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Multi-volume author, Joshua Rem, introduces us to the fourth volume in his YA fantasy series, “Vath’s Legacy”: Two hundred innocent Nyobian citizens perished by the hand of the renegade warlock and domestic terrorist, Krexin Vath. Following his defeat three years ago, an entire country's worth of potential victims heaved a collective sigh of relief, believing their terrible ordeal to finally be over. They were wrong. Other warlocks and necromancers are now banding together to continue the work of Vath. Kiralyn Frostwhisper and her unlikely undead ally, Rufino Endicott, have a unique opportunity to infiltrate the death cult and expose everyone involved, but there's a catch. Evil is contagious, and nobody is immune. What awaits the duo is a severe test of character in which the only thing they have going for them is each other.  I have read a few vampire books, including Abraham Stoker’s classic. Stoker’s antagonist was very chilling, others have been interesting. Rufino is the most interesting vampire I have had the pleasure of meeting. His personality shines so brightly in this wonderful story. What’s not to love about a halfling, shape-shifting vampire. His relationship with the elf druid priestess is something else. The author has a wonderful handle on dialogue that entertains and informs. The pace of the story was quite good. The scene-setting was just right for me, not too much and the action flowed smoothly. I enjoyed the story so much! I laughed a great deal. I award 5 stars to “Vath’s Legacy”!  You can buy this book:
https://smile.amazon.com/Vaths-Legacy-Rufino-Factor-Book-four https://www.goodreads.com/-vath-s-legacy You can follow the author: https://twitter.com/joshua_rem http://www.joshuarem.com Tags: fantasy, vampire, magical realism, romance, humor, elf Copyright © 2019 Mark L. Schultz except for the author’s introduction
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Award-winning, multi-volume author, Rachel Jones introduces us to her romance novel, “Polish to Perfection”: A renowned concert pianist, still grieving for her parents, desires a normal life. A widowed surgeon seeks a fresh start in a new city. Ella Craig is ready to exchange a life of touring for a less nomadic existence. On her way to San Diego, she detours home. Her appearance with the San Francisco Philharmonic Orchestra ends in disaster, resulting in an injury. Now she must temporarily remain in the city where her parents died two years ago. Jackson Hart relocates to San Francisco from Atlanta for a fresh start and in eighteen months, has not met anyone that ignites a romantic spark, until he meets Ella. Jackson wants Ella to stay in San Francisco and encourages her to use her recuperation time to deal with her grief. When a family emergency arises, Jackson rushes to Atlanta. Torn between his feelings for Ella and his duty to family, he resigns his position at Bayside Medical Center and makes plans to return to the Southeast to care for his aging grandparents. How will they balance their dreams and responsibilities with their growing love for one another? With happiness seeming just out of reach for both of them, will they overcome insurmountable odds to forge a future together?  For years, all I read was sci-fi and fantasy. I missed some really good writing in other genres. This contemporary romance is a perfect example of excellent writing. The plot, pacing, characters and everything else that goes into creating a story that captivates and won’t let you put it down easily. Rachel’s skill is far above average in action, scene-setting and dialogue. I felt like I knew the characters so well while reading the book. She doesn’t waste any words! I award “Polish to Perfection” 4.9 stars, the score would have been higher except for a few spelling errors. The author has informed me that the errors have been corrected, your reading will be all the smoother.  You can buy this book:
https://smile.amazon.com/Polish-Perfection-Rachel-W-Jones-ebook https://www.goodreads.com/-polish-to-perfection https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/polish-to-perfection-rachel-w-jones You can follow the author: http://rachelwjones.com https://twitter.com/rjonesauthor https://www.facebook.com/RachelJonesAuthor https://www.goodreads.com/author/Rachel_Jones https://www.instagram.com/wardripjones Tags: #SanFrancisco #Atlanta #orchestra #music #piano #surgeon #doctor #medicine Copyright © 2019 Mark L. Schultz except for the author’s introduction Debut author, Lali A. Love, introduces us to her metaphysical and mystical novel, “Heart of a Warrior Angel”: Lali A. Love provides a supernatural thriller of metaphysical and visionary fantasy with her own revolutionary philosophy and unique narrative skills to produce this emotionally invoking, heart-wrenching and gripping tale of a family's rise from poverty, oppression and abuse. Lilac Noble must face the traumatic experiences of her childhood before she can conquer the dark entities that have wreaked havoc on her family. On this epic journey, Lilac undergoes the destructive process of spiritual enlightenment in order to lift the veil of darkness and shame that has obscured her youth. As Lilac unlocks painful memories of abuse, suppressed in her subconscious from years of fear-based conditioning, she uncovers menacing secrets feeding the evil within her generational bloodline. In an attempt to vanquish the sinister energies, Lilac finds the courage to discover her inner truth, vulnerability, and authenticity, as she awakens her divine light and overcomes her debilitating fears of the past. Lilac's unconditional love for her family guides her through her process of healing and transformation, fuelling her instinct for survival and her burning desire to illuminate the world. Spanning two continents and three generations, this inspirational novel portrays the best and worst of humanity and shows how the "tiniest spark of light can overcome the darkness of any magnitude," through forgiveness, compassion, and the most powerful force in the universe – Love.  This is quite the powerful story. I enjoyed it quite a bit. However, some of the descriptions of abuse may be difficult for some, they aren’t unnecessarily glorified, but they might be hard to read for those triggered by fairly graphic domestic violence. These descriptions are counterbalanced by extensive descriptions of the spiritual journey the protagonist took. Each step, highly detailed. For me, this exposition was excessive and greatly slowed the story down; others can easily disagree with me because they relish all the details. The descriptions of dialogue were very enjoyable at times, the scene setting was quite good. I award a score of 4 stars to “Heart of a Warrior Angel”, the score would have been higher except for the handful of spelling errors I found.  You can buy this book:
https://smile.amazon.com/Heart-Warrior-Angel-Darkness-Lighthttps://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/heart-of-a-warrior-angel-lali-a-lovehttps://www.goodreads.com/-heart-of-a-warrior-angel You can follow the author: https://twitter.com/laliaristo http://www.authorlalialove.com https://www.instagram.com/vibrationslovelight Tags: metaphysical, paranormal, suspense, fiction, mystical Copyright © 2019 Mark L. Schultz except for the author’s introduction Debut author, Regie Khemvisay, introduces us to her dystopian YA novel, “Death’s Kiss”: For fans of the Hunger Games, 1984, and the Lottery... Life is valuable. Death is a necessity. In Yliria, this is not a contradiction. New Year’s Eve 2054. A virus, later named the BlackJack, struck and killed 3/4 of the world’s population. Only those who were 21 and younger were not infected. Treaties broke off. Countries severed connection to the outside world. And the country of Yliria built its own invisible walls. Thirty-eight years later…Yliria is now at peace. But nothing is gained without sacrifices. Yuri’s life was perfect. Family. School. Career. Then there’s Ryoma. Her one true love. Nothing could go wrong when she has everything planned out. But on the night of their anniversary, it did not end with a kiss. Ripped from their normal lives, both Yuri and Ryoma woke up from a dream to face the real nightmares. As a punishment for their parents’ treason, they must serve the government—the System—as the new Aces of the Court Department, assigned to oversee and maintain the peace and balance within Yliria. One week. 13 lives. Armed, not with a weapon, but the same virus that destroyed the world. The Aces must escape their new fate. If not, the only path left in their future is the one covered in blood.  I was caught unawares by this book. I thought it was just another dystopian romance for the Young Adults (YA) category. It is that and so much more. The many and varied plot twists revealed to me that I was going to be kept on my toes for the entire ride. I really enjoyed this ride! The author has some great characters in this story and the changes can be quite startling. I promise no spoilers, but it is harder than normal not to talk about many of the exciting moments. The scene-setting is not overdone, by any stretch of the imagination, it’s quite adequate; the dialogue is very good and action fills the bill nicely. All in all, this is a fun and exciting story with a number of tense moments. I award a score of 4.5 stars to this wonderful tale of young lovers trapped in a world they didn’t make. The score would have been a lot higher, except I found quite a few spelling errors and misplaced words. The author has corrected those errors.  You can buy this book:
https://smile.amazon.com/Deaths-Kiss-Regie-Khemvisay-ebook https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/42757941-death-s-kiss https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/deaths-kiss-regie-khemvisay You can follow the author: https://twitter.com/RAKhemvisay https://www.regiekhemvisay.com https://www.instagram.com/rkhemvisay Tags: post-apocalyptic, fiction, science fiction, romance, Copyright © 2019 Mark L. Schultz except for the author’s introduction Multi- genre author Chris Knoblaugh, introduces us to her non-fiction book on writing a memoir, part of a series called “Teach Your Child”, “Creative Memoir: Rewrite Your Life”: Help your friends and family members create a lasting memory book! Written in an easy to follow format with plenty of examples, Creative Memoir: Rewrite Your Life can help you capture the stories and memories shared by your family and friends. Encourage your extended family to contribute memorable experiences, or simply write your own material. This handbook shows you how to produce and orchestrate a creative memoir of your own.  This is a good book. It fulfills the expectations about learning how to write a memoir for family members quite well. I really enjoyed the engaging style of writing that the author has. Her examples of different methods and angles of making a memoir about a beloved member of the family are wonderful. She makes it seem so easy. I award 5 stars to this delightful and humorous volume, “Creative Memoir: Rewrite Your life”.  You can buy this e-book:
https://smile.amazon.com/Creative-Memoir-Rewrite-Teach-Child-ebook https://www.goodreads.com/-creative-memoir It’s also available as a paperback. I have reviewed her MG paranormal fiction story: https://www.wordrefiner.com/book-reviews/tribute-the-cleaners-series-book-1-by-chris-knoblaugh You can follow the author: https://twitter.com/ChrisKnoblaugh https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/17944982.Chris_Knoblaugh https://dancingwithwordstutoring.blogspot.com/ https://www.facebook.com/CKnoblaugh http://mrsknoblaugh.weebly.com/ Copyright © 2019 Mark L. Schultz except for the author’s introduction Multi-volume author, Paullett Golden introduces us to her third volume in her An Enchantress series, “The Baron and The Enchantress”: Lilith Chambers’ quiet life as a parish midwife shatters when the brother thought responsible for her death discovers she's alive and well. Having been raised in an orphanage, she has few memories of her real parentage or the circumstances of her disappearance from the life she ought to have. As she reorients herself in a new life, she meets the one man she can’t have. Walter Hobbs, Baron Collingwood, is struggling to assume the mantle of his untimely inheritance. Then he meets Lilith Chambers, the long-lost daughter of the 15th Earl of Roddam. He is struck by love at first sight. She is everything he could ever want in a woman, except for two inconveniences: she is illegitimate, and she wants nothing to do with him. This is the love story of Walter and Lilith as they discover themselves through each other.  Paullett’s writing is Amazing! She makes me feel I am right there in the thick of things and party to the thoughts of the Enchantress Lilith. I laughed so much while reading this book! I am a fan of first person POV, when it’s done right. Paullett does it more than right, she pulls it off with such excellence. Her characters live and breathe quite realistically, the scene setting is wonderful, the action is plentiful. The dialogue, oh the dialogue; it is so witty at times and dripping with sarcasm at other times. The little things, food, flowers, weather, everything works together to make the world come alive. All in all, the story is so enthralling. I award “The Baron and The Enchantress” a score of 5 stars! It’s so good!  You can buy this book:
https://smile.amazon.com/the-baron-and-the-enchantresshttps://www.goodreads.com/the-baron-and-the-enchantresshttps://www.bookbub.com/the-baron-and-the-enchantress-an-enchantress-novel-book-3-by-paullett-golden You can follow the author: https://twitter.com/PaullettGolden https://www.paullettgolden.com https://www.facebook.com/Paullettgolden https://www.instagram.com/paullettgolden Tags: Regency romance, England, nobility, landed gentry, royalty Copyright © 2019 Mark L. Schultz except for the author’s introduction Multi-volume author, Boris Sanders, introduces us to his book “CODE: Revelation (The Emporion Chronicles Book 1)”: Introverted computer scientist Maximilian Gutenberg had no intention of acquiring a crystal with a being trapped inside, especially not one with the power to save— or destroy—humanity. Her name is Lucy, and she cannot escape her prison until her mission is complete. A mission she keeps secret from everyone, even Max. But she needs his help. To gain his trust, she offers to get rid of his abusive boss in one week, and get him that promotion he always wanted. She’ll make him the hero of his own life, a man worthy of recognition, in exchange for helping her complete her mission. This could be the opportunity of Max’s life, but he can’t help but wonder if Lucy is as good as she seems… And exactly what mission she must complete to regain her freedom. Set in a dystopian, futuristic city built miles into the sky, “CODE: Revelation” is a powerful, psychological thrill ride that calls into question the nature of good and evil, and the importance of taking control of your own destiny.  This book is so much fun! I loved following the adventures and misadventures of Maximilian, his trusty rusty robot and Julia, his girlfriend; with some very special leverage provided by Lucy who is from a crystal. Boris Sanders' writing is wonderful. He has a great sense of comedy, I found myself laughing and chuckling all the way through the book. The dialogue really sparkles! The characters have some good depth to them, the action is downright exciting at times! I award 5 stars to “CODE: Revelation”. This ride is well worth taking!  You can buy this book:
https://smile.amazon.com/Code-Revelation-Emporion-Chronicles-Book-ebook https://www.goodreads.com/book/-code-revelation https://www.amazon.co.uk/Code-Revelation-Chronicles-Boris-Sanders You can follow the author: https://twitter.com/BorisSanders1 https://borissanders.com https://www.facebook.com/BorisSandersAuthor Tags: science fiction, sci-fi, technopunk thriller, cyberpunk, action, robot, romance, dystopian past, office work Copyright © 2019 Mark L. Schultz except for the author’s introduction Debut author, M. K. Schultz, introduces us to his first science fiction novel, Kassius Kanex: Kassius Kanex loves his home and family but hates his job and wants to quit. A chance meeting with strange men looking for directions inspires a change in Kass. He is led down a new path that not only rescues him from his perceived career imprisonment, but also leads to the fulfillment of his destiny. When his family becomes endangered by his new life, Kass’s full identity is revealed. His truth previously existed dormant inside of him, but Kass is now awakened. Following a visit to three doors of mystery, his true essence is discovered and a choice is made. Danger and suspense build as more truths come to light, and Kass wonders if things will turn out better or worse. He still hides one secret, though, and its admission will change everything.
I enjoyed this story of how a man’s life changes in mysterious ways, due to his acceptance of external demands. Watching him muddle through his life, wanting nothing more than to be able to provide for his family that he loves so much, the tension builds ever so slowly. The author (no relation to me) is quite good at allowing the plot to create the pressure of waiting for the other shoe to drop. The characters vary in depth, but they all bring something to the table. The scene-setting is good and contributes to the story as it should. Dialogue is very ordinary and that is part of the genius of the writing, it lulls you into a false sense of security before springing a surprise. I am not going to divulge anymore, because I refuse to reveal spoilers. I enjoyed it a lot. This first novel from Mr. Schultz is impressive in a quiet way. I award a score of 4.5 stars; the score would have been much higher except for a large number of spelling errors.  You can buy this book:
https://smile.amazon.com/Kassius-Kanex-Novel-MK-Schultz-ebook https://www.goodreads.com/-kassius-kanex https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/kassius-kanex-mk-schultz You can follow the author: https://twitter.com/Makemali https://sites.google.com/view/mk-schultz/home Tags: adventure, science fiction, paranormal, family life, office work, travel, suspense Copyright © 2019 Mark L. Schultz except for the author’s introduction Multi-volume, multi-genre author, Arthur Rosch, introduces us to his exciting meta-physical, sci-fi novel “The Gods of The Gift”: Collectors are passionate about the things they collect. There is a legend about a collection that has lit a frenzy among the richest of the rich. Emperors of galactic civilizations seek out pieces of this collection. Princes, merchants, interplanetary drug lords all vie for possession of the notorious Puzzle Pieces of The Poly Planar Communion. What are these things? Why are they so valuable that millions of counterfeits float among the stars? The novel's hero,Garuvel Zimrin, is a wandering seeker after spiritual wisdom. He is on the world R'zelfo when he stumbles upon an unusual duel. The combatants banter as they fight. Garuvel doesn't understand what they're talking about. He listens patiently. He hears hints of an ancient conflict, of murder, genocide and planetary destruction. Mention of "Puzzle Pieces" is made. The enemies talk about "Planet-People", implying that they, themselves, are such beings. Their worlds have been doomed. The orbits of their home stars have been somehow altered. In a million years, perhaps less, they will be sucked into the galaxy's black hole. How can they emigrate? How to transfer billions of people to viable star systems? A solution is devised: each world's population will merge themselves into a single being. They will become Planet-People. The peoples of one hundred eight worlds will transform themselves into one hundred eight avatars. Garuvel has chanced upon a pivotal drama in the story behind the legends of The Poly Planar Communion. Each avatar carries its planet's cultural essence in an object. These objects are the Puzzle Pieces. Each piece is a fragment of The Puzzle Of The Endless Gates. The duelists are named Nutun Utulo and Boraz Bufaisdek. In reality they are the Planet-People Melolos and Calakadon. The duel is a trap. Calakadon will cheat and murder Melolos. He will take the Puzzle Piece of Melolos and add it to his collection. His ultimate purpose is to prevent the Puzzle Pieces from being assembled into their whole, their solution. Something special will happen when the Puzzle is solved. Calakadon does not want the puzzle to be completed. He is the criminal who is responsible for sending the stars of the Communion spinning into the Black Cauldron. He is enraged that Planet-People emerged as a way to continue the quest to solve The Puzzle Of The Endless Gates. Now he must murder them again! He will take their Puzzle Pieces and sell them to greedy collectors. He has already thrown several pieces into the Cesspit of Hellbore. The Puzzle will never be solved! The deepest mystery of Cosmic Physics will never be understood.  This adventure spanning the universe blew my mind! The scope of millions of years and jumping through trans-space among so many galaxies is beyond staggering. We follow several protagonists who actually are one and the same, but the name changes more than once. Same for the antagonist. There is lots of planet-hopping and an exploration of many different cultures in far-flung planets and times. I am astounded at how well it all ties together. The author has an incredible ability to keep the story moving through the constantly changing circumstances. I am very amazed at the plethora of names that filling the story, there are hundreds of names for plants, animals, worlds, languages, religions, well, I think you get the idea, as the story moves from planet to planet. The characters are so rich and well rounded, they struggle and fight, sometimes they win and sometimes they lose. Some of the dialogue made me laugh out loud. I award “The Gods of the Gift” a score of 4.8. It would have been much higher but for the big handful of spelling errors. The author informs me that the errors have been corrected, so your reading should be much smoother. I enjoyed this story so very much!  You can buy this book:
https://smile.amazon.com/Gods-Gift-Ancient-Universe https://www.goodreads.com/-the-gods-of-the-gift https://www.smashwords.com/-the-gods-of-the-gift You can follow the author: Twitter: @artsrosch http://www.aroschbooks.com http://www.artrosch.com http://godsofthegift.blogspot.com www.facebook.com/roschbooks/ www.facebook.com/artrosch Tags: science fiction, action, adventure, fantasy, metaphysics, religion, swords, magic, physics, quantum mechanics Copyright © Mark L. Schultz 2019 except for the author’s introduction Multi-volume, multi-genre author Stewart Hoffman introduces us to his continuation of the Bug Boys saga: The fantastic superhero adventure that began with The Bug Boys continues! Alex Adams and Ian Harris take on Blake Blackhart, a disgraced Oxford professor. He discovers the boy’s source of power and plots to use the Secti’s alien technology to wreak havoc across the galaxy. With a proper real-life supervillain in the village, the boys must step up their superhero game if they are to put a stop to the professor’s nefarious schemes. Along the way, they make new friends, and they encounter new bugs and superpowers. With the fate of the galaxy in the balance, the boys dig deep within themselves to truly understand what it means to be a hero!  I enjoyed this story a great deal. More great writing and an expanded cast of characters. The little robots are really beginning to grow on me. I am pretty sure I don't want them growing in me, although it is an interesting thought. If you liked the first book, then you will love this one also. Stewart has nice terse writing, he wastes very few words. There is description enough for perfect scene-setting and the dialog is very funny at times and rather poignant at other moments. Some real-life issues are part of the story, without overwhelming it. I award The Bug Boys vs. Professor Blake Blackhart a score of 5 stars! I loved the story and hope there is more to come.  You can buy this book: https://smile.amazon.com/Bug-Boys-Professor-Blake-Blackhart-ebook https://www.goodreads.com/-the-bug-boys-vs-professor-blake-blackhart https://www.barnesandnoble.com/the-bug-boys-vs-professor-blake-blackhart-stewart-hoffman You can follow the author: https://twitter.com/stewartfhoffman http://www.talkiegazette.com/books https://www.facebook.com/StewartFHoffman https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/15583189.Stewart_Hoffman Tags: science fiction, sci-fi, MG, insects, entomology I have also reviewed the first book in this series, here is the link: https://www.wordrefiner.com/book-reviews/the-bug-boys-by-stewart-hoffman Copyright © Mark L Schultz 2019 except for the author’s introduction |
Who am I?An avid reader, typobuster, and the Hyper-Speller. I am a husband, father, and grandfather. Archives
October 2019
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