Saturday, October 31, 2015

My TBR List October 2015 - Missed Review

@Limabean74 #mytbrl





The Review
Boooo! I have reason to boo today. You know, other than it being Halloween. I didn't not finished reading Awakening. First time I've done that. I just couldn't get into the book. I kept putting it down and reading other things. Seriously, I'm still at the beginning of this book. I will finish it but missed the deadline on this one.





Like to join the fun? Here's how it works.

Each month you will make a post with three books from your TBR List (these books can be already on your kindle or shelf or books you might want to purchase) and add your link on the linky that will be provided on Because Reading post.

Your followers and the people on the linky will help you choose which book you will read next.

The following Saturday you will announce the book that won. Then read the book.

On the last Saturday of the month post a review (with an optional giveaway, Michelle at Because Reading does this sometimes just for fun but you don’t have to).


The Rules

Ex. Lets say its September…
The first Saturday is the 6th – your post will go up with the 3 books you choose (as stated above these books can be already on your kindle or shelf or books you might want to purchase) and then link it to the linky on Because Reading blog.
     Her post will go up at 5am est. Make sure your link your post back to it in order to have your followers        visit other people’s blogs to help vote if they want.

     You can do the Polling however you would like. Survey Monkey, it has a good one and it’s free (here is        an EXAMPLE of Michelle's post). You can set it up and say whatever you would like – it’s totally up to        you. All this is asked is that you link back to Because Reading.

The second Saturday is the 13th – this is the day you announce which book won and whatever else you would like.
     (here is an EXAMPLE of Michelle's post). Her post will have a linky, so we can all easily see what                everyone will be reading.

The third Saturday is the 20th– you don’t have to post anything

The fourth (and/or last) Saturday is the 27th– this is when your review will go up regardless of how you liked the book.
     Please note even if you didn’t finished it just write a small post about how you felt about the book.                Michelle don’t write DNF reviews, but she does for this feature so followers can see what she thought          about the book they picked.

Some months have 4 weeks and some have five so a post always has to go up the First and Second Saturday and the last Saturday of the month

The final review post will also have a linky on it so you can link up your reviews and we can see what you thought of the book that was picked. This will draw some views to your blog and maybe find some new friends along the way.




*If you would like to support this blog consider purchasing your books through the links provided. Thank you for stopping by. Comment, Share, and Happy Reading! **This blog may use cookies to enhance your experience. Also clicking links may take you to a third party website that may use cookies. Most browsers have an option in the right hand corner setting icon to disable the use of cookies.

Friday, October 30, 2015

I See Dead People - WRI Fright Fest 2015 Reviews: Welcome to the Spookshow by Tim McGregor



Welcome to the Spookshow
by Tim McGregor
Kindle Edition, 267 pages
Published December 5th 2014
Ratings: 3 stars (3.2)

Summary:
Drifting through life while her peers move on with careers and marriage, Billie Culpepper fears she will never discover what she was meant to do with her life.

Fate intercedes when she's injured during a pursuit between a mysterious Englishman and the police detective determined to apprehend him. Waking three days later in hospital, Billie is haunted by horrible apparitions that no one else can see. She worries over her sanity until the Englishman returns to inform her that her eyes are now open to the spookshow. Billie can see the dead and, unfortunately, they can see her too.

Like a wave from a magic wand, Billie is told of her true calling; that of a medium between this world and the next. There's only one snag. It's the last thing on earth she wants.




Purchase
Amazon  -  Barnes and Noble  -  Kobo  -  iBooks

My Review:
I love book one The Spookshow. Welcome to the Spookshow is book two but it is a prequel. I was thinking that it probably was since it has Welcome in the title. I will tell you that I was a bit disappointed that it was a prequel and not a continuation. However, I guess it is good to have some background to the story.

In this one we get a glimpse of what Billie life was like as a little girl. Then it jump to her life right before she is injured. Billie has a bit of a woe-is-me attitude for much of the book. Her attitude didn't bother that much only that she didn't want people to pity her but she was whiney about not wanting her "gift". I am so glad that one of the characters called her on it.

I do like that she did try to seek answers about her mom. We know in the first book that both her mom and dad disappeared. The corpse they found was the dad but the mom was left up in the air. She got some answers about her mom but there is still things to discover when it comes to that part of the plot.

Mockler was a part of the first book but more so in this one I think. Being a cop I wasn't surprised by his reaction when Billie tried to tell him about her. I think that his girlfriend might have been more receptive about it if she was told. Probably even relieve.

We were again left with question like what happened to Billie's mom? How did her father end up dead? What is Gantry so scared of? What did he mean about Billie and Mockler? So I hope some of those questions are answered in the next book.

If you are interested in this series, I would suggest that you read book 2 then book 1. You can read them by publishing date but I think it would probably flow better if read in the reverse. The trend of weird choices of word usage continues as well. I don't in the first book they were in Ohio but now I guess this takes place in Canada. I am a bit confused still about location of the book. There are some typos but nothing that would keep you from reading it. It is still a campfire read but not as spooky to me.







About the Author
Tim McGregor is a screenwriter and author, living in Toronto with his wife and children. When not writing, Tim can be found chasing away the nocturnal recycling people who creep into his yard.

Author Links




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I Ain't 'Fraid Of No Ghost - WRI Fright Fest 2015 Review: The Spookshow by Tim McGregor


by Tim McGregor
Perdido Pub, December 2014
ISBN:1230000284306
Language:English
Rating: 3 stars (3.2)

Summary:
Life used to be normal for Billie Culpepper. Drab even. That all that changed after an accident left her in a coma for three days. That's when the spookshow really began, when Billie realized that she could see the dead.

And the dead could see her. 

Now, they won't leave her alone. 

Accompanying two friends through a haunted house, Billie uncovers a terrible secret that brings, not only the police, but the homicide detective responsible for putting her into the hospital in the first place. He's also the one man she sworn to stay away from.

Purchase Links

My Review:
I was surprised once again. Billie is able to see the dead and they can see her. They talk to her wanting to tell their story. They are even able to touch her. When she goes to an haunted house with two of her friends something insidious attaches itself to one of them. She didn't like not having anyone believe her but this wasn't the way she wanted anyone to become a believer.

Billie is a likable character. I didn't like how she blame herself for the situation but I can dismiss it since she was probably caught up in the moment. Tammy was okay but again blaming Billie was irrational. I really don't get what was really up with Jen. Kaitlin was selfish as hell. I mean, you see your friend uncomfortable but your morbid curiosity pressure her to keep going and then turn around and blame her too. Definitively wasn't feeling that chick. 

The Spookshow is a quick read. It ends in a cliffhanger but that quite alright with me. I know right...y'all know how I feel about cliffhangers. It is not I can't sleep do not turn off the light scary but it does have a creep factor. It has been on my tbr for a little bit. If it is on yours I suggest that you get to reading as I am starting book two asap. It's a campfire read for sure.







About the Author
Tim McGregor is a screenwriter and author, living in Toronto with his wife and children. When not writing, Tim can be found chasing away the nocturnal recycling people who creep into his yard.

Author Links




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*This book was free to download from the links above which how I got it. Get it while you can as I don't know how long it will be available for free.
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Book Blogger Hop 12: Halloween Edition

#bookbloggerhop







Halloween Edition: 
If you could give away books instead of candy to trick-or-treaters on Halloween Night, what would the titles be?

Oh this is a hard one because this is a question for the kiddies. I don't ready too many middle grade (and younger) books. So I am going to have to go with the obvious choice...the Goosebumps series. I think that the series is iconic. I think that it is almost a rite of passage for little horror readers. 

So what would you give out?


click pic for more info aboout the hop


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Thursday, October 29, 2015

NaNoWriMo 2015



I am doing NaNoWriMo this year. I have started many first drafts but I have yet to finish one. I am hoping that this will be the time I will reach my goal. I am not sure how much of the process I am going to share since this is my first time actually participating. One thing is for sure, I excited at the possibilities.

If you are interested in learning more about NaNoWriMo click here

Book Blitz: The Girl and the Gargoyle by Pauline Gruber


@paulinegruber @yaboundpr #giveaway #bookblitz


The Girl and the Gargoyle (The Girl and the Raven #2)
Release Date: 06/23/15

Summary from Goodreads:
Being half-witch/half-demon and dating Marcus, a gargoyle and demon enemy, is complicated enough for Lucy. She can almost tolerate Jude, her demon father, forcing her to undergo combat training.

But when Marcus’s long-lost family returns to Chicago, her world begins to crumble. Marcus's mother wants him to leave to join the gargoyle clan; his father wants him to help kill Jude. There’s one major problem with this: if Jude dies, Lucy dies.

Marcus will do whatever it takes to save Lucy and her father. Meanwhile Lucy has her own plan and with the aid of a surprise newcomer, seeks help from the most unlikely—and dangerous—source. 




Buy Links:
AmazonB&NiBooksKoboSmashwords

Book One:
(cover linked to Goodreads)
About the Author
Pauline Gruber is a self-professed music junkie, cat wrangler, and travel nut. She went to Paris in the 90’s where she discovered a love of three things: croissants, old cathedrals, and gargoyles. Deciding that the paranormal world could use a new kind of hero, Pauline translated her fascination with the protective gargoyle into a suspenseful love story. She is the author of the young adult series, The Girl and the Raven, The Girl and the Gargoyle and the forthcoming novel, The Girl and the Demon. By day, Pauline is a legal assistant for a Chicago law firm where she steals identities and incorporates them into her books. If you tell anyone, she’lldeny, deny, deny.  Pauline lives outside of Chicago with her precocious black cats.



Author Links:
 photo iconwebsite-32x32_zps1f477f69.png  photo icongoodreads32_zps60f83491.png  photo icontwitter-32x32_zpsae13e2b2.png  photo iconfacebook-32x32_zps64a79d4a.png

Want an excerpt don't cha? Here you go.

I glance over my shoulder as the pot of bubbling liquid on the stove hisses and burps. “ Don’t even think about it. That potion is out of your league as a beginner.” “ Do you think I’ll ever be as powerful as Gram?” It’s a huge relief to voice the doubt that’s been eating at me since I discovered I was a witch. “ That I could take her place and join you and Henry? You know, the power of three?” “ I’m certain of it,”  she says. How can she be so sure? I glance at my cup of tea. Is it possible Persephone has seen the future? With a burst of enthusiasm, I gulp down half the mug. With my cheeks full as a chipmunk hoarding nuts, I rush over to the sink and spit the liquid out. 


GIVEAWAY:


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Wednesday, October 28, 2015

WRI Fright Fest 2015 Interviews: Author John Everson


@johneverson #wrifrightfest #cafechat #authorinterview



Today on Cafe Chat we are welcoming John Everson. Thank you for being here John. Let's get right into it.


Bunnita: Most people have a time of the day when they feel most productive. When do you find yourself writing most?

John: Given the way you phrased it, that’s actually a much more difficult question than you might think! I have a pretty demanding day job, so, while I probably feel most productive in the mid-late afternoon… that’s usually not when I get to write! I am a night owl, so you’d think I would write a lot at night, but really, if I don’t start working by 6 or 7 p.m., it’s not worth it for me to open a manuscript. I stay up late, but my productivity wanes as the hours grow later. So when I’m actively trying to finish a novel, I will frequently stake out a “writing night” where instead of going home after work, I go from work to my favorite pub and hole up in a corner, eat some finger food, have a couple beers and write for 4 hours or so. That gets me rolling before I start zoning! I have also gone through months where I force myself to get up 90 minutes early, and write before going to work. Not my favorite way to work, AT ALL, but I have gotten a lot done that way, since the house is quiet, and I have a looming time limit (leaving for work).  But my favorite and most enjoyable times to write are when I’ve got a day off for vacation or on the weekend, and I actually have the time to sit on the patio for several hours in the late morning / afternoon and create… with no hard deadlines! That’s how I started out as a writer when I was (a lot) younger – sitting out on the patio on the weekends for hours on end working on odd little stories. Damn I wish I had that kind of time today!


Bunnita: What drew you to the horror genre?

John: Oddly enough, science fiction! Growing up, I was a huge fan of golden age science fiction… but writers like Richard Matheson tended to fuse science fiction themes with horrific, macabre endings. His “Born of Man and Woman,” a very short story about an alien offspring determined to break free of its imprisonment, had a huge impact on me. It was sci-fi (alien) but yet had a horror twist at the end. Same goes for his Incredible Shrinking Man. Those kinds of stories really drew me, and when you coupled those with what I loved to watch on TV (Twilight Zone, Night Gallery, Outer Limits) you can see how I was drawn to “weird” stories that ended … badly! When I began to write stories myself, they frequently had vaguely science fiction themes, but always had a horrific twist. Eventually, I stopped trying to drag in the sci-fi, because the stories I thought up just didn’t call for futuristic trappings.


Bunnita: What kind of research do you?

John: Not a lot, because most of my stories aren’t based on anything “real” that I need to bone up on. When I set a story in a particular “place,” I do make sure that the place supports the story — for Siren and The Pumpkin Man, I’ve actually visited and taken pictures of the northern California coastal towns that the stories are set in… although, I ended up changing the names of the towns to protect the innocent! But those stories are based on real places. For demon and siren mythology, I did do some research, just to understand what the mythology has said about those beings… but there are so many variations, you really can follow some of a “path” and then invent your own alternate rules.


Bunnita: Is there anything you would say is hard about writing horror?

John: Horror has a couple roads. You can focus on building a mood of dread and anxiety… or you can focus on grossing out the reader with truly horrible things. I think the best horror has a little of both – and that’s a difficult line to walk!


Bunnita: What do you hope a person experience while reading your books?

John: I hope sometimes their skin prickles a bit, as something gets under it. I hope that they giggle a little when some of my characters get sarcastic. And I hope they hurry to turn the page and put off going to bed because they have to know what happens next. That’s the best experience as a reader… and it’s what every writer hopes to inspire.


Bunnita: Do you have a favorite horror movie?

John: Lots! It’s hard to narrow it to just one. I love Alien because it’s the perfect creepy merger between science fiction and horror. I love European horror from the ‘70s and ‘80s – Dario Argento’s Phenomena and Suspiria, Fulci’s The Beyond, Jean Rollin’s Living Dead Girl and Fascination,  Renato Polselli’s Delirium and Reincarnation of Isabel, Jose Ramon Larraz’s Vampyres, Harry Kumel’s Daughters of Darkness… the list goes on.


Bunnita: Do you have a favorite horror author?

John: Edward Lee is probably my favorite modern writer. Nobody else locks me to the chair like his books do. In the past 10 years, he is the only author who has had a book that really kept me turning the pages from start to finish all in one sitting because I just couldn’t put it down.


Bunnita: Do you go all out with Halloween?

John: Ironically… no. It’s my favorite holiday, but I don’t dress up, and don’t decorate the yard like a cemetery – though I love it when other people do! For most of the past 15 years I’ve hosted Halloween movie nights for a small group of friends, and played a variety of new and old horror movies for the group to enjoy, but outside of that, I’m fairly low key. I’m a horror spectator.


Bunnita: Do you have a favorite holiday and why is it your favorite?

John: Halloween is my favorite, because suddenly horror is everywhere! Nothing makes me more excited than the Gothic trappings of a haunted house. Now if I could just find the time to go visit some haunted houses at Halloween…


Bunnita: What is your favorite horror book?

John: I couldn’t possibly pick one. Stephen King’s Night Shift or Pet Sematary or Clive Barker’s The Damnation Game or Books of Blood or Edward Lee’s Succubi or Incubi or Coven… or Anne Rice’s The Vampire Lestat or The Witching Hour… or how about the one I read a couple times as a teen – Bram Stoker’s Dracula. They’ve all grabbed me in different, important ways.


Bunnita: Which book that you have written is your favorite and why?

John: Nope… still can’t do it. I guess I just don’t usually hone in on “a single thing” in my life! I love aspects of all of my books, and I can’t really put one above the other! I love Covenant because it was my first novel, but I love its sequel Sacrifice because I think it’s a better, more action-packed book with some of the same characters. I love The 13th because I think at that point, I really knew better what I was doing and had a blast creating its crazy blood-spattered orgy … and I love Siren because it’s a little more of a serious reflection on obsession and who, really, is a villain. And I love NightWhere because it’s the bravest, most over-the-top erotic horror story I’ve ever come up with. And then there are The Pumpkin Man, Violet Eyes and Family Tree… All of them have high points for me…


Bunnita: Do you have any advice for the aspiring writers out there?

John: Write what you want to read. If other people respond well… awesome. If they don’t? You still pleased yourself. And that’s all you really can ever count on. Entertain yourself, and others will follow.


Bunnita: Any advice specific to the horror genre?

John: We will always be afraid, because we’re human. It’s part of our genetic makeup. Taking that fear and using the adrenaline it releases to create the literary equivalent of a thrill ride is a tightrope feat… but if you can find the right balance and not fall off the wire, you’ll hit a universal nerve that can move everyone who reads your work. And that’s an amazing, powerful thing.


Bunnita: Your most recent novel was The Family Tree last fall… do you have any novels coming out this year?

John: I’m actually working on my ninth novel, which I’d planned to have finished by the summer, but… real life got in the way. That book is a long-overdue sequel to Covenant and Sacrifice, which at the moment is tentatively titled Redemption. I’m looking forward to finally being able to tie that up and write THE END.

In the meantime, I’m pretty excited about this year’s release – Sacrificing Virgins will be out from Samhain Publishing in December. This is a collection of my best short stories from the past decade, plus a couple new pieces. It will be the largest of my four fiction collections, with 25 stories, and includes a wide sampling of my work – from quiet ghost stories to over-the-top horror. There are even a couple tie-in stories that relate to my novels The Pumpkin Man, Siren and NightWhere. I hope readers will enjoy these tales!

Bunnita: Do you have any last words?

John: R.I.P.

Well there you have it. I'll like to thank John for this interview. And once again, thank y'all for stopping by until next time Happy Reading!



About the Author:
John Everson is a staunch advocate for the culinary joys of the jalapeno and an unabashed fan of 1970s European horror cinema.  He is also the Bram Stoker Award-winning author of Covenant and seven other novels, including the erotic horror tour de force and Bram Stoker Award finalist NightWhere and the seductive backwoods tale of The Family Tree. Other novels include Sacrifice, The Pumpkin Man, Siren, The 13th and the spider-driven Violet Eyes. In December 2015, Samhain Publishing will release his fourth full-length short fiction collection, Sacrificing Virgins, collecting his best short stories from the past decade and more. In addition to Sacrificing Virgins, his other short story collections include Cage of Bones & Other Deadly Obsessions, Needles & Sins and Vigilantes of Love.

Over the past 20 years, his short fiction has appeared in more than 75 magazines and anthologies and received a number of critical accolades, including frequent Honorable Mentions in the Year’s Best Fantasy & Horror anthology series. His story “Letting Go” was a Bram Stoker Award finalist in 2007; the story “The Pumpkin Man” was included in the anthology All American Horror: The Best of the First Decade of the 21st Century; and he was also a finalist in the L. Ron Hubbard’s Writers of the Future Contest. He has written novelettes for The Vampire Diaries and Jonathan Maberry’s V-Wars series, as well as stories for the anthologies Kolchak: The Night Stalker Casebook and The Green Hornet Casefiles.  His tales have been translated into Polish, French, Italian and German and optioned for potential film development.

Learn more about John on his site, www.johneverson.com or connect on Facebook at www.facebook.com/johneverson.

Book Available through Amazon - B&N - iBooks

 Author Links
Website  -  Blog  -  Facebook  -  Twitter  -  Linkedin  -  Pinterest






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