K.J. Chapman's Blog, page 83

REVIEW | EVO Nation by KJ Chapman

I just had to reblog this EVO Nation review by Faith over at aliasfaithrivens. It is always an honour to read a great review, and to hear someone loves my characters as much as I do.

Thank you, Faith.

aliasfaithrivens

Good Day One & All,

This review has been a long time coming! And not for reason of lack of inspiration. I’ve just been trying to get a few things organized and wanted to devote the right amount of time and attention to a book that truly deserves it.

Before I start on the actual book, it’s important to speak about the author. KJ Chapman is a fellow blogger on WordPress (you can find her HERE!) She has inspired me with her posts over the past few months, sharing short stories embodied by vivid characters and thrilling plots. I needed no other incentive to buy a copy of Amazon and dive into it.

I have to admit… I’ve never read an ebook before so the experience of readingEVO Nation was a new one. It’s definitely not the way I want to read my books but it didn’t detract…

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Review: Victor by Brianna West (Advanced Reader Copy)

Victor (Guardians in Love Book One) by Brianna West 5/5 (No Spoilers)

Brianna West has done it again- created another steamy, action packed novel of the paranormal and supernatural genre. Victor is part of a spin off series, Guardians in Love, that has stemmed from West’s Promiscus Guardians series. Although, we learnt a little bit about Victor in the Promiscus Guardians series, he isn’t the main character or love interest, so this spin off series has satisfied my need to peek inside Victor’s head.

Lilly’s character is perfectly flawed, and Victor has an open sense of self that he does not shy away from. All character’s are well developed, and their story arcs polished.

If you are a fan of supernatural/ paranormal romance, you do not want to miss out on this novel. West’s love interests have the ability to make the reader swoon, and the healthy dose of action fueled narrative ensures that the reader is engaged from start to finish.

I read Victor in a day! Yep, one day. I believe this to be testament to how captivating West’s writing style is. The easy to read writing style, engaging narrative, and brooding romance has earned my 5/5 rating.

 

The opinions expressed here are those of K.J.Chapman and no other parties.

All books reviewed on this blog have been read by K.J.Chapman

K.J.Chapman has not been paid for this review.

 

What’s Your Name? Letter F

Wow. I nearly forgot to write this post. I am having a hectic week of personal plans, writing notes for book three, fixing our car *grrr*, and reading. Reading being the biggest task at the moment. I’m reading a lot of books for review, and am more than a little excited to say that Author, Brianna West, offered me an advanced reader copy of her upcoming book ‘Victor’. I am all consumed with the story, and can’t fully function until I finish!

The name, randomly picked from the first ‘F’ page in my naming book is:

Fairley: A surname of masculine first name meaning ‘clearing with ferns’. (Old English)

Check out  and  to get up to date with the story so far.

Fairley

“Remove your clothes,” Daire says, as the green beam touches down on the grassy clearing. She stands aghast, clutching at her top longingly. “Quickly, Eva.”

She does as she’s told. Daire’s eyes linger on her longer than necessary, sending a blood flush to her cheeks. Clutching her arms around herself, she tries to maintain a little modesty.

His lips turn up in a smirk. “Underwear too. It’s not something I haven’t seen before,” he jokes.

Eva’s well aware of the fact, but it still feels strange. Daire has only seen her nude the once, and it was in a more… intimate circumstance. This feels awkward, and although he has grown accustomed to his naked state on arrival, it’s not natural for her.

Daire takes her hand, tucking her tight against his chest, and they rise through the beam. Eva clings on for dear life, and he keeps a reassuring grip on her waist. She shivers from the icy temperature, and welcomes the warmth of the port room. The floor closes under them and they drop delicately to their feet.

The room is stark, almost clinical. Her cold, mottled skin looks sickly in the light. Daire holds her for a moment, just staring. She gets the feeling he doesn’t agree.

“You are finally here,” he says, his breathy voice betraying his emotions. “I wish it was under different circumstances.” He kisses her, and she shivers; a mix of the effect he has on her and the cold. “Of course, you’re chilled to the bone. I will find you something to wear. I do not have female attire with me, but I can find something suitable.”

He breezes out of the port room, and Eva gingerly follows him into an enchanting hallway. The hall is furnished in ornate furniture, gold leaf framed portraits, red carpet that swallow your feet, and a chandelier of sorts. The port room could be part of a totally different ship.

“This place is amazing,” Eva gasps.

Daire stops in his stride, an amused look in his grey eyes. “This is my personal ship. My father gave it to me when I turned 21. We will abandon it as soon as feasible.”

Of course, they’re on the run- in hiding- whatever you want to call it. They will be looking for Prince Daire Eavan’s ship. Eva’s not one hundred percent sure who ‘they’ are, but the fear she feels is real. The thought that Daire is a Prince is a surreal one. This is turning into quite  a full moon.

He returns with a green tunic, delicately stitched with a beautiful, gold design and thick cuffs. It is a tunic of a Prince. The thought catches her off guard, and she stares at the top in her hands. “You’re a Prince,” Eva whispers. “You shouldn’t be with me. Why didn’t you stay away?”

Daire buttons up his trousers, and slips into another less fancy, blue tunic that makes his eyes glow. “Would you have me leave you after I confess my love for you?”

Eva pulls the tunic over her head, straightening out the soft material, enjoying the way it hangs from her frame. “No, but you could have met a Princess or a noble woman, someone you could marry… Oh, I don’t know. This seems a lot of hassle over me.”

He sighs loudly. “I love you, my Princess. What more is their to talk about?” His honesty still leaves her in awe. On earth she had met very few people who could boost such an unashamed honesty. Daire wore his heart on his sleeve where she was concerned, and it was refreshing to say the least.

“Thank you for coming back,” she says, quietly. “It would have broken me if you had left me waiting there.”

“It was a selfish decision on my part, and one that has now torn you away from your family and your home, but I’m afraid I can’t say that I regret it. My soul wants yours, it’s a simple as that. That little Earth was too small to hold such as a soul as yours, my Eva. My Princess Eva.”

He leads her into a even grander room. An extensive library stretches from floor to ceiling, and every musical instrument she could name, and then some, sit groomed and ready to be played.

“I look forward to hearing you sing,” Daire states, breaking her wonder.

“Oh no. I don’t sing publicly… how do you know I sing?” Eva asks.

Daire laughs, swiping a silver curtain of hair out of his eyes. “Just because I wasn’t with you, doesn’t mean I wasn’t ensuring your safety. Earth’s satellites are easy to manipulate.”

Eva clasps a hand to her mouth. “You were spying on me?”

“No, ensuring your safety. Okay, perhaps a little bit of spying. I only ever heard you sing a line or two, but you have the prettiest signing voice I have ever encountered.” Her face flares red again, and he kisses her forehead. “I know Fairley would enjoy your voice. She has an ear for the finer things.”

“Is Fairley your sister?”

“Yes. She is fifteen years my senior, but we are close as a brother and sister should be. She was widowed young, and now lives in her late husband’s estate on Bilareen. It was the neighbouring planet to the Myxon Kingdoms, but now is the ninth Kingdom under Myxon rule. When her husband died the rule fell to my sister, but as is the sexist, unjust law of Myxon, when a husband dies, the father of the widow inherits the estate.”

“That’s awful.”

Daire shakes his head. “Indeed. That’s why I know Fairley will aid us.”

“How do you know?”

“Because she believes our father killed her husband.”

This will  be the last post on Eva and Daire. The story is running away from me, and I hope to turn it into something much bigger…

All written works are the property of K.J.Chapman

Seven Deadly Sins Tag

I have been tagged in this Friday fun post by Al over at Hyperactive Pandemonium. Thanks for the tag Al! I’m up for a little KJ.Chapman insight…

The following questions are based on the seven deadly sins, and are relevant to reading and writing.

Pride. Share a line or small scene that you’re really proud to have written. 

“Your hatred is all your own. It was yours to let go, just as it was yours to nurture into this evil that has enabled you to murder your own family.”

Envy. Tell us about the book you wish that’d you written. 

I have to say my favourite book: Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte.

Wrath. Tell us about a trope or cliche that makes you furious.

Damsels in distress- bleurgh!

Gluttony. Tell us about a trope you just can’t get enough of.

Paranormal/ supernatural romance- brooding hunks. Steamy, but easy reads.

Lust. Tell us about a character you’d do unspeakable things to. 

Seeing as I have been reading Brianna West’s paranormal romances of late, I shall say Lucas & Victor. (See  the above sin)

Sloth. Tell us about your favourite form of procrastination. 

Social media of course.

Greed. Tell us which author’s top of your auto-buy list. 

Stephen King, Kristin Cast, Kami Garcia… to name a few.

I am tagging Brianna West to have a go at this tag.

Thanks again for the tag, Al, and I hope it gives a better insight into the reading and writing habits of moi.

 

I write in First Person. No, I’m not Purely Projecting!

Just like a story  written in third person, a first person story is just that- a story. We draw on real emotions, locations, experiences just like every other writer, but the story is fiction. It is not a total projection of our lives.

As you can guess, someone made this comment to me recently when they learnt that I write in first person. It put my back right up, and what do I do when I get annoyed?… I write. Hence, this post.

My MC is being tortured in my current chapter. I have never been tortured, and hope I never shall. So, what do I do to create realism? I think of a particularly difficult situation, draw on an emotion that may best reflect my MC’s, and I go from there. If I write about a woman with an unhealthy upbringing, that is not a reflection on my own life. I had an amazing childhood, but I know others who didn’t. I can use knowledge from their experiences and my own thoughts as an outsider to add realism to the narrative.

Yes, my imagination can be vivid, wild, and raw, but that’s why I write.

Picture Prompt #3

We have the prettiest boating lake in our town with a gorgeous water wheel. It no longer works, but look how beautifully it is situated.

On Friday, I was a parent volunteer on my daughter’s school trip to the lake. All the kids were fascinated by the wheel, even though my daughter thought it was a giant hamster wheel.

I chose this picture of the wheel without any niggling ideas for narrative. I want this exercise to be organic and spur of the moment, so let’s hit the ground running…

The Biome

Harry stomps into the house, wiping muddy hands on the tea towel. “The bloody wheel has stopped working again.”

“I told you that every time you do a bodge repair on it, it could be the last. You need to apply for a new one. If the city wants the crops, then the city can provide a new wheel.” I’m sick of having the same conversation with him. Every day something goes wrong with it. Every day we’re out fixing it up, sweating blood to keep it going. It helps with crop irrigation, so it is vital. Our farm biome is one of four remaining in a two hundred mile radius. 

“We must do our bit. If we can save the city resources and money, then so be it.” 

“They have four farm biomes to feed at least four thousand people. That means that our little farm feeds one thousand of them. We need a new wheel. The oxygen biomes have new wheels every two years.”

Harry sighs, rubbing at his tired eyes. “The oxygen farms are irrigating trees. The wheels work doubly hard, and what good are our crops if we run out of oxygen.”

“And what good is oxygen if we starve to death anyway,” I retort.

Harry smiles and kisses my forehead. “You are impossible sometimes, Kensa. I do all of this for you, you know that right?”

I pull on my work boots and tie my hair out of my face. “Of course I do. Come on, let’s go fix the damn wheel.”

Short, but sweet. I am continually leaning toward either science fiction or dystopian stories at the moment. This one has been no different. I have a spark of inspiration for a much longer story, possibly a novel… only time will tell.

Written works are the property of K.J.Chapman

The image is the property of K.J.Chapman

 

First Draft Complete

I have completed the first draft of EVO Shift… finally. I’m walking about in a daze of relief, euphoria, and editing dread. As usual, I’m having nightmares that I’m going to start editing and realise I’ve written in Mandarin and can no longer translate it.

Writing EVO Nation was a much smoother, quicker process, but I wasn’t blogging or marketing another eBook when writing book one. EVO Shift just feels a long time coming, especially when you have readers of book one asking when book two will be finished. The pressure is definitely on.

I’m just grateful to be able to say the story is down, the characters feel well developed, and EVO Shift has led me nicely into book three.

Book three… WOW. The final book in the series. How crazy is that to try and get my head around? I’m all the more closer to starting book three, and then I say goodbye to the voices who have occupied my mind and have to create new ones. *Sobs* Stop getting ahead of yourself, Kayleigh. 

I’m going to let my manuscript rest for a little, so I can go back to edit with a fresh set of eyes. I have a side project that is near completion, so at least I have that to occupy my time for the next few weeks. I shall also be re-reading EVO Nation before venturing into any editing.

I will check in again when I have something of significance to report. Wish me luck, and minimal plot holes!!

 

GIFs sourced from GIPHY.com

Write Me: One Hundred Word Story

Oh Yeah! I’ve finally completed the challenge I had set for myself. Over the past ten weeks, I have  written ten stories with word limits, starting at ten words and working up in multiples of ten each week until one hundred. I’m chuffed with what I have achieved, and I don’t think I have done a bad job with the stories that I created each week.

This post is the last of the Monday writing exercise posts. I have two other writing exercises on Tuesdays and Saturdays, and I’m scaling back due to my desperate need to plow more writing hours into my work in progress. Two is plenty to be getting on with. Mondays can be free for book reviews, musings, tip shares etc as and when the fancy takes me.

She watches with adoring eyes as I board the craft and fly out of the atmosphere. I’m not her father, but you could be mistaken in thinking so. Seven earth years ago, I took her from her mother’s dead arms. Now, I have to leave her with another mother- my own.  A loving, disciplined woman is what she needs, not a reckless, irresponsible, space outlaw. Not that I had much choice in the matter.

My sentence will end in five years. I know she will keep the High Diamond safe for me. My girl, the universe’s best and youngest thief.

Feel free to join in with your own one hundred word stories and let me know what you come up with.

I would like to thank everyone who has followed these writing exercises, and the wonderful comments I have received. It is a joy to know that my stories have been well received.

All written works are the property of K.J.Chapman

Review: Awakening by Brianna West

Awakening (Promiscus Guardians Book One) by Brianna West 5/5

Blurb:

Izzy is on the fast track to nowhere. Being ordinary really blew sometimes. That’s until she meets Lucas–a man that’s unlike anyone she’s ever met. Mostly because he isn’t actually a man. He is a supernatural creature that proclaims to police the Light and Dark in order to protect humans.

And Izzy–well–she isn’t the human she thought she was. She is actually a supernatural being as well. And now Lucas is going to do everything in his power to find out what she is and protect her from the Dark lurking around the corner.

Awakening follows Izzy as she navigates this new world of demons, vampires, angels, and many other supernatural creatures. Recruited by the Promiscus Guardians and partnering with the most brooding and devilishly handsome man she’s every met, Lucas, Izzy is suddenly knee-deep up crap creek. Discover the secret behind her power and why it’s such a commodity in her Awakening.

Review:

Where should I start? If like me you are a fan of supernatural/ paranormal romances, then look no further than this book. There was dangerously, deviant doses of the paranormal, hunks, action, and steamy romance. Did I mention the hunks? Every box was checked!

I loved Izzy as a character. She stayed true to self, and had a stubborn streak which I like in female protagonists. Lucas was a little bit perfect- half angel, half vampire, oldy worldy with dialogue that matched perfectly. There was a refreshing true sense of self in all the characters.

The fast paced narrative fitted the genre perfectly, and kept the pages turning. The ‘will it happen’ story line between Izzy and Lucas was equally frustrating and engaging. Having the main love interest holding back was different, but made for a compelling read.

I’m a lover of action and this book had that a plenty- warring arch-demons, angels, faeries, and many other creations kept the narrative lively and inventive. Teaming that with an easy to read writing style, and vivid descriptions, I am definitely looking forward to book two.

It is easy for this genre of narrative to become cliched and out-dated, but Awakening was ‘unputdownable‘. I thoroughly enjoyed this book, hence the 5/5 rating.

 

The opinions expressed here are those of K.J.Chapman and no other parties.

All books reviewed on this blog have been read by K.J.Chapman

K.J.Chapman has not been paid for this review.

What’s Your Name? Letter E

After the amazing comments in regards to last week’s ‘Letter D’ writing exercise, I am extending the story into this week’s ‘Letter E’ exercise.

If you haven’t already read it, you will have to catch up on last week’s story .

The name randomly chosen from the first ‘E’ page in my name book is…

Eavan: (pronounced ay-van) A feminine first name meaning ‘radiant’. Irish Gaelic.

For the purpose of this story I shall bend the name conventions a little and use it as a surname.

Eavan

 “Who has threatened my life? Why?”

“I shouldn’t be here, Eva. I was brought before the court three months ago, and I swore an oath to stop returning to Earth, to you. It is forbidden for us to associate with humans.”

“But why?” Eva steps back a little and Daire grips her wrists, not allowing the distance between them.

Daire looks to his feet, clearly unsure how to broach the conversation. “Because we are seen as superior. To associate with a human is a dishonour to my kind.”

Eva pulls from his grip, wrapping her arms around herself in an attempt to keep his words at bay. “A dishonour?” Her voice comes out little and weak.

He pulls her close again, tilting her chin to look into her eyes. “That is not how I feel. You know that. Meeting you has been the greatest privilege of my life. It is an honour to know you, my Eva. But someone has betrayed me, and the court knows of my growing… feelings toward you.”

“Can you not just stay here? Live here?”

Daire shakes his head, his long white hair falling in front of his golden eyes. “They will never let me live out my days here. I’m important to them.”

Eva tucks her hair behind her ears. “I don’t understand any of this. Why are you important to them? If you’re important they may listen to you. Have you just asked?”

He chuckles a little and it annoys her. “I am an Eavan. That name is the most powerful on my planet. I hold a royal title, and my father is Primary Rule of the nine Kingdoms of Myxon. I am his eldest son.” Eva tilts her head, scrunching her nose in confusion. “Eva, I am Prince Daire Eavan of Myxon. I am next in line to Primary Rule. They will not allow me to love you. You must leave with me right away.”

Eva’s breath catches in her throat. “You love me?” she asks. A smile pulls at Daire’s lips. “Say it again, but properly.”

She waits with her heart in her throat. Daire has never mentioned love; the topic caused her many sleepless nights. She was falling for a man she couldn’t keep, or so she thought.

He takes her hands, pulling them to his chest. “Do you feel this?” His heart beat is strong and sure. Eva nods. “That is yours and only yours. I love you, my Eva.”

The biggest smile breaks on her face. Daire returns the gesture. “I love you too.” Eva launches herself at him again, and he catches her effortlessly. She strokes his hair out of his face and kisses him. “Okay, when do we leave?”

Daire studies her face. “You will come with me?”

“I will go anywhere with you,” she replies. His grip tightens on her hips. “As long as my Papa is safe.”

“They do not care for your Papa. He will be safe.” Daire lowers her to her feet, and straightens her blouse. “I’m sorry to take you from your loved ones.”

“It is what it is, Daire.”

“And we love who we love,” he adds.

Her tummy swoops. “How do I explain this to Papa?”

Daire stops her before she can move. “We do not have time, Eva. Your Papa cannot know the truth.”

She pulls her mobile from her pocket and starts to type. Her hands shake as she types words that she knows will break his heart; words she has said to him time and time before and he made her swear to never fulfill.

‘I’m done with this town. I have to see the world. I will come back- I promise you. Love you. xx’

It’s only when Daire wipes a tear from her cheek that she realises she is crying. “This will keep him safe, right?” she asks again.

Daire nods, cupping her cheek in his hand. “I will make all of this right for you.”

“Where are we going?”

He raises a hand in the air and the green beam of light stretches from the clouds, illuminating the clearing. “To the only person I can trust- my sister.”

All written works are the property of K.J.Chapman