L.M. Schukraft's Blog, page 7

Avengers: Infinity Wars – Watch it or Skip it?

[image error]If you’ve been following the entire Marvel’s movies from Iron Man to Guardians of the Galaxy to Captain America to Black Panther (which wasn’t my favorite but that’s a review for another post), then there is no way you can skip Avengers: Infinity Wars!!

Whether you watch it in the theater or wait until you can see it in the comfort of your own home, be prepared to go on an emotionally wild ride from start to finish.

I’m not going to share any spoilers but I do have one question, like maybe I missed something but why didn’t anyone just cut Thanos arm off??? They had a couple of opportunities to – even had their hands on it – and yet, no one cuts off his arm?? I don’t know if they physically couldn’t or what but that was a thought that if I was one of those people who yelled at the screen, I would have been yelling it.

Oh, who am I kidding? I definitely asked that while I was watching the movie.

I do recommend watching the other movies in order, if you haven’t yet. And if you have and it’s been awhile, I’d recommend watching them again so you can remember why Captain America wasn’t around and Tony had a flip phone to call him with or things went so screwy in Age of Ultron and what happened to Thor’s eye. Trust me, it’s good to have a refresher.

Here’s a given spoiler, I’m sure people have hinted at it enough but I’ll keep mine vague: people die in this movie.

Lots of people die in these Marvel movies. Some just hit you harder in the feels. I’m still in denial and hoping for a lot of Supernatural Winchester brothers type resurrections!

Foregone conclusion here: WATCH IT!!! You won’t understand the next one if you don’t watch this one first.

Just be prepared to get shell-shocked and feel emotionally torn asunder.

‘But I don’t want to go, Mr. Stark’….

 

 

 

Locked Out News!

Holy geezeebubs, Batman!!

I now understand how authors I follow on Facebook will share that they finished a book but it takes another six to eight months for it to go through editing!!

I know I was excitedly promoting Locked Out and expecting to have it published back in November. I swear I had read and proofed that book more times than I can count but I got a surprise when the ARC’S went out for early reviews. I can not believe the number of typos, missing words, and other little things I needed to clean up! I was a tad embarrassed I sent the book out like that. At least the people who signed up for the ARC were understanding.

I’m trying to create a world for readers to get lost in and nothing throws a reader out of the story more than a misspelled or missing word!

So….I took some time just as I was hitting the holidays to read Locked Out again with a fine tooth comb. I also wasn’t a fan of the cover after seeing the print proof. I needed time to regroup and come at Locked Out from a different angle.

I took a wee bit more time than I had planned on for a whole bunch of reasons I won’t get into here.

Two, maybe three more, read throughs and I’m feeling much more confident about having a cleaner manuscript! So much so, I’ve submitted the file for review along with the revised cover!!!

What does this mean – you ask?

It means as soon as I get a print proof and verify – oh man, being a writer as a single mom with a young, smart, three year old toddler is not easy! He seems to know the minute I want five minutes to write an update or edit my cover or…you name it, he knows and I’m left torn between writing and giving my son the must have immediate attention he’s asking for which can devolve into tears quickly and just did. Le sigh. I foolishly thought I had enough time to write this while he was playing. Silly me, I should have realized he’d want me to play too. Right that instant! – okay, there’s one of the more important reasons I got delayed and sidetracked but he’s worth it (even when I get frustrated because I just want the five minutes to complete this blog update, lol. I get focused when I get creative. Singularly focused and I can get lost in whatever I’m creating. I forget to eat, hours disappear, I lose track of when I last went to the bathroom or had a drink of water. I’m talking that kind of focused. Having a toddler completely breaks that focus. Often. Yesterday I was getting up every minute while I was trying to fit my cover into the file guidelines because my son was demanding I check out the numbers he made out of fridge magnets. It’s hard to fall into that kind of focus when you’re getting up every minute and praising the number five!)

I’m going to have to hurry this update along. As soon as I get a print proof and verify it’s as clean as I can get it, I will have a new release date for Locked Out!!! Yay!!!

I know I’m not perfect and there will probably be a few minor errors, especially when I’m editing all by myself, I’m just hoping to have as few as I possibly can!!

Movie Review: You Were Never Really Here – Watch it or Skip it?

Popping in to do a quick movie review of You Were Never Really Here which is currently out.

I decided to give this movie a try after seeing promotions for it on Facebook.

I’m honestly wishing I had skipped it. I don’t see the appeal for this movie. It’s slow, disjointed, and hard to follow in some ways.

The movie touches on dark subject matters of hired assassins and child trafficking. Joaquin Phoenix plays the lead actor as a hired assassin whose last job goes awry.

I’m not going to go into plot details or give any spoilers away. All I can say for this quick movie review is: SKIP IT!!!

I wish I had my two hours back.

What’s in the works…

If you’ve been following along on The Crooked Halo Series and L. M. Schukraft – Author Facebook pages, then you’re pretty up to date on what’s been going on with Locked Out’s release date as well as what other writings I’ve been hinting at.

To bring readers up to date, I was this close to releasing Locked Out and had even set up a sign up for ARC’S to be sent out and reviewed. That went really well! I got a decent response and the feedback/reviews were mostly 4 or 5 stars which is the most any author could hope for!

But! The errors! Oh, my, I couldn’t believe that I sent out an ARC with that many typos in it. Some I don’t even know how they happened with apostrophes randomly showing up and I can’t even….

And I wasn’t sold on the cover that I had spent ages creating and fighting to get to fit the publishers guidelines.

Then life and the holidays hit and the brakes were stomped hard on getting Locked Out published by when I had really hoped to. I decided to hold publishing it until I could go over the last copy one more time and catch as many typos as I could. I also was bogged down trying to figure out how to trim 100 pages because there was quite a price jump to publish it. I want to try to keep the price range to $15 or less .

Weeks have gone by now and I’ve managed to go through and catch a bunch of little typos here and there in Locked Out. Then I finally figured out a new cover because the original one was too faded on the print proof I received. I’m definitely liking how I re-worked the cover. I can’t wait to see the next print proof.

Another thing I’ve been dealing with is a hip injury. I’ve torn some part of my hip joint area and it’s messed up muscles and tendons which means sitting, walking, standing, any of those things we take for granted, for any length of time and I’m in large amounts of pain.

I recently had the sobering moment of finding out just how much the injury has affected me. I had to hurry to catch something and I attempted to run only to find out I can’t. I literally can’t make that leg work for running. I wound up skipping, hopping, limping as fast as my body could. That was quite eye-opening to realize and scary too. Anyways, dealing with this injury and many other things has sucked up my time and my creative muse. She fled and left me completely bereft.

It’s only been the last couple of weeks that my creative side has started to open up again. I’ve missed it, I won’t lie. I went through a time when reading, writing or even watching movies or TV just lost their sparkle for me.

Of course, now that my muse is starting to get back to it, I’ve got about 5 different things I’m trying to manage.

I started the illustrations for the children’s book I want to write and illustrate. I’ve got about a quarter to a half of the images drawn. The hard part about getting these created is keeping my son entertained so he doesn’t try to draw a castle or train on the page I’m working on.

As I mentioned above, I’ve redone the cover for Locked Out and I’ve gotten to chapter fifteen for fixing typos and what not. I’m really hoping I get these edits finished this week or the next and maybe be able to get Locked Out published by the beginning of May.

I’m writing a young adult re-telling of a fairytale. I’m on chapter 7 and am excited for this story. I got stuck for a few days on how to put a twist to the classic tale then it hit me all at once and I’ve got this great plot idea that might turn out to be a 7 or 8 book series instead of the short young adult novel I was expecting it to be!

For my Crooked Halo fans, don’t panic! Book Two is still waiting for me. I’ve got it started but my other writings are overpowering Crooked Halo for just a tiny bit longer. Once I get Locked Out published and this young adult book finished, I will be all over Book Two.

The same goes for the second book in Rebuild. I’m trying to set up a schedule that allows me to work on getting Locked Out ready to be published, the children’s book illustrated, and the young adult story written but my toddler throws my schedule off on the daily as well as the pain from the hip and a number of doctors appointments. Three times already, while I’ve been trying to type this blog post and proofread it, I’ve had to go scary mommy voice demanding five minutes to finish it without my son trying to use my body as a slide.

Stick with me, folks, I’m determined and motivated to finish all of these and know it will be worth it!

(Oh, lord, my son made that painful to type and proofread because – of course! – he had to have my attention right this minute! Calgon….take me away!

Goodreads is the place to find a number of reviews for Locked Out!

I discovered a number of the people who signed up to review my Locked Out Advanced Reader Copies are posting them on Goodreads. So far the feedback has been mostly positive! YAY! You can check out all the reviews HERE!

For those that aren’t into clicking on links, below are the reviews up until today. Enjoy and please add Locked Out to your reading list!

Dec 08, 2017 rated it [image error]
Shelves: honest-review-exchange, romance, mystery, cozy-mystery

Recently, when I saw the roll call for ARC readers for her latest book titled Locked Out, I signed up immediately! I had seen her post here and there on Facebook dropping hints about the novel and I just couldn’t wait to read it!

Full disclosure: I was given a free copy of this book from the author in exchange for an honest review. This did not affect my rating in any way.

She has done it again; I loved this book so much! I had to fight with myself to put it down when I had to go to sleep or work. I easily could have picked this up on a weekend morning and read straight through!

The overall plot was so interesting! I thought that the mystery element was done very well; I didn’t see the resolution of it coming at all! While the book was centered around the mystery element, there was also a fair amount of cutesy romance and thrilling suspense; both of which were also wonderful!

What amazing characters! The good characters were so funny and realistic, and the bad characters were super sketchy! I really enjoyed learning more about each character as they spent more time with the main character, Emeline. Brandon was my favorite character. I found myself laughing out loud with his little one-liners and pop culture references. He reminded me so much of my fiancé!

As the author warned me when she sent the book file, there were a few typos here and there. There were also a few areas that were a bit repetitive, but it didn’t take away from the reading experience at all! And of course, this is an ARC that the author is still working on, so I’d be willing to bet she has already fixed the issues I saw.

My favorite passages: POTENTIAL SPOILERS

(view spoiler)

My final thoughts:

I loved every second of this read! I would highly recommend picking this one up if you enjoy fast-paced, fun mysteries with elements of cutesy romance.

I cannot wait for book two to be published! These characters are definitely ones that I would happily read about time and time again!

· see review

Dec 06, 2017 rated it[image error]
Another new to me author and another wonderful surprise. This story is chock full of suspense, mystery, laughs and of course romance.

Emmie meets Ethan at her new job. Little does she know that she is smack dab in the middle of a sudden mystery in their small town. While not overt, these two are pretty combustible when they get together and while this may be the worst week of Emmie’s life, she also has this wonderfully beautiful man in her life although he has secrets of his own.

I was on the edge of my seat, trying to figure things out, trying to solve the mystery and L.M. Schukraft gives us a big time “I didn’t see THAT coming” ending. I look forward to more from this author and from this cozy mystery series.

· see review

Dec 05, 2017 rated it [image error]
“Sweetheart? You can’t just go around calling women that nowadays. It isn’t appropriate. Are you listening to me, Ethan?”

Yes, Buttercup. I’m hearing every word you’re saying Sweet Cheeks.”

This was my first read from this author. After reading this one, I can’t wait for book 2! The main characters are developed well and have excellent chemistry together. The bantering between Ethan and his brothers is dead on!!

Emeline has recently found herself both single and unemployed all because of her ex. Starting a new job at a local home improvement store, she and Ethan are thrown together during training. Attempting to keep him at arm’s length to avoid another heartbreak, she soon finds out how persistent and charming he can be, and she finds the walls she put up slowly crumbling.

A rash of recent break-ins, Ethan’s sudden appearance in town, and now a murder, there is a whole lot of mystery taking place in her little town. Are they all tied together somehow? When it looks like the target of all of it seems to be Emeline, can she trust Ethan to protect her? Can they put the puzzle pieces together and figure out who is behind it all? And why?

I loved the little ribbings that Emmie and Ethan give each other as they both skirt around their feelings for one another. I absolutely adored his brothers Brandon and Hawk, and I hope they each get their own stories at some point. I totally didn’t see the ending coming and I’m not going to spoil it here!! You just have to read it!!

 · see review

Dec 14, 2017 rated it [image error]
I received an eARC from the author for free for a fair and honest review.

Locked Out by L. M. Shukraft is a first book of a new cozy mystery series. Shukraft gives us our protagonist Emmeline who finds herself thrown into a new job not by choice. Within this job, she meets Ethan to whom she forms a relationship not necessarily by the way she wishes. As the book progresses, there are many twists and turns to lead us to a very unexpected ending.

This lengthy book is not what I would expect from a traditional cozy mystery. This book is one of the longer books I have read in a while. As I was reading through the book, I was not a fan of the amount of swearing and sexual situation statements that were spread throughout the book. If you are a fan of many details, this is the book for you. I found at times that the details were a bit excessive, but a person can get a full picture of the author’s intent. In addition, the flow of the book became a bit difficult to stay on track. I had to go back and reread several pages a few times as I felt I missed something or was confused.

Overall, I give this book a 3 out of 5. I do believe that this book has an overall good mystery. If you prefer the more traditional cozy that does not have swearing or sexual comments within it, this book is most likely not for you.

 · see review

Dec 05, 2017 rated it [image error]
Shelves: read-for-review

* I received an eARC from the author for review. This does not affect my review.*

I love a good mystery, and this one kept me guessing! I also enjoyed Ethan and Emmie’s relationship throughout the story and their shared chemistry. The story keeps the reader in suspense, and gives little tidbits of history, just enough to keep the reader on their toes! I loved the mystery in this one, and the surprises were well done! Such a fun story, can’t wait for more from this series!

flag Like  · see review

Dec 14, 2017 rated it [image error]
How much bad luck can one girl suffer? Poor Emmie had lost her father, dumped her boyfriend, asked to leave her teaching job, her friends house gets broken into, someone she knows gets murdered, her car blows up in an explosion to name but a few events over the course of a very short period of time.

Even with all this going on she trusts Ethan, an unknown colleague at her new job to move into her home to protect her. When Ethan turns up somewhere then disappears leaving her in the lerch, Emmie doesn’t push or question why.

When her friend gets broken into and Emmie rushes over to help her, she gets arrested by the police. However when she is unwittingly at a murder scene, the police let her go home no questions asked! Just seems a bit round the wrong way for me.

Overall the story is a fun mystery chick lit, with an undercurrent of desire brewing between Emmie & Ethan, her cat is funny, keeps stealing the food from their plates and is using Ethan as a pin cushion along with the poking of fun and camaraderie from Ethan’s brothers. Though with everything going wrong in a very short space of time for one girl the story does seem a bit far fetched. Even her new employer does not kick off over the amount of time off she & Ethan have during their first week.

I’d figured out one of the baddies before the end, but felt the real reason for their involvement was unresolved along with another event six months earlier.

I was sent this as an ARC for a honest review and I was warned there could be a few mistakes which did nit distract from the story. Odd spelling mistake, start of chapters not always in same position partway down page and full stops instead of commas at the end of speech at times.· see review

Dec 15, 2017 rated it [image error]
Very well written engaging book. the main characters emmie and Ethan really complimented each other. There was a bit of everything in this book. romance, excitement, murder, mystery even a crazy cat!

this was my first book by this author and now i cant wait for book #2

Reviews are coming in for Locked Out and here is another 5 stars!

I sent out a batch of Advanced Reader Copies to people who were kind enough to sign up and take a chance on reading Locked Out before it was published. I discovered this morning that quite a few have posted their reviews on Goodreads. A few days ago, Shelly R. shared her review with me on my L. M. Schukraft – Author Facebook page and I just had to share it here!

Dec 05, 2017 rated it it was amazing
“Sweetheart? You can’t just go around calling women that nowadays. It isn’t appropriate. Are you listening to me, Ethan?”

Yes, Buttercup. I’m hearing every word you’re saying Sweet Cheeks.”

This was my first read from this author. After reading this one, I can’t wait for book 2! The main characters are developed well and have excellent chemistry together. The bantering between Ethan and his brothers is dead on!!

Emeline has recently found herself both single and unemployed all because of her ex. Starting a new job at a local home improvement store, she and Ethan are thrown together during training. Attempting to keep him at arm’s length to avoid another heartbreak, she soon finds out how persistent and charming he can be, and she finds the walls she put up slowly crumbling.

A rash of recent break-ins, Ethan’s sudden appearance in town, and now a murder, there is a whole lot of mystery taking place in her little town. Are they all tied together somehow? When it looks like the target of all of it seems to be Emeline, can she trust Ethan to protect her? Can they put the puzzle pieces together and figure out who is behind it all? And why?

I loved the little ribbings that Emmie and Ethan give each other as they both skirt around their feelings for one another. I absolutely adored his brothers Brandon and Hawk, and I hope they each get their own stories at some point. I totally didn’t see the ending coming and I’m not going to spoil it here!! You just have to read it!!

5 Cups of Tea Review from Erica Robyn Reads for Locked Out!!

Another ARC reviewer has finished reading Locked Out and her review is chock full of love for this cozy mystery.

Erica Robyn Reads reviewed my first novel, Even Halos Can Be Crooked, and agreed to review Locked Out when the ARC sign up went out.

When I woke up to read her review the other day, I was ridiculously happy to share her glowing words of praise as fast as I could. Creating this blog isn’t as easy though, lol. I’m finally able to share her review on my blog and you can read it on her site HERE.

For those of you not into clicking on links, her blog review is shared below the links. Also here are all the links as to where you can find Erica Robyn Read’s review. Please take a moment to check them out, like, share, re-tweet, post, spread the love and add Locked Out to your reading list today!!

Here are the links!

Another 5 star Review for Locked Out!!

I’m excited to share another 5 star advance review of Locked Out!

Sue O. has posted her review on Goodreads. Please check out the review and add Locked Out to your to be read list! Anticipated release date is December 19, 2017!

The review can be found here.

For those of you that don’t like to click links:

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First Review for Locked Out – 5 stars!!

Hello!

I’m excited to share the very first review for Locked Out! It’s been posted on Adventures Thru Wonderland blog and can be found HERE.  Go out and add Locked Out to your reading list today! It’s anticipated release date is set for December 19th, 2017!

And for those that aren’t into clicking on links:

ARC Review: Locked Out

Locked Out by L. M. Schukraft

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Emeline Watson hoped that by changing careers and going back to her home town, Waverly, it would be a new beginning for her. She could forget her horrible ex and the troubles he caused, move on from her father’s passing away six months ago, and start over. She finds out quickly enough that her past has followed her.

Amid overhearing clandestine conversations, her ex stalking her, and her home town being plagued with recent break-ins, Emeline’s first week at Rebuild, a local chain hardware store, is anything but easy. The only bright spot is her gorgeous new co-worker, Ethan Walker. They’re paired up together the first day, and the mutual attraction is undeniable, but Emeline senses there’s more to Ethan than he’s letting on.
         Starting out a new job, in a new town, is never easy but Ethan Walker has become a pro at blending in and adjusting to change. He figures this should be one of the easier changes he’s had to face in awhile. Little did he know the trouble that was awaiting him when he first set eyes on Emeline Watson. Her girl next door blonde hair, curvy fit body, and stunning eyes catches his attention instantly. Time and again, he finds himself playing knight in shining armor to her damsel in distress.
        Waverly is experiencing it’s first wave of crime in centuries and Emeline seems to be mixed up in the center of it. No matter how much she denies needing Ethan to rescue her, the two are thrown together after Emeline discovers the grizzly remains of a body.
             Can Ethan and Emeline figure out who’s behind the crimes? Will their attraction, and Emeline, survive the sinister plot threatening the entire town? Or will their secrets keep them locked out of each others lives?
             Time is running out and the stakes are getting higher with each passing day….the danger is real and it’s coming for Emeline.




I love a good mystery, and this one kept me guessing! I also enjoyed Ethan and Emmie’s relationship throughout the story and their shared chemistry. The story keeps the reader in suspense, and gives little tidbits of history, just enough to keep the reader on their toes! I loved the mystery in this one, and the surprises were well done! Such a fun story, can’t wait for more from this series!






Posted by Stephanie L at 1:43:00 PM


Thank you Stephanie L!!

 

Witch is When it All Began by Adele Abbott – quick review – Read it or Leave it?

Hello!

In the spirit of paying it forward as an author, I’m going to try and get back into writing reviews. Instead of doing long reviews, though, I’m going to do quick posts that highlight the positives and whether or not I’d recommend to read it or leave it.

On a whim, I clicked on a Facebook ad for a series written by Adele Abbott. I knew nothing about the author but her cover intrigued me as well as the story premise. The series focuses on Jill Gooder, a private investigator with a one eyed cat, who discovers she is adopted. Shortly after finding out that she is adopted, she learns her birth mother is dying and goes to visit her.  Her birth mother winds up calling Jill a witch on her deathbed. Strange things start to happen to Jill after that. She is takes on a case to find a serial killer in the first novel and the story takes off from there.

I read this book months ago and found the fast pace writing to be interesting. I like books that move quickly and don’t dawdle. I also enjoyed that the author used English (as in England English) colloquialisms because I wasn’t used to the phrases. It added a little something to the story.

I liked the authors play on names and how very few people would catch the irony in the names.

Not getting in to a plot description or going over what happens – I liked the book. I would definitely recommend to read it. I liked it so much I went out and got the whole series and am now following it.

As a paranormal genre, you will see characters popping up that are classic fairy tale critters in the series. Abbott gives them a familiar feel with a little bit of a new twist.

She has a variety of characters in her books – each with their own unique set of quirks. The main character, Jill, is addicted to custard cremes and cupcakes. Her secretary has a knitting obsession. Her cat has one eye. He plays an important role as Jill’s office mate. The dynamics of the characters are interesting and all play well off of each other.

The mystery is about right in the middle level of difficulty – not too easy to solve but not too hard either. Not only that, Jill Gooder usually finds herself following multiple cases and helping people out.

Positive elements: humor, mystery, paranormal, fast pace, quick read, new books come out just about every two months. Each case is usually solved by the books end with little tiny cliff hangers to draw you into the next book.

Conclusion: Definitely Read it!

You can follow the author on her website and pick up a book here.  The 23rd book in the series, Witch is Why Promises Were Broken, is due to be released December 1, 2017.

Happy Reading!

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