Entangled Minds by Roseanne Dowell

Blurb:

Strange, realistic visions and dreams invade Rebecca Brennan’s mind. When she experiences someone’s pain, she’s determined to find out who shares her mind. Her search leads to a small town filled with Victorian homes and interesting people and puts her life in danger.

Review:

Rebecca Brennan wakes up screaming, “No!” and then feels a burning pain in her shoulder and something warm and wet running down her arm. Has she been shot? No, but someone has—someone whose feelings she’s been sharing for the past few years, someone with whom her mind appears to be linked. He lives in a small town filled with Victorian homes and she thinks he must be a cop. At least she hopes she's linked to a cop and not a criminal.  She decides she has to find him, because whoever wounded him isn’t finished.

Hooking a reader on the first page is an important tool for a writer, and Ms. Dowell really pulls you in with Becca’s rude awakening in Entangled Minds. Is she linked to a cop? A civilian? Or a killer? Or is she linked to both the shooting victim and the shooter? You’ll have to read the book to find out, because it’s too good to give away any of the plot, except to say Rebecca searches for the town in which this mystery takes place and finds it full of Victorian homes, quirky people, and plenty of suspects—enough to keep even me guessing until the very end. I really did not have the perpetrator anywhere on my list of suspects! If you’ve read my reviews, you know how difficult I usually am to fool. Brava Ms. Dowell.

Length: 136 Pages

Price: $2.99

Buy Link: http://www.amazon.com/Entangled-Minds-Roseanne-Dowell-ebook/dp/B00H8XP5IY/ref=sr_1_3?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1393700024&sr=1-3&keywords=entangled+minds

Thanks for visiting. RIW

Pranksgiving by Elle Druskin

Blurb:

Kidnapped! Or is that birdnapped? Someone in Liberty Heights snatched Jerome, star of the Ledbetter Turkey commercials. Who? Why? Holding Jerome for ransom? Cutting Thanksgiving dinner costs? Join the hunt for Jerome and celebrate Thanksgiving—Liberty Heights style!

Review:

Since Pranksgiving is a short-story, Ms. Druskin did not bring any new residents to Liberty Heights, unless you count Jerome, the celebrity turkey.  And he lives about twenty miles out of town, so I’m not sure he counts, even though his owner, Elmer Ledbetter is a client of Haley Marx’s public relations firm. And who kidnapped him isn’t exactly a mystery, either, since we’re treated to a hysterical account of the crime.  The fun is in chasing down the bird when he escapes from his captors.  Half the town is after him for various reasons.

Haley wants to catch Jerome to appease her client, so she goes in one direction while Jake, her husband, goes in another, and she enlists their best friends, Dana and voice-over genius Hank Axelrod as well.  The birdnappers want him back for the same reason they stole him in the first place:  Mr. Ledbetter announced Jerome was doing his last commercial for the turkey farm, and they feared Jerome would be the Ledbetter’s Thanksgiving entrée this year.  Not only are they trying to retrieve him, but they post news of his imminent demise and a grass-roots “Save Jerome” organization shows up to protest.  Ledbetter posts a reward, and other people start hunting Jerome in hopes of earning the money.  Thanksgiving is nigh and Liberty Heights is in chaos, as usual.  Could romance be in the air as well?  Maybe.  All things are possible in Liberty Heights.

I’m running out of good things to say about this series.  These people, while slightly screwy and wacky have become good friends.  Actually, they’re pretty normal compared to most of my real-life friends.  And they live in a town that’s almost as magical as Hogwarts considering the fact that when you enter the town limits, something warm and wonderful happens to you and you suddenly find it normal to have a huge deaf dog hanging around the Chinese restaurant, or a French-speaking parrot quoting Victor Hugo, the local doctor riding around town in full cowboy togs, or the candle-shop owner consulting with her psychic beagle, or a group of ladies taking over the local fire house for pole-dance classes.  I always feel a little sad when I finish a book or short story in the Liberty Heights series.  The vacation is over and I have to go home.  Back to the real world where not all of the books I review and edit are as funny and warm or well-written.  Oh, did I forget to say it?  Even though Thanksgiving is over, buy Pranksgiving.  You can always use a good laugh session!

Length:  95 Pages

Price:  $2.00

Buy Link:  https://museituppublishing.com/bookstore/index.php/museitup/romance/pranksgiving-a-liberty-heights-thanksgiving-short-story-detail

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

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

Buy Link:  http://www.amazon.com/War-N-Wit-Inc-MeanStreet-Gail-Roughton-ebook/dp/B00F5BVQKC/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1387140329&sr=1-1&keywords=gail+roughton

Thanks for visiting. RIW

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

Buy Link:  http://www.lsbooks.com/lisa-m-owens-c343.php

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

Adams and Eve by Elle Druskin

Blurb:

Halloween is murder.

Everyone in Liberty Heights is invited to LouAnn’s party. Dress as an Adams. Nobody can figure out why LouAnn chose such a peculiar theme, and the town’s residents wrack their brains for costumes representing famous characters named Adams. That doesn’t include the gate crashers; sister BettyAnn, now a bonafide member of Registered Witches of America, and her new boyfriend who’s practicing to be a vampire. Then there’s the uninvited costumed guest who plans to use the party to murder LouAnn, but this is Liberty Heights, where the unexpected usually happens.

Who’s trying to kill LouAnn? Why? How do the folks in Liberty Heights prevent a murder? Celebrate Halloween—Liberty Heights style.

Review:

WARNINGS:

1. Choking Hazard: Do not eat or drink anything while reading Adams and Eve.
2. Laughing Hazard: Do not read Adams and Eve in public unless you want to explain while you’re rolling around on the floor laughing your derriere off.

I read Adams and Eve at the VA while I was there to do my volunteer work.  It was a slow day.  I sit at a desk in a large waiting room with very little to absorb sound, so my peals of laughter echoed down the waiting room and through the hall.  And there were a lot of peals of laughter.  Of course, this was my sixth trip to Liberty Heights, New Jersey and I love its denizens, both human and animal, so I laugh at inside jokes as well as the obvious ones—like Wayne’s ESP.  Wayne is a beagle.  Or LouAnn Friedbush’s spelling.  She means, “Come as an Addams.”  She dresses as Morticia, her boyfriend Howie Fleischowitz is Gomez, and Wayne is Cousin Itt for a few minutes at least.  He isn’t fond of his costume.

BettyAnn and her boyfriend show up unannounced without costumes, but they’re weird enough not to need them.  Simon P. Stein, the wanna-be vampire, more closely resembles Herman Munster—and doesn’t like the sight of blood.

So, LouAnn’s expecting a Pugsley and a Wednesday or two, maybe an attempt at a Lurch, a few Uncle Festers and possibly another Morticia.  What she gets are John and Abigail Adams, Don Adams as Maxwell Smart with his faithful Agent 99, and a plethora of rather obscure Adamses plus a gorilla who Wayne clearly doesn’t like.

Yuppers!  Halloween Liberty Heights style is both hilarious and memorable.  But you’ll have to buy the book to find out who the gorilla is.  I highly recommend it.  Just re-read the warnings at the top of my review.

Length:  97 Pages

Price:  $2.50

Buy Link:  https://museituppublishing.com/bookstore/index.php/coming-soon/adams-and-eve-a-liberty-heights-halloween-short-story-detail

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