Book Review: Espersanza by Trish J. MacGregor.

The cover flap reads:
When Tess Livingston got off the bus at the roadside stop high in the Andes, she couldn’t quite remember how she got there.  She’s an FBI agent, and the last thing she remembered was tracing a group of counterfeiters to Ecuador.  But now she’s at the bodega Cielo, waiting for the bus to Esperanza – or at least that where her ticket says she’s going. 

Ian Ritter, a journalist from Minneapolis, is also at the Bodega. He was planning a trip to the Galapagos Island, and his limited Spanish isn’t up the explaining why he needs to chance to Bus 13 to Esperanza. 

Their meeting will change their lives forever.  For there are ghost in Esperanza—Hungry ghost who call themselves brujos, who can possess the bodies of living people, angry ghost who can’t let go of life and the sensual pleasures of the flesh.  The people of Esperanze are in great danger, and the rest of the world will be too, if the brujos cannot be defeated ands send from this mortal plan.  Ian and Tess are the living keys who will permit humanity’s guardian spirits to wage this war, and together they hold a power that neither can imagine alone.
And in the midst of this war, Tess and Ian will find a love that can transcend time, and a cause that not even death will overcome. 

This is my first time reading this author.  I adore the supernatural stories and fantasy fiction.  This one was very good. Lots of twist and turns, a real page turner.   I do have one complaint.  The end of the story was not well rounded.  What I mean by that is the end didn’t tell the story enough to satisfy my curiosity of the characters and what happened to them.  I believe that was done because sequels are coming. 
I would have like to know more about them.  That is all.  I really enjoyed this story and couldn’t wait to get to it even when my eyes closed of their own accord for sleep. 

To find out more about Trish J, MacGregor click here.  trishjmacgregor.com

Book Review: Safe Haven by Nicholas Sparks

The cover flap reads:
When a mysterious young women named Katie appears in the small North Carolina town of Southport, her sudden arrival raises questions about her past.  Beautiful yet self-effacing, Katie seems determined to avoid forming personal ties until a series of events draws her into two reluctant relationships:  One with Alex, a widowed store owner with a kind heart and two young children: and another with plainspoken single neighbor, Jo.  Despite her reservations, Katie slowly begins to let down her guard, putting down roots in the close-knot community and becoming increasingly attached to Alex and his family.

But even as Katie begins to fall in love, she struggles with the dark secret that still haunts and terrifies her… a past that set her on a fearful, shattering journey across the country, to the sheltered oasis of Southport.

With Jo’s empathetic and stubborn support, Katie eventually realized that she must choose between a life of transient safety an one of riskier rewards…and that in the darkest hour, love is the only true safe haven. 

This is the first time reading one of Nicololas Sparks books.  I have seen some of his movies and have enjoyed them but to read the words is quite different.  I really enjoyed reading this tale.  There is a good reason his work has been turned into movies.  He is a very good storyteller.  My preference is still fantasy fiction although I will continue to read different genre during the year long challenge. 

This book challenge has brought me to new authors with wonderful stories but I have learned so much in their work.  My challenge was to read 50 books this year, so far I have read 23 including reading writing books.  I can only say that this challenge is one that I am happy to continue.

More from Nicholas Sparks.

The Notebook
Message in a Bottle
A Walk to Remember
The Rescue
A Bend in the Road
Nights in Rodanthe
The Guardian
The Wedding
Three Weeks with my Brother (with Micah Sparks)
True Believer
At First Sight
Dear John
The Choice
The Lucky One
The Last Song

To find out more click here:  nicholassparks.com

Update on Braveheart. Life after being fixed.

Braveheart is a rescued kitty I found one day.  He has been in my home since July 2010.  He was only four weeks old at the time and needed medical attention.  He grew up fast and became a burden with his fighting the other cats, spraying everyday and wanting to go outside.  One day he attacked me for a misunderstanding.  I placed him in a room away from the others and away from food and water.  It was hours before his first visit to the vets to be fixed.  He attacked me and I put him outside.  This broke my heart.

Braveheart was out in the world for three weeks before he came back to me.  He was in a grassy area near the alleyway by my house.  He was skinny and frightened, cold and hungry.  I was so happy to see him, I approached.  He remembered me and began meowing very loudly.  I coaxed him to follow me back to the house.  He did, all the way to the front door.  He was nearly under my feet as I walked.  I had to be careful not to step on him.

I reluctantly went into the house worried that he would think I wasn’t going to help him.  When I came out with food he had already began to walk away.  I shook the bowl of food.  As soon as he heard it he came running.  He was so hungry he knocked over the bowl attacking it and he meowed at the same time.  I wanted to stay with him but I had to go to work.  I wondered if he would be there when I came home.  He was and I was thrilled.  Originally I had intended him to stay outside and I would continue to care for him.  At the time he refused to come into the house, but I would not abandon him even if he was no longer under my protection.

A few days after his return he wanted to come back into the house.  I allowed him to.  The other cats hissed at him and he acquiesced to their punishment for leaving.  But after four days he started to have the same wild tendencies he had before.  The good news was I had an appointment for him to be fixed the next day.  This time I didn’t put him in the room and the next morning was able to get him safely to the Vets.

Now that he is home, fixed and recovering, he is learning to be a kitty of luxury.  He seems happy although touchy at times.  He still is recovering from the wild outside cats and the huge world he was unaware of living in my home.  Hopefully he will learn that he will be loved, pampered and protected for all the days of his life.

I look forward to having him sit on my lap getting a rub behind his ears and me telling him how happy I am to have him with us, and of course that I love him.  He in turn will learn to trust me and love me back.   That is all I want.

Until next time.  

Book Review: Little Bee by Chris Cleave

The Back Cover Reads:
This is the story of two women.  Their lives collide one fateful day, and one of them has to make a terrible choice, the kind of choice we hope you never have to face.  Two years later, they meet again—the story starts here…

Once you have read it, you’ll want to tell your friends about it.  When you do, please don’t tell them what happens.  The magic is in how the story unfolds.

This is my first time reading this author.  The story of the two women is based on reality, even though the characters are fictional.   I really liked both women, what they went through, and their dilemma.  I was caught up in there lives.

I will say right out I didn’t like the ending, only because I like reading ending where everyone is happy.  (Unrealistic I know.) This book is based on the real world.  That doesn’t mean that the book is not good.  It is absolutely good, well written and moving.  I couldn’t stop reading it.

Chris Cleave is the author of Incendiary which is another book I will have to check out.  Anyway read Little Bee, you will not be disappointed.

To find out more about Chris Cleave here:  chriscleave.com



Until Next Time

The Diligent Writers Critiquing Group April Meeting.

This is the 2nd meeting for the group from Meetup and it went really well.  We had nine people including me.  Some were from the Greater Cleveland Writers Group and a few were new writers.

Each person had a chance to read a bit of their work and received feedback.  I am happy to say we have some really good writers.  They also gave some really constructive feedback.

After the group left there were some writers that stayed behind to talk with me.  We had a discussion of a smaller group that I want to have.  A group of six writers with on going projects that want continuous feedback until the project is finished.   A few of them stated that they want to be involved.  I am pleased.

I am sorry to say the restaurant where we met was loud and very disruptive.  It was hard for the writers to read their own work and to hear the others read.  I could tell everyone including myself was extremely annoyed. I was very embarrassed.  I should have found a better location.  When I first started it I had a few tell me to just hold it at a coffee house.  I was worried about the noise then but we prevailed. After this last meeting there was no discussion I was making a call.

Previously I had a location picked out but the owners weren’t ready for us having just started the business. 

Here’s the good new:
Just as I was leaving the restaurant, the person I was just going to call walked in.  “I need to talk to you.”  I told her, and we did.  We agreed upon the new location and terms, but now I have to charge a nominal fee to cover the cost.  I think the group will be okay with the small amount as long as we don’t have the disruption of the restaurant.

I also have some good news.  The owner and I discussed the option of having a workshop at the location.  We have set a date, now I am working on putting it together.  I am so excited about the potential growth of the workshop.   If it goes well, we can have more and make the group a really good resource for writers.

I am so glad that I went to The Greater Cleveland Writers Group first.  From there I have met and networked with some wonderful people.  Then I started my own group and now we have the promise of a great future.  Until next time. 

Book Review: Jane and the Madness of Lord Byron. By Stephanie Barron

The Back Cover Reads:
The restorative power of the ocean brings Jane Austen and her beloved brother Henry to Brighton after Henry’s wife is lost to a long illness.  But the crowded, glittering resort is far from peaceful, especially when the lifeless body of a beautiful young society miss is discovered in the bedchamber of none other than George Gordon--otherwise known as Lord Byron.  As a poet and a seducer of women, Byron has carved out a shocking reputation for himself.—but no one would ever accuse him of being capable of murder.  Now it falls to Jane to pursue this puzzling investigation and discover just how “mad, bad, and dangerous to know” Byron truly is.  And she must do so without falling victim to the charming versifier’s legendary charisma, lest she, too, become a cautionary example for the ages.

I must confess this is the first time reading Stephanie Barron.  I love the Jane Austen stories of Pride and Prejudice and Sense and Sensibilities, but with this book the author actually is writing about Jane Austen herself.  I found myself in the world of 1813 England which is what drew me to Jane Austen in the first place.  As a modern woman of today I do not wish to live in that era but Stephanie told the story from a point of view of strength for women.  I really enjoyed it.  It had humor and lots of really cool words for a writer like me to look up and fuss over.

The story itself weaved into a hypnotic mystery that had me turning page after page until the final reveal.  Very well done.   I will read more of this author.

More from Stephanie Barron and the Jane Austen Mysteries.

Jane and the Unpleasantness at Scargrave Manor.
Jane and the Man of the Cloth
Jane and the Wandering Eye
Jane and the Genius of the Place
Jane and the Stillroom Maid
Jane and the Prisoner of Wool House
Jane and the Ghosts of Netley
Jane and His Lordship’s Legacy
Jane and the Barque of Frailty
Jane and the Madness of Lord Byron.

To find out more about Stephanie Barron click here.  stephaniebarron.com

Braveheart the Warrior: The Continuation of the story.

Braveheart

Braveheart is a kitten I rescued last July, although he is hardly a kitten now.  I found him, took him in, fed him, made him apart of my family along with the other three cats I rescued. 

The day before he was due to get fixed, I put him in a bedroom so he wouldn’t have access to food or water prior to the surgery.  Well that didn’t go well.  He attacked me; I had blood from scratches on my face, one of them extremely close to my eye.  He didn’t like being in that room apparently.  So I had no choice but to put him outside.  Doing this broke my heart.  I prayed I would get a glimpse of him to at least know that he was okay.  The weather here hasn’t been good and he was up until that moment a house cat.  I was worried about him.  

Today as I was getting ready to go to the street, to access my house you must drive through an alleyway.  Just as I was going to the street from the alleyway I saw him.  I stopped the car immediately and approached.

Braveheart was eating grass.  I knew he was hungry, so I talked to him quietly, letting him know I still cared about him.  He was cautious at first but let me come closer.  Then he started to meow vigorously.  I came a little closer.  He meowed louder.  I put my hand out and he came to me.  It wasn’t until he smelled my hand and let me pet him that he became loving, rubbing my hand, legs and going around me as much as he could to get my attention meanwhile meowing his need.

When he left it was my hope that I could feed him and help him with the transition of being outside and hunting.  At the time he was more worried that I would bring him back in the house. 

I got up and encouraged him to follow.  He did.  All the way to the front door stopping to have the neighbor pug named Scooby smell him but Braveheart was determined to get food.  I opened the door and he tried to get back in the house.  I can’t let him do that, so reluctantly I closed the door, ran and got a bowl of cat food and brought it outside.  I didn’t see him at first, so I called.  He meowed real loud.  My heart leapt that he was still close, so I held the bowl of cat food up and jiggled it so he could hear it.  He came running.  I put the bowl down on the porch.  Poor Braveheart almost dumped the bowl he was so hungry.  He attacked it with vigor.  I ran into the house to get some water.   I put the water down next to him, he stopped briefly to smell the water but he was too hungry to think about it.

I didn’t pet him or anything.  These minutes were very precarious, I left the car in the alleyway with my purse and belonging inside, in order to help him.  Someone could come down that alleyway and get mad, steal my purse or, anything could have happened, but my mind was on helping my Braveheart.  Knowing he was okay for the moment I left him to his food. 

Maybe we can have an understanding about his future.   He can come by and get food and water each morning and I get to know that he is okay and still love him.

He might go for that.  If in the future I get the money to have him fixed and he will allow it I might be able to do that but for the moment I am happy that he is okay and fed.

Until next time.