to be reviewed separately.  Definitely not a problem for me as I have a few other authors waiting to be read as well - I can intersperse his novels with theirs.

The story of After the Evil is a police drama.  Not quite a murder mystery because you know who's doing it right from the first page.  But the story plays out about how you'd expect.

I had a very hard time getting "into" this book.  There was quite a bit of jumping from one character to another, and it was sometimes tough to realize who was speaking (or thinking.)  As the novel progressed, the scattered feeling dissipated so the storyline was easier to follow.

Another minor problem that detracted from the story was the punctuation and editing of the sentences and paragraphs.  Often times commas were incorrectly placed, opening or closing quotations were missed in spots and and other grammar items (contractions etc) were not used in the correct context.  Unfortunately all the grammar errors contributed to my not enjoying this story as much as I could have.  I had to re-read parts of some paragraphs just to figure out what was meant, when all it needed was a little editing.

Overall (once I got past the grammar issues) I thought the story was well thought out, and well executed.  The characters were interesting, the plot flowed quite smoothly and the end leaves you wanting more.  Good thing, since there are 3 more books in this series!

I'm looking forward to reading the next stories, and now that I know the editing could be a bit better I can try to gloss over the errors to get to the great storyline.  I look forward to seeing what Cary Allen Stone has in store for Jake Roberts next.

Book Review: Wreck of the Gossamer

*I was sent this book free of charge so I could read it and create this review*

True to it's name Wreck of the Gossamer is the story of a shipwreck which takes place just off Cape Cod in the late 1800s.  Shawn P. McCarthy paints a vivid picture of a ship tossed by storms on the open sea.  It's what happens after the shipwreck that is the main content of this 202 page story.

A young lady discovers a puzzle box washed ashore amongst the wreckage, and by the end of this book she's only discovered a few of the boxes 27 secrets.  She has a few secrets of her own, and the end of this book sees her fleeing an abusive husband.

A man, a thief and a killer, is hunting down items that may have washed ashore from the Gossamer.  He frequents the bars and taverns near to where the wreck occurred, hoping to glean information from the locals about the folks on the boat and what may have been recovered from the sea.

Wreck of the Gossamer is the first in a series: The Puzzle Box Chronicles.  As Book 1 it fulfils it's niche as an introduction to some characters and creates some storylines I'm sure must connect as the Chronicles go forward.  I'm intensely curious what happens to the characters in the next instalment.

This book was a fairly quick read for me, It wasn't one I really needed to sit and concentrate on, so reading a few minutes here and there was great.  Some stories I've read really need my full attention because there are so many characters or such an involved plot.  This book has a very good plot but it also very easy to follow.

A good bit of mystery keeps the reader interested and involved in Wreck of the Gossamer.  I recommend it, especially if the next instalments are close at hand!

Book Review: The Dragon Throne by Chrys Cymri

*I was sent this book free of charge so I could read it and create this review*

This is the first book which arrived at my home after I signed up on Tweet My Books.  I've had many, many emails asking me to review books, but so many of them only have e-books available.  As I've said before I'm a physical book person.  So I was glad to see this arrive in my mailbox.

I love fantasy stories.  My first "favourite" author was Terry Brooks (and he's still a favourite), and he wrote epic tales that I loved to get lost in when I was a young teenager.  Or even a "tween" (that's what pre-teens are called now, right?)

When Chrys approached me and suggested she had a fantasy novel that needed reviewing I was very glad to say yes.  And this story did not disappoint.

The Dragon Throne was an easy read, with good character development.  I got to know all the characters well shortly after they were introduced.  My only complaint was that it was a little unclear at the beginning that there were four kingdoms in this land that Chrys created.  I was about a third of the way through the book before I realized I wasn't following that part clearly.  However, a closer glance at the cover of the book revealed a subtitle: The Four Kingdoms Book One.  Oops, looks like that's on me!

If you like fantastic stories, this one has all the necessary components: dragons, unicorns, and a few kingdoms almost on the brink of war.  I'll be honest, at first I thought the unicorns were going to be a silly side story, but it really all tied together.  Unlikely allies are made, strange discoveries await the characters, and it leaves the reader satisfied but still curious as to what comes next.  In fact when I'm done here I think I'll send Chrys a message and see if I can review the next in this line (assuming it's a done deal already.)

Long story short - good fantasy story with mildly complicated plot lines that resolve this portion of the story while leaving you wanting to read more of these characters.  The book has 212 pages and this busy working mom read it in a week.  Chapters are long, but with those nice "space breaks" so you can pause in the middle of a chapter if you need to.

Great book!  

http://www.chryscymri.com/

I'm posting a review also on Goodreads and Amazon

I'm A Book Reviewer Now - Do I Have Time For It?

I feel like I've gotten myself into a bit of a conundrum.  I don't know if you, my faithful readers, remember a post I created a few months ago about "What's my brand?" (you can click and it'll take you to the post), but I basically said I didn't want to pick a brand because I just post about whatever I feel like.  And then I went on about how much other stuff goes on in the blogging world.

Well since then I haven't done anything about a "Brand" and I've continued to post whatever I want whenever I want.  So I stuck to my guns there.

But what I did do was express more of an interest in reading and doing book reviews.  I even put my name in a database of sorts so people can contact me to read their book.  All well intentioned, but now I have 6 books coming my way (in the mail, I don't like e-reading) and I hope they are all pretty good because I often find it hard to stumble through a book I'm not really into.

Luckily I made a claim that I sometimes am a slow reader (relative to pre-kids and husband) and they can't really pressure me to get things read super quickly.  In fact everyone that has approached me has actually stated in their emails that as long as I do read them and create some sort of review there really isn't a timeline attached.  I'm very grateful that people can be quite understanding.

I love the idea of getting new books (for free!) and especially that some of them are not available to purchase yet, and some the authors will sign their books for me as keepsakes.  And I like the flexibility of reading on my own time and creating a review without so much pressure.  But I'm going to have to start scheduling and replying to these people with something like "I have 6 books ahead of yours, I would love to read yours too but it will be a month before I can even start it."

Here's an oxymoron for ya: I don't want my blogging to be a business, but I would still like to make money and/or get these free things to review.  All I mean by that is I can't take away from my family time with blog-related stuff (especially if there's no payment involved!)  If this interest in my reviewing continues I will eventually have to say no.  Or at least "Not right now."

Today I am excited knowing that 6 books (4 are a set) are on their way to me.  Although I do have about 20 books already in my house that I've borrowed or been given to read, that just makes me feel like I'll have to instate "Mom's Reading Time" in which I get 30 minutes uninterrupted.  Ya, right - like that will happen!

If you're reading this and you have a book you'd like to send (or a product to review), drop me a line at iamjess@gmail.com and I will reply.  I may tell you I need 30 days before I can even look at it, but we can be candid with each other, right?  I'm always grateful for people who give me these opportunities!

~Jess

Book Review: Killer Pursuit by Jeff Gunhus

I managed to read a book in 5 days.  5 days!  That's unheard of now that I have 2 kids and a husband.  Way back I could have easily read 2 books in 5 days but that's long gone now.

The book I just finished was sent to me (for free) so I could read and review it before it's actually "published."  I'm enough of a book nerd to think that this is totally awesome!  However, it took a very long time for the book to show up at my door.

Fed Ex delivered me my brand-spankin'-new book on Dec 30th - the Wednesday between Christmas and New Years.  As we all know I don't currently work on Wednesdays so I was ready to tear into it the minute it arrived.  I enjoyed that the postmark on it was Dec 17th.  It took almost 2 weeks for FedEx to get it to me.  Seems long, but I guess with the holiday season it's not unexpected.

I read about 5 chapters the first day.  Sure the chapters were a bit small, and yes the kids went outside to play so there was quiet time, but I was glad to get such a quick start on it.

Killer Pursuit pulls you in fast.  Jeff Gunhus has written other books with the same character - Allison McNeil - but I haven't read them.  And you don't need to, to enjoy this book.  I'm sure there were a few bits of backstory that I didn't catch on to but I certainly did not feel the book was lacking in any way.

This is a crime/mystery/policital story.  I don't usually care too much for the political business, corruption, sex scandal stuff, but it worked well with the police and FBI characters and it wasn't too "White House"-y.  I was kept guessing through most of the story.  It wasn't until a handful of (short) chapters from the end that I really thought I might know who did it.  I enjoy that in a book - keep me guessing until the end.

As a mom I also enjoyed the shorter chapter layout of the book.  It allowed me to sneak in a chapter or two while the kids were "playing" and before they called out for "help" or to "come see!" again.  Sometimes I put down a book in the middle of the chapter and by the time I get back to it I have to re-read most of the chapter again.  Not so this one.

Overall I'd say 5 stars.  I would now like to read the other books in the Allison McNeil series, so that's a plus for sure.  Jeff Gunhus is an easy to read author with a well developed story.  I enjoyed Killer Pursuit immensely.

Stay tuned to hear about other books I've read and enjoyed.  I really like reading and reviewing stories, so help me find more reviews that need doing, okay readers?  Thanks!

Using Your Blog To Help Others - And Sometimes Get Free Stuff!

So I'm branching out.  I've been selected through bloggersrequired.com to review a book.  The author has contacted me directly and I'm very excited to be able to read this book (for free!) and then talk about it.

I won't receive any direct compensation for this, but I feel I'm finally starting to figure out different ways to reach out in the blogging communities and help others.  My blog following is not nearly large enough for some of the "money making" sites and companies, but I feel quite lucky to have this opportunity.

The author I'm reviewing is Dane Cobain and his book is called No Rest For The Wicked.  I know, it sounds good already, right?  He told me he was hoping to get the book in the mail yesterday, but it may not be until Monday.  I assured him I'd put aside whatever I'm reading when it gets here and start right away.  I also warned him that sometimes I just can't read.  Life is busy and this week the kids go back to school, so there's that extra layer of things to do that I am out of practice with!

If there's anyone out there, dear readers, who has other connections to opportunities for product reviews or other interesting things, please let me know!  I'm happy to tailor posts that are still my own to include mentions of things that I like, can use, or are enjoyable for me and the family.

This was a short post tonight, but I'm formulating a post for my other blog (2 Talented Daughters) about the modelling opportunity they - my 2 cutie girls - both took part in at the end of last week.  I've got photos to sort through before I can illustrate a good post!  Please be patient with me, I've got some stuff on my plate this weekend at home.

Thanks for any suggestions blogger friends, and I'll be back soon!