Saturday, December 28, 2013

A Small Story for Page 3 by John W. Germond



Blurb:

Harry Fletcher can’t for the life of him figure out what exactly the ‘nugget’ of information his colleague, Eddie Concannon, uncovered prior to his death is. Picking his way along the threads of information, Harry soon finds himself at odds with government officials and his own newspaper seems to be involved in the collusion. Join Harry as he deciphers the clues and enjoy a journey into the world of investigative reporting set against a colorful back drop of characters and locations.

Review:

Although I wrote fiction as a child and teenager, I didn’t seriously consider writing as a career until I worked at the National Public Radio affiliate in Charleston, South Carolina.  I was hired as the secretary/receptionist fresh out of secretarial school, and I practically venerated the four journalists for whom I worked.  They talked about how great it was working in Public Radio where they didn’t have to worry about their stories clashing with the interests of advertisers or sponsors, because at the time PBS and NPR were supported entirely by government grants.  My bosses had complete Freedom of Press.

Harry Fletcher does not have that freedom.  His colleague, Eddie Concannon, was working on “A Small Story for Page Three” prior to his death.  A gurbernatorial candidate led a commission investigating corruption in the judicial, State’s Attorney’s and police departments that led to several indictments.  It was that commission that catapulted him into favor for the candidacy for governor.  Concannon told his wife he’d uncovered a “nugget” prior to his death, and Harry decides to follow it up before writing the story.  As he follows the leads, he clashes with his publisher who makes it clear—the editors and reporters do not determine what goes into the newspaper; he does.  It doesn’t matter who has corroborated the story—if the candidate says it didn’t happen; it didn’t.  Printing it could hurt the man’s candidacy.  (And Richard Nixon never had any tape recorders in the Oval Office because he said he didn’t.  Printing the Watergate story could hurt Nixon’s presidential legacy. Really?)  Why is Marcotte so invested in killing this story?

Harry is an old-fashioned newspaper man.  He’s more interested in writing the whole story than in finding a sound-bite or grabbing the front page.  He tracks down leads and corroborates them with more than one source, and he protects his sources.  But we don’t just see him at work.  We see him at home where his marriage to a younger woman is going through a rough patch, which doesn’t help matters.  One of his sources is an attractive woman whose husband is also out of town, and an envious colleague reports a bit of flirtatious banter during an interview as a full-blown affair.  While the story is told in first person, Mr. Germond’s characters are all fully-drawn, interesting, and engaging.  The story is fast-paced and a real page-burner.

I would love to see more from this retired newsman who finally wrote that novel so many journalists have stuffed in a drawer, but he left us three days before this book was released.  At least he got to see the galleys.  RIP Mr. Germond, and thank you.

Length: 224 Pages
Price:  $5.95

You’ll notice I always include the publisher’s buy link.  That’s because authors usually receive 40% of the book price from the publisher.  Editors and cover artists usually receive about 5%.  When you buy a book from Amazon, Barnes & Noble or another third-party vendor, they take a hefty cut and the author, editors and cover artists receive their cuts from what is left.  So, if a book costs $5.99 at E-Book Publisher.com and you buy from there, the author will receive about $2.40.  If you buy the book at Amazon, the author will receive about $0.83.

Downloading the file from your computer to your Kindle is as easy as transferring any file from your computer to a USB flash drive.  Plug the USB end of your chord into a USB port on your computer and simply move the file from your “Downloads” box to your Kindle/Documents/Books directory.  I actually download my books using “Save As” to a “Books” file I created on my computer that’s sorted by my publisher, friends, and books “to review,” and then transfer them to my Kindle from there.  That way, if there’s a glitch with my Kindle, the books are on my computer.  Your author will be happy you did when he/she sees his/her royalty statement.

Thanks for visiting. RIW

Saturday, December 21, 2013

War-N-Wit, Inc.—Mean Street, LLC by Gail Roughton


 

Blurb:

Another wedding day dawns for the ever-growing Garrett-Forrester Coven as Spike and Stacy get ready to say “I do”! Don’t expect weddings bells and white gowns, though. It’s off to the Drive-Thru Tunnel of Love at the Little White Wedding Chapel in Vegas. Again. It’s sort of a family tradition. But what’s supposed to happen in Vegas just refuses to stay in Vegas. And you’re not going to believe this side-trip!

Review:

I love the Garret-Forrester Coven, and Gail Roughton is a good enough writer to keep a series fresh, so the reader stays engaged. War-N-Wit, Inc.—Mean Street, LLC does not disappoint. When Stacey’s sister, Ariel met Chad’s brother Spike, it was love at first site and they knew they’d have a marriage made in …somewhere. They invite Stacey and Ariel’s parents to the wedding, knowing what a shock the whole thing will be for their gently-bred, Southern mom. Grace Anson always envisioned either church or garden weddings for her daughters, with flowing white gowns, flowers, ribbons, and crystal flutes of champagne afterward either still in the garden, or at a country club, or a very nice hotel—not a Vegas drive-thru wedding, and certainly not on the conveyances her daughters have in mind.

But, the girls are not the only ones having family problems. War-N-Wit, Inc. often works for a concern called “Mean Street, LLC,” a family-owned company run by a man named Gabe Smith. He calls Chad and asks him and Stacey to, “Check out a magic act on the Strip. No big deal.” Gabe and his brothers Mike and Raph are having problems with their brother, “Lucy” (a childhood nickname he hates), and it turns out to be a very big deal. Good thing Stacey’s cat, Micah has managed to “follow her” to Vegas—again.”

Gail Roughton is great at creating characters who are engaging. They keep you laughing, on the edge of your seat, rooting for them, and then laughing some more. While Ms. Roughton didn’t exactly write this as a Christmas/Yule tale, I think it kind of fits this week. Like most of her War-N-Wit novellas, it’s way too short. Oh, it’s complete. It stands well on its own. But it’s only a little over a hundred pages, so it goes really fast and leaves you wanting more.  I would have give the book five roses, but I found some comma splices.  Et tu, Ms. Roughton?  Aw me-ann!

Length:  111 Pages
Price:  $2.99

Thanks for visiting. RIW

Sunday, December 15, 2013

If Only by Lisa M. Owens



Blurb:

An accidental slip on a patch of ice gives Bree Sexton the opportunity she has always dreamed of—a chance to go back in time and make things right, changing her life and her future. A poignant tale of second chances, and a woman’s fight to find her happily-ever-after.

What would you do if you had the opportunity to go back and relive your greatest mistake?

Five years ago, Bree Sexton walked out on her fiancé and into the arms of a charming and handsome stranger. She has regretted her decision ever since. Instead of a fairy-tale marriage, her “prince” shattered her dreams and her spirit with physical violence and emotional cruelty she barely escaped.

She then mysteriously wakes up in bed with the fiancé she loved and left, the life she’d dreamed of now a reality, until her cruel ex-husband reappears to destroy her new life. But what is real, and what is make-believe? Is she really getting the chance she has always dreamed of? And when it is all said and done, will she finally end up with the man she has always regretted leaving? Or will she wake up to discover herself alone?

Review:

If Only is dedicated to battered women and in the Dedication Ms. Owens says that if she can help even one woman to escape her abuser, she will be happy.  She then starts the book with her heroine, Bree Sexton, out with friends celebrating her divorce from her abuser becoming final.  How did Bree escape her abuser?  If her ex-husband, Bryan is as angry, violent and possessive as Ms. Owens portrays him, not to mention being a trust-fund baby with a father who will bail him out of any situation, how has Bree managed to get out of the house, live in the same town, under the same name, and divorce this madman?

Just two nights ago as I write this, a guy violated an order of protection, took his ex-girlfriend hostage, shot and critically wounded a cop, and was finally killed by members of a SWAT team.  Fortunately, the girl survived.  The way Ms. Owens wrote Bryan Sexton, I could see him pulling something like that if Bree tried to divorce him without running as fast and as far away as possible.

Ms. Owens does not explain any of that, which in my opinion is what an abused woman needs to read in order to free herself from a similar situation.  Instead, she starts the story when the divorce is final.  Bree slips on a patch of ice and wakes up in the arms of “the one who got away,” and the book becomes urban fantasy—pure escapism.

This is a first novel, so I could maybe forgive the fact that it is badly written with major gaps in continuity, major head-hops and poor grammar.  I can only forgive this because Ms. Owens actually went through a reputable publisher that is recommended on Preditors and Editors and not mentioned at all by Piers Anthony.  So, what became of her editor?

She keeps describing Scott Weston, the hero of the book as having calloused hands.  In her ideal life, Bree writes children’s books and Scott illustrates them.  How would his hands get calloused?  An artist might have a callous on his middle finger from holding a pencil or paint brush.  These days an illustrator would more likely get carpal tunnel syndrome from drawing on a computer with a mouse.  But calloused hands?  Not unless he does carpentry or brick-laying in his spare time.

Bryan Sexton is their publisher’s son and tries to beat and rape Bree at work.  She escapes and makes her way to the ER, and then home.  The next day during a snowball fight, Scott wonders why she left work early.  It took him a whole day to wonder about it?  He even takes her face in his hands being careful of her bruises when he kisses her.  She’s pregnant with their first child—he didn’t rush home to see what was wrong and how she was the minute he heard she left?  He never even asks her why she left work early or where the bruises came from.  That was a huge hole—one any editor worth his or her salt should have made sure got plugged.  What’s going on at Liquid Silver Books that they let something this bad get out the door?  As for head hops, Ms. Owens changes points of view in the middle of paragraphs, not just scenes.

It’s the job of the editor to fix these things.  Ms. Owens had really good intentions for this story, but she missed the mark by several miles.  It’s a shame she didn’t have an editor who was capable of reeling her back in.  Had she published independently, I would chide her for these problems.  Instead, I’m chiding Liquid Silver Books, whose job it was to see she received that quality of editing.

I’m sorry, Ms. Owens.  I don’t see how If Only can help anyone get away from her abuser, aside from helping her to dream of a better life.  Maybe that’s a first step, but it’s not practical.  Perhaps your next book will give more detail about how you filed for orders of protection, where you went when you left your abuser, and how you managed to stay safe from him if he came after you when you finally got away.  But I would request a better editor for that one.

Length:  147 Pages
Price:  $4.99
You’ll notice I always include the publisher’s buy link.  That’s because authors usually receive 40% of the book price from the publisher.  Editors and cover artists usually receive about 5%.  When you buy a book from Amazon, Barnes & Noble or another third-party vendor, they take a hefty cut and the author, editors and cover artists receive their cuts from what is left.  So, if a book costs $5.99 at E-Book Publisher.com and you buy from there, the author will receive about $2.40.  If you buy the book at Amazon, the author will receive about $0.83.

Downloading the file from your computer to your Kindle is as easy as transferring any file from your computer to a USB flash drive.  Plug the USB end of your chord into a USB port on your computer and simply move the file from your “Downloads” box to your Kindle/Documents/Books directory.  I actually download my books using “Save As” to a “Books” file I created on my computer that’s sorted by my publisher, friends, and books “to review,” and then transfer them to my Kindle from there.  That way, if there’s a glitch with my Kindle, the books are on my computer.  Your author will be happy you did when he/she sees his/her royalty statement.

Thanks for visiting.  RIW

Saturday, December 7, 2013

Redemption by C. J. Barry



Blurb:

Reya Sinclair is the last person a man sees before he dies. As a Redeemer, she offers the soon-to-be-departed one last chance to atone for their sins. It's a painful job, but it's her only shot to secure her own salvation. She won't let anyone stand in her way-not even a ruggedly sexy cop hot on her trail. Bound by her duty, Reya must shake him before he ruins her—but her heart can't seem to let him go.

Detective Thane Driscoll has watched too many criminals get away. The man who murdered his father was no exception. Now Thane carries out his own brand of justice, even if it means compromising his soul. When a string of deaths leads him to a beautiful woman in black, he discovers there's more to his father's murder than meets the eye.

As fate brings them closer together, Thane discovers that only Reya's touch can calm his rage. Racing to uncover an evil plot, they must fight together to stop the coming storm. But when the time comes, can Reya sacrifice her own redemption to save Thane?

Review:

It appears authors are finally vamped and shifted out.  Books these days seem to be focusing more on ghosts, angels, spirituality and reincarnation.  Redemption touches on all of the above, and I truly enjoyed the spiritual message embedded within the romance.  Reya gives people a chance to atone for their sins before they die.  Otherwise, they have to come back and learn those lessons again.

Thane Driscoll isn’t exactly a dirty cop.  He just gets tired of watching the bad guys’ lawyers find loopholes that allow their clients to walk out of the courtrooms.  “Go, my son, and sin no more,” is a foreign concept in the New York City justice system.  Criminals walk out the door with their buddies and often commit more crimes on their way home from the courthouse.  So maybe Thane takes a few shortcuts to clean the streets—and he doesn’t exactly use a broom.  But he becomes more than a little intrigued by the black-clad beauty who shows up on the security videos in several suspicious deaths.  Who is she, and what does she have to do with these deaths?  Why does the violent death toll in New York City seem to be accelerating suddenly?  And how does it relate to his own father’s death?

Redemption grabbed me from the first page and kept me in my seat for the full ride.  The characters were fully fleshed out and compelling, and there were no major editing glitches to pull me out of the book and make me want to hurl my Kindle across the room.  (Yea!)  I recommend Redemption.  It’s a good read.

Length:  289 Pages
Prices:
Paperback:  $17.00
Digital:  $2.99

You’ll notice I always include the publisher’s buy link.  That’s because authors usually receive 40% of the book price from the publisher.  Editors and cover artists usually receive about 5%.  When you buy a book from Amazon, Barnes & Noble or another third-party vendor, they take a hefty cut and the author, editors and cover artists receive their cuts from what is left.  So, if a book costs $5.99 at E-Book Publisher.com and you buy from there, the author will receive about $2.40.  If you buy the book at Amazon, the author will receive about $0.83.

Downloading the file from your computer to your Kindle is as easy as transferring any file from your computer to a USB flash drive.  Plug the USB end of your chord into a USB port on your computer and simply move the file from your “Downloads” box to your Kindle/Documents/Books directory.  I actually download my books using “Save As” to a “Books” file I created on my computer that’s sorted by my publisher, friends, and books “to review,” and then transfer them to my Kindle from there.  That way, if there’s a glitch with my Kindle, the books are on my computer.  Your author will be happy you did when he/she sees his/her royalty statement.

Thanks for visiting.  RIW