Lucky number 6 By Julia Shraybman Spooky with a delicious twist! When the peace and camaraderie of a beloved coffee shop is shattered by a seemingly senLucky number 6 By Julia Shraybman Spooky with a delicious twist! When the peace and camaraderie of a beloved coffee shop is shattered by a seemingly senseless shooting, there are three lucky survivors, four if you count the girl in the coma. Shraybman’s exceptional first novel follows the lives of the four as they become more and more intertwined after meeting a mysterious gypsy-like stranger who brings unexpected luck. But is there a price to be paid? Shraybman skillfully transitions among the narratives of the four engaging characters, with tension and mystery growing by the page. This first effort ends with a gut-wrenching twist you won’t see coming. My only question for Shraybman is “What took you so long?” I’m hoping she will follow this with more of the same! — Bill Schweitzer, author of Doves in a Tempest
Oss’Stera By Ross Hightower and Deb Heim The Hightower/Heim team have triumphed once again. Their intricate blend of art and intrigue creates a world wOss’Stera By Ross Hightower and Deb Heim The Hightower/Heim team have triumphed once again. Their intricate blend of art and intrigue creates a world where a band of rebels use their talents, along with a witch’s vague prophecies, the ability to disappear into the realm of the dead, and clever alliances to deceive a wealthy lord and devise a scheme to finance their revolution. The reader is swept away into this universe of otherworldly, yet convincing dialog, beautifully drawn descriptions, and compelling characters. I found myself totally suspending disbelief as I was drawn into the vivid portrayal of this complex world. Oss’Stera is the third prequel to the Spirit Song trilogy. It’s a magical journey that’s had me in awe of the authors’ skill in creating such an involved, multi-layered saga. It ranks with the best of the fantasy genre and should not be overlooked by anyone yearning to escape into another world. - Bill Schweitzer, author of the Doves in a Tempest series.
Like most Americans, my knowledge of MotoGP was marginal. That is, until I read Racing Towards Destiny, Lena Gibson’sRacing Towards Destiny Lena Gibson
Like most Americans, my knowledge of MotoGP was marginal. That is, until I read Racing Towards Destiny, Lena Gibson’s engrossing new saga of personal struggles, sweeping landscapes, and the courage to end a toxic relationship and risk overcoming fear of commitment to begin a new one in the unlikeliest of places. The story is set within the tumultuous world of MotoGP, where Gibson’s consummate writing craft and encyclopedic knowledge of the sport combine for a seat-of-the-pants ride from Cervera, Spain into the world of MotoGP where every turn and straightaway is described in exhilarating detail. It all begins as Anna’s world is crumbling around her. Her boss is stealing her work and taking credit for it, and at home her boyfriend is increasingly abusive, all of which is made worse by her diagnosis of ASD. She flees to Spain in hopes a break from her troubles will allow her the quiet and solitude to begin a new career as a writer. Her journey starts in scenic Cervera where she meets two handsome and daring MotoGP racers, Issac and Vince, and wrangles a job on Isaac’s team. The story unfolds as she and Isaac tiptoe into the unexplored waters of a new relationship that grows deeper as the racing season progresses. This is much more than the typical romance. It sizzles with all of the requisite heat and ups and downs of newfound love, but it is Gibsons’s craft and the irresistible appeal of the sport she brings to life that makes this story unique, placing the reader astride a throbbing racing bike for the entire thrilling journey. You’ll love this, if you, like me, are a fan of Gibson’s writing, if not, prepare to be!
Gripping fiction steeped in suspense and adventure
It starts when a small group of pampered friends, who attended a poProvenance of Ashes By Jeffry Ulin
Gripping fiction steeped in suspense and adventure
It starts when a small group of pampered friends, who attended a posh private school together, hear of a Bruce Springsteen concern that will be held in East Berlin during those turbulent times of glasnost and perestroika just before the fall of the wall. Only a few of them manage to gather together the correct documents and attend the concert. Chilling events occur during this visit that bring them into contact with a group of aging Nazis and their sons. These men, former Stasi agents, have hidden away a fortune in stolen art from the Nazi era. The story plays out as the friends, who just happen to include the financial genius who is the narrator, and a beautiful and deadly Mossad agent, scheme to recover the art works and return them to as many of the original owners as possible, to sell those of uncertain provenance, and donate the proceeds to worthy charities. At the same time the old Nazis are determined to hunt them down and murder them. Ulin’s characters are drawn with the attention to detail of the artworks he describes. The story is deliciously complex, but Ulin’s careful research and skillful narration make it both enthralling and believable. This is classic Ulin. If you’re a fan as I am, you’ll want to grab a copy right away, and if you don’t know his work, this multi-faceted novel will soon make you a Ulin devotee. —Bill Schweitzer, author of Doves in a Tempest
Fitting Conclusion to an Enthralling Dystopian Series
I’d been waiting anxiously for the conclusion to this engaging series, and it did not disappoint.Fitting Conclusion to an Enthralling Dystopian Series
I’d been waiting anxiously for the conclusion to this engaging series, and it did not disappoint. Gibson does a masterful job of pulling several disparate story lines together, weaving the tales of several characters into a spell-binding chronicle of a not-so-distant future where lasses-faire economics have allowed one giant corporation, ironically named GreenCorps, to control virtually everything in the United States. The result has been crushing poverty, starvation and water-shortages for the bulk of the population, while GreenCorps executives live lives of obscene wealth and debauchery. The resistance to the GreenCorps stranglehold has split into two factions, The Saints, who hide out in remote areas to grow their own crops and attempt to live at peace, and The Rebels, who actively oppose GreenCorps by building their own resistance, spreading the viable seeds from hidden bunkers, and encouraging GreenCorps workers to join their cause. The individual stories are fraught with danger and adventure, as well as heart-warming romance. To give away the conclusion would be telling, but this series is not to be missed. If you haven’t read the first two books of this series, Switching Tracks, and The Long Haul, start there, if you’re a fan of dystopian thrillers spiced with a healthy dollop of romance, this series is for you! ...more
In Two Necklaces, Paulette Mahurin weaves an engrossing tale of pre-WWII Germany that takes the reader on a bitte A Tale of Yesterday That’s for Today
In Two Necklaces, Paulette Mahurin weaves an engrossing tale of pre-WWII Germany that takes the reader on a bitter journey from the early days to the post-war period. It’s the story of a young girl living in a remote village in southeast Germany who grows to maturity under the harsh strictures of the Nazi government. The story begins on the eve of her fifteenth birthday as she is expected to attend meetings of the Bund Deutscher Mädel (BDM or Band of German Maidens) where she is being taught the beliefs and behavior appropriate to proper young German girls under the new regime. Like other sufficiently pure German girls of her age, she will be expected to wed a blond, blue-eyed Aryan hero and produce a sizeable brood of unpolluted Aryan offspring. As events unfold, she begins to see the horror of what she is being taught and what is being done. It becomes a tale of forbidden love fraught with danger as the tension increases and the reader is compelled to keep the pages turning. But above all, it is a masterful telling of the rise of fascism and the policies and organizations that enabled Nazism to exist and thrive. One cannot read it without drawing parallels to our current political environment. It’s a bleak reminder of how it happened in Germany and a blaring warning for us today. ...more
Hilarious Coming-of-Age Tale with A Christmas Story Vibe If A Christmas Story was a novel written in the third person, set in the summer of 1975, and wHilarious Coming-of-Age Tale with A Christmas Story Vibe If A Christmas Story was a novel written in the third person, set in the summer of 1975, and with a slightly older protagonist, this would be it. Ten-year-old Jimmy Hamilton had a few modest goals for his summer: have his eleventh birthday party with no girls; hang out with his friends in his treehouse where they could escape girls and their cooties, mothers, and trips to the library; and become the world’s greatest Little League pitcher. Unfortunately, life had a way of intruding on such plans, as we’re led through a hilarious series of adventures that include a new friend, the demise of a treehouse, a new clubhouse, spooky twin girls with a crush on him, good and bad outings on the mound for the mighty Wildcats, a trip to the mall, unexpected kindness toward a smelly bum, who turns out to be a terrific pitching coach, and his even smellier dog, and a first (and second) kiss. Thoroughly enjoyable, it's a rollicking tale of the adventures and misadventures of an engaging boy perched precariously on the threshold of adolescence. You’ll be hard-pressed not to draw parallels between Sour Apples and A Christmas Story. ...more
In Queens Bluff, the inmates are in charge of the asylum, or town, if you prefer. Have been since the pDelightfully Wacky, Clever and Backward Journey
In Queens Bluff, the inmates are in charge of the asylum, or town, if you prefer. Have been since the psychiatric patients were released en masse. Now they and their equally wonky descendants are running the clown show. That is, they were until their exploits attracted the attention of the FBI. Now agent Lillian Chen is endeavoring to learn vital information about something hidden up on the bluff, somewhere within the big windfarm with that one original Dutch-style mill and all the new wind turbines, from an extremely exasperating Robbie DeFonte. He’s insisting on telling the story backwards, with each foray into the past revealing new clues. Hartnett’s ingenious story smacks of A Confederacy of Dunces, with a sprinkling of One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, but is mainly the product of Hartnett’s prodigious imagination and mind-bending writing. His alluring imagery paints an artwork equal to those he describes in the chapter set in the Met. The characters are at once layered, eccentric and comic, from The Colonel who was a cohort of FDR, the fifteen-year-old inmate he courts and eventually weds, to a group of incompetent and doltish white supremacists, to Robbie himself. As the story hop, skips and jumps through time, we get to see this wonderful cast evolve and change as mystery after mystery is revealed. In a novel that defies categorization, Hartnett reveals himself to be a true master of his craft. If you’re a fan of smart, madcap yarns, do not miss Windmill Bluff! ...more
You’ll See A Story of Narcissistic Abuse, Survival, and My Journey to Understand
By Suzanne Groves
Good Girl—Against All Odds
Suzanne Groves’ candid memoiYou’ll See A Story of Narcissistic Abuse, Survival, and My Journey to Understand
By Suzanne Groves
Good Girl—Against All Odds
Suzanne Groves’ candid memoir is the story of a little girl striving for the love and approval of a narcissistic, philandering father, love that he is incapable of giving, and approval he is unwilling to provide—a little girl who can never fully outgrow that yearning for the love of this unworthy man, despite her own personal triumphs and achievements, who remains that little girl at heart, for the duration of his miserable egotistical life. The reader cannot help wondering at the emotional grip he held over his little family, despite everything he did to alienate her and his wife, Suzanne’s mother. In her case, she was driven to anorexia, despair, and addition to cigarettes, while her mother, in spite of her own considerable achievements, drowned her grief in scotch, choosing to ignore or accept his ongoing affairs and mental cruelty. You’ll See is a painful, yet engrossing tale, one that will rip at your heart and bring tears to your eyes. If you’re a fan of excruciatingly honest writing that invokes raw emotion, and leads you, as it did me, to better understand your own struggles, this book is for you. One can only hope that writing it was equally cathartic for Ms. Groves. Bill Schweitzer, author of Doves in a Tempest...more
Mac by Sherry Hobbs is at once a biography, history, memoir and tribute by a daughter fortunate enougGreatest Generation Hero Through the Lens of Love
Mac by Sherry Hobbs is at once a biography, history, memoir and tribute by a daughter fortunate enough to have been raised and loved by a World War Two B24 bomber pilot and unquestioned hero. “Mac” is Colonel Harold G. McNeese, who fought in the bloody war in the Pacific, piloting dangerous aircraft on equally dangerous missions as the U.S. forces clawed their way toward Japan following the Pearl Harbor attack. In the process he was shot down in Japanese territory where he led those that survived the crash around enemy occupied islands to an eventual rescue, rowing their life raft over one hundred miles, living only on sparse rations and coconuts. Ms. Hobbs book is a gripping, exhaustive history of the Pacific campaign, and her father’s role as he flew mission after mission in hopelessly perilous conditions. At the same time, it is a tender and poignant memoir of what it was like to be raised by a man who was as loving and generous as he was heroic. It’s called The Greatest Generation for a reason, and Hobbs’ tribute, written by the hand of a loving daughter, is a reminder of why. ...more
Earth Jumped Back by Philip Reari is much more than the usual time travel tale. The time travel troEarth Jumped Back By Philip Reari
Time Travel Ecotour
Earth Jumped Back by Philip Reari is much more than the usual time travel tale. The time travel trope provides a convenient way to contrast the events and student activism of 1969/70 with that of the current day. The cast consists of two jumpers from 2023, who experience life as young students today, and as interlopers in 1969, along with their friends as they were and as they have become in 2023. It’s set in Isla Vista, California, at the University of California, at the time and place of the Santa Barbara oil spill, arguably the first of the ecological disasters to grab national attention. The book is a detailed examination of the culture and psychology of the youth of both times, how they react to the spill, and how naïve activism morphs into violence and death. It’s also a window into the impact of some of the changes, as the two struggle with life before the ubiquitous cell phone and quality coffee. For those of us who did live each period, it becomes a nostalgic journey into what if, the promise of a better world somehow lost. Don’t miss this one.
Bill Schweitzer, Author of Doves in a Tempest...more
Gut-Punch of a Thrill Ride Come and Get Me grabs you on the first page and never lets go. This tightly written thriCome and Get Me Marisa Rae Dondlinger
Gut-Punch of a Thrill Ride Come and Get Me grabs you on the first page and never lets go. This tightly written thriller carries an emotional punch with every turn of a page. You’ll experience the agony of a new mother whose baby has been abducted by the jealous ex-lover of her philandering husband, as well as the crazed delusions of the young ex. The point of view flip flops from the mother to the lover, a painful third person perspective of what the mother and her family experience, and a first-person journal-like screed from the sociopathic ex. Pour yourself a cup of calming tea, find a comfortable chair, and take a disturbing journey you won’t be prepared to have end until the final page. Bill Schweitzer, author of Doves in a Tempest ...more
In Murderer from Moscow, a courageous reporter’s investigation of Russian money-laundering results in a terrifying vendetta against her by the RussianIn Murderer from Moscow, a courageous reporter’s investigation of Russian money-laundering results in a terrifying vendetta against her by the Russian mob. The character development, attention to detail and starkly realistic view of New York made me feel I was living there. The tension that continues to build in this fascinating thriller will make you want to finish it in a single sitting. Meltzer fans, old and new, will not be disappointed!...more
This book is a Texas classic and the best (and to my knowledge, the only) history of the South Congress gangsters, and the M&M Court madam, Hattie ValThis book is a Texas classic and the best (and to my knowledge, the only) history of the South Congress gangsters, and the M&M Court madam, Hattie Valdez and her, ahem, employees who were favorites of gang leader Tim Overton and his motley crew of redneck terrorists....more
Like all good dystopian stories, The Long Haul by Lena Gibson is a cautionary tale. It’s the sequel to Switching TrackMulti-layered Dystopian Thriller
Like all good dystopian stories, The Long Haul by Lena Gibson is a cautionary tale. It’s the sequel to Switching Tracks, and continues the story of Elsa and Walker in their quest to find the hidden seed bunkers that may be the answer to overthrowing the yoke of oppression by the GreenCorp monopoly. It’s a well-crafted story on three layers. Layer one is the story itself—a page-turning thriller steeped in suspense, with just enough descriptive sex to be titillating without being cringe-worthy. The romance of Elsa and Walker continues, joined now by new characters who begin their own tentative journeys to romance. Layer two is a frightening glimpse into a future world where the modern trend towards corporatization has resulted in a cruel monopoly that controls everything and everyone within the United States. In this world the gap between the rich and poor is even more pronounced and GreenCorp owns and controls virtually everything. Layer three is a vision of the effects of Climate Change in the not-too-distant future (2195). Populations have been decimated and the arable land that does exist is owned by GreenCorp. The three layers are artfully blended into one engrossing saga. Like me, you will be looking forward to the next sequel! —Bill Schweitzer, author of Doves in a Tempest-The Valley of Horror ...more
All Lies Begin with Truth is a detailed exposé of the effects of fracking for “clean” natural gas and the tactics used by the extraction industry to e All Lies Begin with Truth is a detailed exposé of the effects of fracking for “clean” natural gas and the tactics used by the extraction industry to externalize the effects and their consequences. It’s wrapped in a compelling tale set in a small western Kentucky town torn between the promise of economic benefits and the actual results of the fracking operations. Viola has clearly done a yeoman’s amount of research into his subject and provides fascinating insights into how the industry stays two steps ahead of any regulation to mitigate the effects of their work. It isn’t all one-sided though, as his multi-faceted character development paints a vivid picture of hardscrabble life in a town left devastated by the coal industry, and the desperation faced by its residents. It’s the story of how a group of environmental activists work to shut down a company seemingly immune to any efforts to thwart its lust for profits and indifferent to its rape of a formerly pristine ecosystem. A sad tale of bribery, manipulation of the process of regulation, and ruthless tactics to impede the efforts of the environmentalists unfolds. I enjoyed this story so much I hardly realized how much I’d learned until I closed the book....more
Flipping the script. The Final Proclamation flips the standard left or centrist leaning narrative for a Political Thriller to a conservative viewpointFlipping the script. The Final Proclamation flips the standard left or centrist leaning narrative for a Political Thriller to a conservative viewpoint. In this story, the U.S. President is female, a liberal, corrupt and power hungry. She launches a plot to use emergency declarations to take tyrannical control of the government and armed services to further her end game. At the same time, 3 other story lines play out. The Chinese use the First Gentleman’s dalliances to gain influence over the President, while planning to invade Taiwan and deploy a covid-like virus with the aid of a band of Afghan terrorists. At the same time, a group of patriots in Kentucky catch wind of the President’s machinations and prepare a last-ditch defense. McGuire does a commendable job of melding the stories and bringing the book to a gripping conclusion. Fans of Ayn Rand and Stephen Coonts will become instant fans of McGuire and The Final Proclamation....more
A rollicking sea shanty of navigation from pathos to pathway and payback We’ve all had times when we just wanted to chuck it all and sail away. CluckedA rollicking sea shanty of navigation from pathos to pathway and payback We’ve all had times when we just wanted to chuck it all and sail away. Clucked is just such a tale, an engaging journey from despair through terror to hope and retribution. It’s simultaneously heartrending, exciting, complex, romantic, funny, and hopeful. When Matt lost Julie, the love of his life, he sought escape, along with Hank, his old, half-blind rat terrier-chihuahua mix, via a voyage on his old Pearson Vanguard sloop, Lonesome Dove. The story of Julie’s death due to the negligence of a wealthy chicken magnate, is as maddening as it is heart-rending. Matt is trying desperately to put the bitterness of this behind him, but with little success. His original plan was to head out from Corpus Christi, the Keys, the Caribbean, and on through the Panama Canal to remote Pacific destinations. Early on, he has some bad luck and has to head to the low country of South Carolina for repairs. This detour provides a fascinating and evocative glimpse into the Gullah/Geechee people’s culture, dialect, lifestyle, and cuisine. He finds common cause with them as they are increasingly threatened by the chicken conglomerate Matt holds responsible for Julie’s death. Their mutual quest for justice is exquisitely written, evoking the style of Carl Hiaasen and Elmore Lenord. The twists and turns of this adventure are intricate and, at times, hilarious, as Matt (and Hank) free the chickens, and find retribution, hope and new love in a uniquely satisfying denouement. No chickens were harmed in the writing of this book! ...more
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