Dianne Ascroft - Dancing Shadows, Tramping Hooves - Review & Giveaway

About the Book

Dancing Shadows, Tramping Hooves is a collection of half a dozen short stories with Irish connections. Tales of outsiders who discover they belong, a humorous slice of life yarn, heartwarming love stories and a tale of taming fear. The shadows are on the wall, in the heart and clouding a woman’s memories while tangible foes tramp through the physical landscape. The stories were previously printed individually in a variety of publications, including Ireland’s Own magazine, Dead Ink Books’ website, and the anthologies, Fermanagh Miscellany and Tuesdays At Charlie’s.

My Review

What a delightful collection of short stories! The kind you like to snuggle up with on a dreary night while sipping a cup of hot cocoa. You can tell Dianne Ascroft has a big heart. She doesn't rely on racy content or profanity to get her message across. Instead, she embraces the reader with characters that feel so familiar. You'll recognize your inquiring neighbor across the street or your dear friend from book club. She peoples all six of her stories with individuals readers can relate to. They're real. They're genuine. They're just like you and me, and that's what makes them special.

Here are a few of my favorites.

Brenda in "A Link to Her Past" - She's an apt reminder that when it comes to romance, old flames don't have to die. If you let them flicker, they can be rekindled when the time is right.

Mrs. Keown in "A World Apart" - She comes off as a nosy busybody, but there's more depth and feeling to her character. She knows what it's like to abandon her hometown and strike out somewhere new. It turns out she adjusted so well, now she's taken for one of the locals.

Fiona in "Just a Cough" - She's a brand new attorney trying to prove herself to the firm, and no way is her mother going to tell her what to do. Just because she's sick doesn't mean she has to stay home. She thinks she can do it all, even thwart Mother Nature, until a snow plow puts her in her place.

Catherine in "Much More than a Dancer" - Probably my favorite character of the bunch, she's reached middle age, and resents having to troll the dating scene for eligible men. She works hard on her family farm and doesn't have the time to get out much, but when she does the last thing she wants to do is compete with other women for the man she fancies. She's hesitant and afraid, awkward and stubborn. Until a pair of hazel eyes sets her at ease.

Frances in "Conquering the Shadows" - A charming tale of a woman putting her children to bed, yet still harboring her own youthful fears of the dark. With the wind howling at the window panes, she awaits her husband to return home from his job on the railroad. Until she gets scared, and lets her kids climb out of bed and sit with her next to the fire.

Karen in "Going Home" - A poignant reminder that you're never too old to be homesick for your childhood dwelling place. Even after she moved to Ireland with her husband, Karen never really considered their house her true home, until her mother offers some words of wisdom that make her see things differently.

Overall, if you enjoy a nice, comfy cozy story, you won't be disappointed in meeting any of these wonderful characters. They'll pull you in by the heartstrings and never let go. Thanks Dianne Ascroft for showing the many sides of the female perspective.

***

Dancing Shadows, Tramping Hooves can be purchased at:
Amazon U.S., Amazon U.K.

Price/Format: $1.16 ebook
Pages: 39
Genre: Romance, Short Story Collection
Release: June 16, 2012
Click to add to your Goodreads list.


About the Author

Dianne Ascroft is an urban Canadian who has settled in rural Northern Ireland with her husband and an assortment of strong willed animals. She writes contemporary and historical fiction with an Irish connection. She has released the short story collection, Dancing Shadows, Tramping Hooves and a novel, Hitler and Mars Bars. Her articles and stories have been printed in Irish and Canadian magazines and newspapers as well as in anthologies by Writers Abroad, Fermanagh Writers and Fermanagh Authors’ Association.

Links to connect with Dianne:
Web Site
Blog
Facebook
Twitter
Goodreads
Blog Tour Site


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James Moser - Chasing Prophecy - Review & Giveaway

About the Book

Mo is a shy teen who is just trying to survive high school. He has secretly fallen in love with a girl named Prophecy who lives with a group that some call a commune and others call a cult. When she disappears, Mo must find the courage to face the monster that her family has become. Chasing Prophecy is a contemporary coming of age story that is heartwarming, suspenseful, and beautifully written. This book chronicles the adolescence of one boy who must transform himself to save the girl of his dreams.

***

A stellar read for teens and adults, full of hilarious growing pains, tenderness and a few surprises. Moser’s debut is an unflinching young-adult novel that sees a group of friends tested by bigotry and the illegal machinations of a religious cult. The author serves up an irresistibly wisecracking narrator in Mo Kirkland. Every page ripples with a controlled cleverness. There’s also a rawness to this tale similar to that which many teens face in the real world. Moser can wax rhapsodic about young love, but he shows that he knows how to raise the tension in the second half of the novel. -Kirkus Reviews

My Review

Mo is just one of those male characters that girls adore reading about. He's the guy who always seems to be getting picked on. He started high school small in stature so he knows what it's like to be at the bottom of the pecking order. But his struggle to fit in creates a great sense of empathy in him. He's well aware of what it feels like when things don't go your way, and he's able to relate to other people in their time of need.

He's known Kazzy his whole life. In fact, she's usually the one taking on the bullies who rough him up. He admires the way she's not afraid to stick up for him, but he wishes he possessed enough courage to take them on himself. But her faith in him is what inspires him to stand up to his tormenters, especially after he hits a growth spurt. Little by little with Kazzy's support and encouragement, he comes out of his shell. Jumping off of bridges. Taking on a bunch of armed thugs. Looking Bigfoot square in the eye.

In the end, he's the one who winds up saving Kazzy. When she's at her most vulnerable point, Mo is there, giving her a much needed shoulder to cry on. She is dealt a devastating loss and the only way she gets through it is because of Mo. He's guides her out of her grief and fear with the strength of his love. Yeah, they're only teenagers but their feelings are written so powerfully, you can't deny the connection they have to each other. It's tender and beautiful, a young adult novel that doesn't need to rely on explicit content to sell a love story.

In fact, my favorite lines in the entire book are when Mo says, "Maybe that's what love is - when the whole world is crumbling around you and you can't even feel the rocks falling on your head - all you can see is the person you want to hold in your arms."

It takes a special kind of narrator to give voice to such words. I know they're ones that will stay with me long after reading this book. Thanks Mo for being a young guy worth getting to know, and thanks James Moser for having the guts to pen such a sensitive, memorable character.

***

Chasing Prophecy can be purchased at:
Amazon, Smashwords

Prices/Formats: $2.99 ebook
Pages: 237
Genre: Young Adult, Thriller, Paranormal
Publisher: Skookum Trail
Release: December 31, 2013
Click to add to your Goodreads list.


About the Author

James Moser has always loved stories in all forms. He is in his fourteenth year of working with high school students. The author’s goal was to write a book that would inspire even his most reluctant readers. Young adults have always inspired him. As such, he wanted to show teenagers transforming themselves to overcome obstacles, which is what he watches them do, every day.

Moser has a B.A. in English and a Master’s degree in Secondary English Education. He lives in Seattle with his beautiful wife and eight year old son. When he’s not reading and writing, or thinking about reading and writing, he’s watching way too much television while snacking on frozen treats from Trader Joe’s. Man, those things are good.

Links to connect with James:
Facebook
Twitter
Goodreads
Blog Tour Site


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Michael F. Stewart - The Terminals - Review & Giveaway

About the Book

- Sometimes the dead don’t want to talk.
You need Terminals to make them. -

Terminals solve crimes in this realm by investigating them in the next.

Lt. Col. Christine Kurzow, fresh from a failed suicide attempt after she cost 11 of her soldiers their lives, is recruited into the covert unit of Terminals as a handler. It's an easy sell. If she's really determined to die, it’s a chance to give her death meaning.

But her first case—convincing a monk to chase Hillar the Killer into the afterlife to find the location of a missing bus and the children it carried—has her wondering how to make a dead psychopath talk.

Christine must follow the clues sent back by the shotgun-toting monk, who tracks Hillar through the seven deeps of hell, so she can find eleven kids before it’s too late.

Maybe this time killing a man will give Christine a reason to live.

**The Television and Film production rights have been sold to Jim Donovan (Best Director 2013, Canadian Screen Awards) and on to his partners of Sudden Storm Entertainment.

My Review

Christine Kurzow. Say her name out loud. Feel the tongue fire against the soft palate of the mouth, like a finger pulling the taut trigger of a gun. It's an alliterate name that when vocalized paints a definitive picture of this female military officer. She's hard, yet soft. A combat tested Medal of Honor recipient who is mentally falling to pieces after a child suicide bomber wiped out eleven soldiers placed under her command. She could have taken the boy out, but she didn't. She was weak and let her feelings get in the way of her duty.

After surviving the attack, she's left with nothing but crippling, agonizing regret, and a scarred face that's a searing reminder of all those she left behind. Convalescing in a hospital bed, she doesn't want to live anymore. But she can't go back in time and change the past. Those who lost their lives can't absolve her of her sins ... or can they? On the brink of suicide, Christine is pulled out of the abyss by a shady general of dubious intent. He says he knows a way to communicate with the dead, and desperate for options, Christine jumps at the opportunity.

All she has to do is save a bunch of kidnapped children based on the information gleaned from the psychic communication between a dead monk, a gifted medium and a serial killer battling his way through the regions of the underworld. Christine is thrust into a world she is unfamiliar with. Although this secret division is sanctioned by the U.S. government, its spiritually driven initiative throws her atheist sensibilities out of whack. She doesn't want to believe in life after death, but after witnessing what she does behind closed doors, she's no longer sure.

The key to her change of heart comes in the guise of an attractive man. Attila is her complete opposite. He's a skinny intellectual. A psychic of Gypsy descent who could pass for a Johnny Depp lookalike. He harbors a rare talent for keeping a link of communication open with the dead after they pass over. His ability floors Christine, especially when he contacts the deceased troops under Christine's command and one by one they refuse to forgive her for making the tragic mistake that cost them their lives.

It's heartbreaking to witness how Christine brooks every new refusal. The souls of her former comrades aren't at rest. They're following their loved ones around, wishing they could be a part of their lives again. But it's too late. Christine took that away from them. Attila is appalled that none of the soldiers will offer Christine their forgiveness, and he seeks to comfort her any way he can. As the relationship between the two of them deepens, Christine pulls back, determined to finish what she started and sacrifice herself for the greater good.

It's only when she learns that the thread of lies extends far beyond the grave, that she begins to want to live again. Will she get a chance to make a fresh start? Since this is book one of a continuing series, it's uncertain if she'll find the strength within to forgive herself or if her trials have only just begun. For Christine Kurzow, rest in peace couldn't be further from the truth.

***

The Terminals can be purchased at:
Amazon, Barnes and Noble

Formats: ebook, paperback
Pages: 310
Genre: Paranormal, Thriller, Mystery
Release: April 15, 2014
Click to add to your Goodreads list.


About the Author

Michael F. Stewart is the author of the Assured Destruction series, which sprawls across 3 books, 2 websites, 1 blog, 7 Twitter accounts, tumblr, Facebook, and 6 graphic origin stories. He likes to combine storytelling with technology and pioneered interactive storytelling with Scholastic Canada, Australia and New Zealand’s, anti-cyberbullying program Bully For You. He has authored four graphic novels with Oxford University Press Canada’s award winning Boldprint series. Publications of nonfiction titles on Corruption and Children’s Rights published by Rubicon Publishing as well as early readers with Pearson are all forthcoming in 2014 and 2015.

For adults, Michael has written THE SAND DRAGON a horror about a revenant prehistoric vampire set in the tar sands, HURAKAN a Mayan themed thriller which pits the Maya against the MS-13 with a New York family stuck in the middle, 24 BONES an urban fantasy which draws from Egyptian myth, and THE TERMINALS—a covert government unit which solves crimes in this realm by investigating them in the next. This series has already been optioned for film and television.

Herder of four daughters, Michael lives to write in Ottawa where he runs free writing workshops for teens and adults.

Links to connect with Michael:
Web Site
Facebook
Twitter
Goodreads
Blog Tour Site


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