Feature and Follow Friday!

This week's question

Q: What have you learned from book blogging that you didn't know before about the publishing industry?

I haven't been book blogging very long. At first I thought that no one would request me to review their book, especially since I don't have that many followers. But since I started this blog I've had a decent follow of requests (even though sometimes I'd bad and don't get through the review in a timely manner).

 Before blogging and before I started writing myself, I had no idea how hard it is to market a book yourself.  My first book Lucidity is currently on amazon http://www.amazon.com/dp/B008KB0L64 and the purpose of this blog was to generate readers. But I actually enjoy talking about other writer's books more,I feel like I might generate that one reader who will tip the scales for them. There are a lot of good indie books out there that get passed over for what's selling right now.

Feature and Follow Friday!

Today's Topic:

What's the last book that made you cry?

For me that's "Life Without Summer" by Lynne Griffin

Synopsis:

Tessa Gray's life changes forever when she loses her four-year-old daughter Abby in a hit-and-run accident outside her preschool. As she grapples with a terrible grief, made worse by the police's insistence that the case is unsolvable, she finds her only solace in Celia Reed, the grief counselor her husband's pushed her to see, and in the journal she's begun keeping, where she compulsively counts the "days without Abby" and maps out her plan for catching the driver who tore her family apart.

Celia struggles to keep Tessa from getting caught up in a bleak crusade for answers, but she finds that their sessions open the door to emotions she's spent years ignoring, forcing her to face the rising tensions in her own life-- her troubled teenage son, her alcoholic ex-husband, and her fragile new marriage. Celia soon begins to realize that she must come to terms with the tragic mistakes of her own past and the choices that have led her family to the brink of destruction.

Life Without Summer is a haunting portrait of two women whose lives converge unexpectedly when the answers one needs turn out to be the other's only chance for peace.

The scene that got me is when Tessa visits the kindergarten teacher who is in part responsible for her daughter's death. She failed to make sure that Abby stayed with class and that is how she ends up the victim of a hit and run. The teacher gives Tessa a tiny broken egg, the one Abby was holding when she died. It's very touching moment. Tessa is able to connect with the teacher through their shared pain even though Tessa is angry with her for her role in Abby's death. 

It's a Hop Thing! Add your link so we can find your blog.

This is a blog hop. The purpose of which is to promote your blog and find new followers. Simply click the link below to add your blog. Then go through the list and become a follower of each blog. Leave comment on any post to let the owner know you're a new follower so they can return the favor. You can use the code post the hop on your blog as well.

Spot Light: Red Sand By Ronan Cray

Teaser: Your cruise ship has sunk into cold unforgiving depths of the ocean. Nearly everyone on board has perished. But you are one of the lucky survivors moving slowly toward a nearby island. Or so you think. This is no ordinary island, and it is not the salvation you were hoping for as you drifted away from the wreckage of the Princess Anne. The inhabitants are far less than friendly and surviving your encounter with them will be far more daunting than escaping a watery grave. What you do now will determine your fate, but you'll have to hurry the fragile society around you is crumbling and a devastating hurricane is on the horizon.

Did I Like it: Yes! I think this an excellent adventure story, complete with betrayal, murder, and suspense. The story is carefully constructed with thrilling action scenes. This wasn't the first time a novel took me to a wayward island, but I enjoyed the author's spin on this theme.    What I liked best about this story is the action from start to finish. There are very few stagnant moments, and I think that works well this type of story. The characters are in danger, they face life threatening situations, and their decisions are crucial. There is a sense of urgency but the situations the characters are in leave them few options and this creates a constant tension between them. They won't all survive their ordeal, some will perish, others will be captives, but no one is going home.  I admit that I'm sucker for books with flowery detail. But I found the author's clear and concise writing style refreshing. In place of length description the author does a fantastic job of using dialogue to tell this story. Because of some of the language I recommend this book for teens or adults. 

Caveats: None

Overall Rating: 5/5

Who's it for?:

Adventure/action lovers
Suspense/ Thriller readers
General readers
Adult fiction readers.


Get Red Sand Click Here

Hiatus

Reviews and blog hops will resume at the end of the month.

For All the Hoppers and Shakers!

This Week's Question: 

Q: What book do you think would make a great Halloween movie? Please explain in graphic detail of goriness...

I'd have to go with "The Mephisto Club" by Tess Gerritsen provided it wasn't done by the same people who made the show "Rizzoli and Isles". This novel is one of her typical medical thrillers, but it has a fantastical undertone with demons and the supernatural. This gave the book an air of creepiness that some her other thrillers didn't have. A mysterious organization and ritualistic murders.  I don't want to go into graphic detail but I'll post the synopsis here  

Via Amazon:

Evil exists. Evil walks the streets. And evil has spawned a diabolical new disciple in this white-knuckle thriller from New York Times bestselling author Tess Gerritsen.


PECCAVI
The Latin word is scrawled in blood at the scene of a young woman’s brutal murder: I HAVE SINNED. It’s a chilling Christmas greeting for Boston medical examiner Maura Isles and Detective Jane Rizzoli, who swiftly link the victim to controversial celebrity psychiatrist Joyce O’Donnell–Jane’s professional nemesis and member of a sinister cabal called the Mephisto Club.

On top of Beacon Hill, the club’s acolytes devote themselves to the analysis of evil: Can it be explained by science? Does it have a physical presence? Do demons walk the earth? Drawing on a wealth of dark historical data and mysterious religious symbolism, the Mephisto scholars aim to prove a startling theory: that Satan himself exists among us. 

With the grisly appearance of a corpse on their doorstep, it’s clear that someone–or something–is indeed prowling the city. The members of the club begin to fear the very subject of their study. Could this maniacal killer be one of their own–or have they inadvertently summoned an evil entity from the darkness? 

Delving deep into the most baffling and unusual case of their careers, Maura and Jane embark on a terrifying journey to the very heart of evil, where they encounter a malevolent foe more dangerous than any they have ever faced . . . one whose work is only just beginning.

I'm Been Hopping All My Life!

Today's Question:

Q: What do you hope to accomplish with your blog? Is it to one day become an author yourself, just for fun, maybe get some online attention, or maybe something very different?

I'd like my blog to be a popular place for indie authors and readers in general. Initially I started it to promote my own book, but over the last few weeks I've found that I like reading and reviewing other's people's work a lot more. Mainly I just want to connect with other people that have a passion for reading and writing.