Month: September 2016

Ship the Kids Ahead by Bill Stokes

Review - Submitted

 

I had the pleasure of reading William Stokes “Ship the Kids.”  A delightful collection of memories, wise assessments and downright funny and all too true life lessons!

The Pratter of Big Feet: “We don’t have to open doors for them anymore, but we have to close them. (Why is it that as soon as a kid learns how to open a door, he forgets how to close one?)”

 

Moms will appreciate this one from Don’t Go Near the Water:

“Within each age bracket, it was discovered that handwashing can be avoided by:

ONE—Flushing the plumbing and waiting until it has stopped gurgling, hissing, whistling, or whatever it does.

TWO—Rubbing with a damp towel.

THREE—Singing loudly and using one finger to flick water on the bathroom mirror.

FOUR—Starting a fight in the bathroom until it is cleared in the interest of preserving the porcelain furniture.”

 

Stokes relays these stories with ease that only comes from a true story teller.  His vivid imagery and down to earth language captures the imaginations and past of all his listeners and readers!

 

This is a priceless collection of memories that we all share in one form or another – I can guarantee that at least half of you have avoided washing your hands as a small child, someone you know has eaten paste or drank ink, not made your bed or attempted to organize your tools!  Each of you have met with similar disastrous results from childhood into elderlyhood!  The hilarious part – THE KIDS STILL DO THIS TODAY!  Enjoy Stokes collection of remembrances and get ready to belly-laugh your afternoon away!

 

Don’t miss the wonderfully delightful Sean Runnette who will be reading the audiobook version!

 

Charla White

WordsAPlenty

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Noah’s Wife by T. K. Thorne

Review - Submitted

A copy of this audiobook, Noah’s Wife 5500 BCE was given to WordsAPlenty by the author, T. K. Thorne, in exchange for an honest review.

 

Noah’s wife is set in 5500 BCE.  Yes, Noah’s wife is mentioned in the bible along with the great flood and other characters that are angry, sad, lonely, faithful, struggling, and the list goes on.  So why listen to this book?

Noah’s Wife is an exciting book that deals with issues in 5500 BCE AND today – the struggle of women to be more than second class citizens, morality and ethical issues, cultural issues and even dating!  Since before 5500 BCE women have struggled to be more and men have struggled on how to be with a strong woman.  Time has not changed the issues at all!

Using the great flood, T. K. Thorne presents unique twists to the story by focusing on Noah’s wife.  This fictional accounting of the great flood and story about it is exciting.  Noah’s wife, Na’amah comes from a severely dysfunctional family, dealing with the love of two men that have disastrous results and Na’amah also has the burden of dealing with what is now known as Asperger Syndrome.

Listening to Na’amah’s life as told through her voice one recognizes the naiveté in the beginning, by the end of the book naiveté has been replaced with strength and knowledge.   Her struggles resound with those of us today.

T.K. Thorne is an excellent story teller; building her plot and characters to great depths showing who they are, what they think – giving us, her listeners a unique experience.  As a piece of fiction, she skillfully mixes in historical pieces that are well known.  Her skill to blend the incidents and story together are expert.

I had the pleasure of both reading Noah’s Wife and listening to it.  The audiobook is excellent as Melissa Carey, narrator, projects the right amount of naiveté and confusion in Na’amah’s voice growing it to the strength she gains by the end of the book due to her experiences.  Within a few moments of listening, I heard Carey become Na’amah!   This narration brought the book to life!

I highly recommend this book as a must listen!  You will be transported to 5500 BCE between the skill of Thorne and Carey.  You will feel the pain, joy, and growth of this unique woman.

There were no issues with production quality.  Everything was perfect with the audio.

 

Click here to purchase.

 

 

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The Hidden Genes of Professor K. by Gabriel Farago

Review - Submitted

WordsAPlenty was given a copy of this book by the author, Gabriele Farago in exchange for an honest review of his book The Hidden Genes of Professor K.

 

A well written complex medical mystery that leaves no stone unturned.  Not only is Professor K close to discovering a mind blowing cure for a deadly disease but he’s dying.  The mega pharmaceutical self-made billionaire Alistair Macbeth of Blackburn Pharmaceutical wants it.   Jack Rogan, famous author is charged with solving a mystery involving the murdered parents of world renowned rock star Isis; a mysterious skull that connects the Aztecs to Dr. Mengele and Hitler to Professor K.

Gabriel Farago carefully weaves a medical thriller connecting each character and occurrence carefully; his plot is excellently planned.    The multiple story lines are not confusing but rather come together seamlessly and at times surprisingly.

Farago creates characters that are unique and exciting.  His dialog is believable and flows smoothly.

‘They are crying,’ said Tristan after a while. 

‘Who’s crying?’ asked Jack.

‘The angels.’

‘Why?’

‘It’s this place. I’ve never felt anything like it.  This is a well of desperate souls.  So many of them. They are all around us and they are drowning in their own pain. That’s why the angels are crying.’

Each character is strong in his/her own right.  Jack Rogan must solve the mystery and in turn he knows he will write another best-selling novel.  Of that he is sure but knows he must solve the growing mystery.

‘The next step was slowly emerging out of the maze of dead ends, false leads and speculation.  A powerful, familiar gut feeling told Jack he was on the right track.  However, one main clue central to it all was eluding him, despite being tantalizingly close.’

This is an involved and long novel but Farago does a magnificent job of keeping it readable, exciting and easy to follow.  I have encountered several masterful story tellers and wordsmiths but Gabriel Farago is top in this field. Everything is expertly researched; his writing style is thorough and smooth.   His carefully woven story is not one that can be easily forgotten.  One will be left to wonder how much of what he has written is true and how much of it is truly fiction given the news coverage of pharmaceuticals in recent years.

This is the latest in a series of Jack Rogan books, but can be read as a stand-alone.  This is the first Jack Rogan book I have read and not once did I feel lost or confused.  I would highly recommend Farago and The Hidden Genes of Professor K.  to anyone who loves dark, disturbing and mind blowing medical thrillers.  The twists and turns begin on page one and goes through to the end.

WordsAPlenty gives The Hidden Genes of Professor K a five-star review and the highest approval level of enthusiasm for a book.  Don’t miss out on this one!

Click here to purchase.

 

 

 

 

 

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Novus (The Cresecren Chronicles) (Book 1) by Crystal Marcos

Review - Submitted

WordsAPlenty received a copy of this book from the author in exchange for an honest review. This book is also a  B.R.A.G Medallion Honoree, 2016 indieBRAG!

 

“SPOILER ALERT”

 

“Their fate was to be no one’s son or daughter, no one’s brother or sister, no one’s father or mother, no one’s kin.”

This is the life of a Cresecren.   Set in a dystopian future, life is different – humans now have Cresecren’s to do their bidding.   Created beings Cresecrens live by the rules of no harm to humans, no emotional or physical contact, and you do as you are told, no questions!  Cayden was born a Cresecren but due to a “sexual misconduct with a human” situation, he found himself thrust into Gavaron, where all retired, ill, or banished Cresecrens go to eke out an existence.

However, Cayden and a few of his friends discover that their world is no more; Gavaron and residents are dead and they are the hunted.  Taken in by strangers through a journey of escape and discovery Cayden and his friends discover there are conspiracies everywhere.   And to top it all off, Cayden finds love – with a human, Linnayah.   Deadly encounters, double crosses and more keep the tight group moving, searching for escape.

Just when they think they have found a safe place, Cayden discovers their most recent savior is collecting them.

“It is the first step in suppressing what Amaury considers negative emotions.”

Cayden must decide as do the others, do they stay and enjoy life as it is or do they continue to seek their freedom and possibly die?

Action packed, futuristic dystopian world is exciting and realistic.  Crystal Marcos, author, does an excellent job of creating this future world and raising moral questions within the story through Cayden, his friends and enemies.

The characters are fully developed; the plot is executed perfectly tying everything together.  Marcos is a splendid storyteller with a rich and vivid vocabulary to capture the attention of her audience.   She develops the underdog, Cayden, beautifully giving his voice a strong presence.  Marcos captures the emotional and mental state of teenagers expertly allowing her readers to grasp those emotions and thoughts clearly.

This is a story that not only will have you thinking about it long after you have turned the last page but the characters will continue to pop into your mind.  As a reader you want to rush to the end to see what happens but in the same sense you don’t want the book to end.

WordsAPlenty gives this book a 5 star rating for its clear writing style, action, character development and attention holding plot.  Kudos to Crystal Marcos!

 

 

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Tickle His Fancy by Samantha A. Cole

Review - Submitted

Tickle His Fancy was given to WordsAPlenty by the author in exchange for an honest review.

Although not required – the best place to read this book is in the bathtub, filled with bubbles, lights down low, a glass of Vin Santo and some dark chocolate!  This book is not only romantic but action packed and has ALL members of the Trident Team making an appearance!  Wowzer!

Brody “Egghead” Evans, a member of the Trident Security Team and member of the Covenant, has just met his match in baker Francine “Fancy” Maguire.  Widowed and running her own bakery, Fancy meets Egghead when he comes in to help his boss’s fiancé select a wedding cake – always one with a sweet tooth, Egghead falls hard for this little lady.  The question is can Egghead get Fancy to live her life again?

“A grin spread across Brody’s face. It didn’t escape his notice that he was intentionally left out of her question. Well, we’ll just see about that. He was looking forward to tasting anything the beautiful baker was offering.”

That is just the beginning of his troubles –  not only are bodies of subs popping up but someone is also killing people that Fancy cares about and Egghead doesn’t know whether or not Fancy will fit into his slightly kinky world.

In true Trident fashion, Samantha Cole keeps the mystery, action and romance alive and kicking in this latest edition of the Trident series.   Cole continues to grow her series with characters that a woman can’t help but fall in love with and the action packed stories pack a wallop that leaves the readers stunned and wanting more.

“Brody thought he was going to pass out, the clamp was yanked out of the water, and his body sagged heavily. What had felt like an hour of being electrocuted had in reality been only a second or two.”

Cole experiments with this book, throwing in several unexpected twists – one after another with perfect timing.  The cliffhanger is monumental!

The entire Trident series is excellent; Cole continues to evolve into a masterful storyteller with each book.

I enjoy reading the Trident Series immensely but this last book – it was the best yet!  I cannot wait to read the next one with Carter!

WordsAPlenty gives this book a much deserved 5 star review!

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Bloodwalker by L.X. Cain

Review - Submitted

L.X. Cain, the author, provided bookie-monster.com with a copy of this book for an honest review.  Due to technical issues with bookie-monster website and as a reviewer for bookie-monster.com, here is a copy of that review.

 

Everyone loves the circus.  The circus is supposed to be a place of laughter, fun and good times.  But just who are the carnies?  What secrets do they hold close?  At the Zorka Circus it’s all fun and games until the big top comes down and they are ready to leave.

The group known as the Skomori clan (aka Bloodwalkers) are infamous for being ghouls and handlers of the dead.  The plot continues to thicken as the circus leaves the small European towns children disappear leaving no trace.  Sylvie of the Skomori clan and soon to be wed discovers a bundle that was hidden away – this holds the clue to the unseen evil stalking the children.  Rurik, the security guard once the Strongman and victim of direct lightning strikes must solve the mystery before he loses his home and friends to the evil.

The two must come together and save the latest victim before it’s too late; it’s one of their own circus children.  Banding together Rurik, Sylvie and others from the Circus attempt to defeat the growing evil and save the missing child and themselves.  Is it too late?  Is the evil too strong and many?

If you’re not afraid of clowns already, you will be by the fourth page of this book!  L.X. Cain, author, takes fear and gives it a new face with the turn of each page.  Cain takes several situations and weaves them together into one masterful tale of horror that will leave the reader shaking.  By the end of the second page, the first thing to pop into my head was, “OMG!  This book is going to be awesome!”  And it was!

Rich vivid words describe feelings, fears and situations fully leaving no doubt as to what the reader should be experiencing.  Dialog that is accurately scripted and well done.  There are no holes for the reader to fall into, just the horror lurking on each page.

The author is clever and creative in his writing; Cain expertly deals out horror as if it were ice cream on a warm sunny day.  I could not put this book down after I started reading it.  I am a huge fan of the horror genre but this, it tops my list of excellent books.

WordsAPlenty rates this book with 5 stars!  It was entertaining, scary and well done.

Click here to purchase.

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