Sharon Stevenson's Blog, page 3
February 3, 2014
Book Reviews: February 2014
As you may already know, my reading addiction covers quite a wide range of books in a load of different genres. That said, the vast majority of what I read can be confined to the sci-fi, fantasy & horror genres, and I’m most often found reading supernatural or urban fantasy novels. By strange coincidence the three books I’m reviewing this month all fall under horror, a genre I was obsessed with in my teen years. So if you’re looking for fluffy romantic books to curl up with this valentine’s day you’ve most definitely come to the wrong place, and you may want to turn around and run before you catch the attention of something a lot less wholesome…
These are the books I’m going to be reviewing:
FLESH
‘Flesh’ by Dylan Morgan
Creature horror set in a small town with a terrifying secret…
I’ve been impressed with Morgan’s style since reading the Blood War trilogy, and my curiosity over his brand new release meant it didn’t linger long in my Kindle before I devoured it! I’ll be reviewing this one in just a few days time!
The Ghoul Archipelago
‘The Ghoul Archipelago’ by Stephen Kozeniewski
Gruesome zombie horror on a boat!
I’ve been reading a lot of zombie books since I really got into them last year. I read Kozeniewski’s ‘Braineater Jones’ last month and loved how original and entertaining it was, so picking up this zombie horror offering was a no-brainer for me!
The Book of Paul
‘The Book of Paul’ by Richard Long
Classed as a paranormal thriller, I’ve heard this book mixes a lot of different genres very skilfully.
I put this in my reading queue back in December when I first heard about it. Stephen King has described it as ‘Mind Blowing’. If that isn’t enough to pique the interest of any true horror fan I don’t know what is. Also, it’s really cheap on Kindle right now - $0.81/£0.49.
Note: As soon as it is released I’ll also be reviewing ‘The Stage’ by Rick Soper, which is the exciting finale to the Rock trilogy.
These are the books I’m going to be reviewing:
FLESH
‘Flesh’ by Dylan Morgan
Creature horror set in a small town with a terrifying secret…
I’ve been impressed with Morgan’s style since reading the Blood War trilogy, and my curiosity over his brand new release meant it didn’t linger long in my Kindle before I devoured it! I’ll be reviewing this one in just a few days time!
The Ghoul Archipelago
‘The Ghoul Archipelago’ by Stephen Kozeniewski
Gruesome zombie horror on a boat!
I’ve been reading a lot of zombie books since I really got into them last year. I read Kozeniewski’s ‘Braineater Jones’ last month and loved how original and entertaining it was, so picking up this zombie horror offering was a no-brainer for me!
The Book of Paul
‘The Book of Paul’ by Richard Long
Classed as a paranormal thriller, I’ve heard this book mixes a lot of different genres very skilfully.
I put this in my reading queue back in December when I first heard about it. Stephen King has described it as ‘Mind Blowing’. If that isn’t enough to pique the interest of any true horror fan I don’t know what is. Also, it’s really cheap on Kindle right now - $0.81/£0.49.
Note: As soon as it is released I’ll also be reviewing ‘The Stage’ by Rick Soper, which is the exciting finale to the Rock trilogy.
January 31, 2014
Diary of a Book Addict: January 2014
January’s almost over and so far my resolution to write more and review less isn’t producing massively impressive results. I’ve gotten a mere 17K words down this month, only a small portion of which relates to the Gallows spin off novella I’m aiming to finish in February, so I’ll be concentrating on that over the coming month. I did manage to get a good start on Gallows novel #5 ‘Hell Halved’ though, so I’m pleased about that.
So what else have I been up to this month? Here’s what:
I’ve written reviews for the following two brilliant books:
Even White Trash Zombies Get The Blues by Diana Rowland http://wp.me/p3Nlm9-6Y
The Tribe of Ishmael by Heather Heffner http://wp.me/p3Nlm9-73
Review Notes:
My review for the exciting finale to Rick Soper’s rock series will be coming soon!
I’ll be reviewing 2 very interesting short works this Sunday so watch out for that if you prefer your books on the lighter side.
I’ve read the following books and rated them on Goodreads:
A Body Displaced by Andrew Butcher – This is a nice continuation of the story started in A Death Displaced, pacing was kept up well with some nice further twists in the story. More than just a ghost story, this ended with a cliff-hanger and is getting very interesting.
Dark Moonlighting by Scott Haworth – This is an interesting and unusual vampire tale about an ugly vampire who has three jobs. It was very original, funny and entertaining but I didn’t particularly like most of the characters, including the main character.
Stake You by Claire Farrell – A high school vampire story with grit. I loved the characters and the wry sense of humour but the pacing was pretty slow to start, with most of the action towards the end of the book. I really liked it though and would definitely read more by this author.
Influential Magic by Deanna Chase – A bit fluffy for my tastes, this was a light Upper YA read with a faerie main character. It was a bit melodramatic and the characters weren’t that realistic but the story wasn’t bad and there were some good twists to it.
Amityville Horrible by Kelley Armstrong – I miss Armstrong’s Otherworld series so I thought I’d give this Jaime Vegas novella a try. It started out nicely creepy but the explanation for the ghostly goings on felt a bit rushed when it came. Good story for fans of the character though.
I’ve put down the following books:
Lumen by Joseph Eastwood – abandoned at 25%. Cool story idea but I wasn’t that invested in the characters. I think this would be best appreciated by fans of YA Paranormal.
Sacrificed in Shadow by S.M. Reine – abandoned at 20%. The writing wasn’t bad but this one just wasn’t my thing. The two main characters were a ruggedly handsome sheriff and a sexy-as-hell demon. The mystery element didn’t hook me and the characters felt unrealistic. It’s probably a good read for Paranormal Romance fans, it just wasn’t to my tastes.
And in other news:
My new year’s detox was disrupted by the early appearance of Malteaster Bunnies. It’s not even Easter ‘til the middle of April. Damn these delicious chocolate-coated creatures, they need to stay away from me… http://www.amazon.co.uk/Malteaster-Bu...
Was not sure what to make of the news that Dusk ‘til Dawn is going to be a TV show. Loved the movie but would have thought the only way a TV show could work would be a continuation of what happened after that. I’ll reserve judgement for the pilot episode though – here’s hoping it rocks: http://insidetv.ew.com/2014/01/12/fro...
The Midnight Beast finally returned to my TV screen this month! For those unfamiliar with these guys they are both hilarious and weird – two of my favourite things. Their songs crack me up. ‘Booty Call’ is my ringtone and I’m loving their new song… http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DF_uvb...
Lastly, my husband suggested I write monster porn. Don’t worry, it wasn’t a completely unprovoked suggestion! This is the blog post responsible: http://www.uproxx.com/gammasquad/2014...
And on that note I bid you goodnight! (PS - I hope there’s not a monster under your bed, unless of course you’re into that sort of thing…)
So what else have I been up to this month? Here’s what:
I’ve written reviews for the following two brilliant books:
Even White Trash Zombies Get The Blues by Diana Rowland http://wp.me/p3Nlm9-6Y
The Tribe of Ishmael by Heather Heffner http://wp.me/p3Nlm9-73
Review Notes:
My review for the exciting finale to Rick Soper’s rock series will be coming soon!
I’ll be reviewing 2 very interesting short works this Sunday so watch out for that if you prefer your books on the lighter side.
I’ve read the following books and rated them on Goodreads:
A Body Displaced by Andrew Butcher – This is a nice continuation of the story started in A Death Displaced, pacing was kept up well with some nice further twists in the story. More than just a ghost story, this ended with a cliff-hanger and is getting very interesting.
Dark Moonlighting by Scott Haworth – This is an interesting and unusual vampire tale about an ugly vampire who has three jobs. It was very original, funny and entertaining but I didn’t particularly like most of the characters, including the main character.
Stake You by Claire Farrell – A high school vampire story with grit. I loved the characters and the wry sense of humour but the pacing was pretty slow to start, with most of the action towards the end of the book. I really liked it though and would definitely read more by this author.
Influential Magic by Deanna Chase – A bit fluffy for my tastes, this was a light Upper YA read with a faerie main character. It was a bit melodramatic and the characters weren’t that realistic but the story wasn’t bad and there were some good twists to it.
Amityville Horrible by Kelley Armstrong – I miss Armstrong’s Otherworld series so I thought I’d give this Jaime Vegas novella a try. It started out nicely creepy but the explanation for the ghostly goings on felt a bit rushed when it came. Good story for fans of the character though.
I’ve put down the following books:
Lumen by Joseph Eastwood – abandoned at 25%. Cool story idea but I wasn’t that invested in the characters. I think this would be best appreciated by fans of YA Paranormal.
Sacrificed in Shadow by S.M. Reine – abandoned at 20%. The writing wasn’t bad but this one just wasn’t my thing. The two main characters were a ruggedly handsome sheriff and a sexy-as-hell demon. The mystery element didn’t hook me and the characters felt unrealistic. It’s probably a good read for Paranormal Romance fans, it just wasn’t to my tastes.
And in other news:
My new year’s detox was disrupted by the early appearance of Malteaster Bunnies. It’s not even Easter ‘til the middle of April. Damn these delicious chocolate-coated creatures, they need to stay away from me… http://www.amazon.co.uk/Malteaster-Bu...
Was not sure what to make of the news that Dusk ‘til Dawn is going to be a TV show. Loved the movie but would have thought the only way a TV show could work would be a continuation of what happened after that. I’ll reserve judgement for the pilot episode though – here’s hoping it rocks: http://insidetv.ew.com/2014/01/12/fro...
The Midnight Beast finally returned to my TV screen this month! For those unfamiliar with these guys they are both hilarious and weird – two of my favourite things. Their songs crack me up. ‘Booty Call’ is my ringtone and I’m loving their new song… http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DF_uvb...
Lastly, my husband suggested I write monster porn. Don’t worry, it wasn’t a completely unprovoked suggestion! This is the blog post responsible: http://www.uproxx.com/gammasquad/2014...
And on that note I bid you goodnight! (PS - I hope there’s not a monster under your bed, unless of course you’re into that sort of thing…)
January 14, 2014
Book Review News for 2014
Okay so some of you may have read my end of year post and know this already but in case you didn’t, here’s what’s up: I’m cutting down on the amount of books I’m reading and reviewing this year to concentrate more on that other thing I’m obsessed with, writing.
In case you didn’t know I am addicted to reading and I get around 6-7 hours a week on the commute to work to indulge in this obsession so I will still get through a ton of books in 2014, but I’ll only be making time to review around 30 of them. What this means: I’ll still be rating every book I’ve read through Goodreads but will only be reviewing selected books. Just to keep things interesting, I’ll be opening up voting every quarter so that the readers of this blog can see the list of books I’ve read over those three months and choose one they want to see me review. The first vote will open on 1st April for the books I’ve read January-March. I’ll then review the book with the most votes!
For those of you just can’t wait to find out my first three reviews for 2014 will be for these books:
‘Even White Trash Zombies Get The Blues’ by Diana Rowland
Even White Trash Zombies Get the Blues
Urban Fantasy with a snarky narrator.
Second book in the series – this has been out for a while and there are currently three books out, though sadly it’s not available on Kindle.
'The Tribe of Ishmael’ by Heather Heffner
The Tribe of Ishmael
Fantasy set in Hell: There are no heroes, only villains.
First book in the series – this is the exciting brand new release from the author of the Changeling Sisters urban fantasy series.
‘The Stage’ by Rick Soper
Fast-paced thriller revolving around a concert.
Third book in the trilogy – the suspenseful finale to the Rock trilogy is coming out soon and will be reviewed shortly after its release.
The first review will be posted next week!
Attention Authors:
Although I no longer have time to take on any new review requests, I will be happy to share the news when your books are on special offer. If you tweet or email me when your books are on sale or free offer I will spread the word. If it’s on free offer and looks like something I would enjoy I may also download it to read and rate on Goodreads.
In case you didn’t know I am addicted to reading and I get around 6-7 hours a week on the commute to work to indulge in this obsession so I will still get through a ton of books in 2014, but I’ll only be making time to review around 30 of them. What this means: I’ll still be rating every book I’ve read through Goodreads but will only be reviewing selected books. Just to keep things interesting, I’ll be opening up voting every quarter so that the readers of this blog can see the list of books I’ve read over those three months and choose one they want to see me review. The first vote will open on 1st April for the books I’ve read January-March. I’ll then review the book with the most votes!
For those of you just can’t wait to find out my first three reviews for 2014 will be for these books:
‘Even White Trash Zombies Get The Blues’ by Diana Rowland
Even White Trash Zombies Get the Blues
Urban Fantasy with a snarky narrator.
Second book in the series – this has been out for a while and there are currently three books out, though sadly it’s not available on Kindle.
'The Tribe of Ishmael’ by Heather Heffner
The Tribe of Ishmael
Fantasy set in Hell: There are no heroes, only villains.
First book in the series – this is the exciting brand new release from the author of the Changeling Sisters urban fantasy series.
‘The Stage’ by Rick Soper
Fast-paced thriller revolving around a concert.
Third book in the trilogy – the suspenseful finale to the Rock trilogy is coming out soon and will be reviewed shortly after its release.
The first review will be posted next week!
Attention Authors:
Although I no longer have time to take on any new review requests, I will be happy to share the news when your books are on special offer. If you tweet or email me when your books are on sale or free offer I will spread the word. If it’s on free offer and looks like something I would enjoy I may also download it to read and rate on Goodreads.
December 31, 2013
2013 in Books: Regrets, Resolutions & Recommendations
It’s Hogmanay, or as its better known anyplace outside of Scotland, New Year’s Eve! What better day to sit back and take stock of everything (reading and writing related because I am a book obsessed geek) that’s happened in the last year? Well, I’m not much of a stock-taker (more of a ‘hazard a guestimate and then move on before it freaks you out’ kind of person), but here goes; In 2013 I did this…
I wrote 175 book reviews
Holy crap! I started writing reviews at the end of 2012 so to figure out how many I did in 2013 I had a look on my Amazon account and take away the reviews from the previous year. I would have guessed 150 so the actual figure was a bit of a shock. Now, considering it takes me about an hour to write up and distribute each review to Amazon, Goodreads & one of my blogs, I already decided last month that I was going to cut back on reviews in the future. Hey, I could get another novel written in 90 hours, never mind 175. Wow.
Regrets:
None. I read a lot of awesome books and I left a lot of reviews. If everyone who reads did this at least once in a while, a whole lot more authors would have one of those permanent-smile days on their calendar. That’s worth every minute.
Resolutions:
This was a tough decision to make but I’d have to be crazy not to make it. I’m going to review less and use some of that previously allotted reviewing time for writing novels instead. Next year’s reviewing figure will read more around the 30 mark which leaves me plenty of time to write a whole other novel and maybe even try my hand at some short stories – hooray!
Recommendations:
Looking for something to read? Here are my top 15 picks from my 2013 reading pile (stacked by genre: fantasy-scifi-horror-thriller):
Dark Fantasy with a flawed and totally kick-ass heroine: Thief by Sarah Jane Lehoux
Urban Fantasy with an exotic flavour and a high fantasy twist: Year of the Wolf by Heather Heffner
Urban Fantasy that is gritty and with deep, dark levels that cut to the bone: Pierced by J.C. Mells
Epic Fantasy with vividly depicted horror sequences: The Dim Realm by Matt Holgate
Fantasy Comedy about RPG geeks being sucked into their game: Critical Failures by Robert Bevan
Fairy Tale with a sense of humour, told from the evil queen’s POV: Dewitched by E.L. Sarnoff
Paranormal Mystery Comedy about two psychic twins and their telepathic cat: The Cat Food Chronicles by Maya Pruett
Action Sci-Fi with horror and a fantastic main character: The Might of Fortitude by Jonathon Fletcher
Sci-Fi Horror with fantastic characters & brilliantly built world: The Underlighters by Michelle Browne
YA Zombie Horror full of action and shocks: Zombie Attack! Rise of the Horde by Devan Sagliani
Supernatural Horror about a brutal war between species: Bloodlines by Dylan Morgan
Horror Short Story Collection with fantastic twists and turns: Death Throes by R.M. DuChene
Crime Comedy with a brilliantly witty sense of humour: Cigarette by Jason Purdy
Crime Thriller with dark horror elements and a fast-paced storyline: The Rockstar by Rick Soper
Psychological Thriller about Death coming to collect souls: Don’t Fear The Reaper by Garry Kay
These are the books I read that stuck out to me the most in the last year. There are tons of other excellent reads too, considering my review policy means I don’t finish reading the books that fall under a 3 star rating, and I read and reviewed 175 great books. Want to see if you can stump me? Ask for a recommendation in whatever genre you like and I’ll see what I can come up with.
I wrote, edited and published 3 books
Yeah, this doesn’t sound so impressive when it’s compared to the review figure hence my first resolution. I fully intend on continuing to release 2 Gallows novels a year until the series finishes – I have 6 more books planned before it ends so don’t worry there’s a good few years left to go! The After Death series I originally planned 2 releases a year but I just haven’t had the time so it’s 1 release a year for now. I may review this again once I see how 2014 goes with my first resolution in place.
Regrets:
Hmm. I had really wanted to release Back From The Dark – Teri’s story, a Gallows spin off – at the same time as Fate Fallen but I couldn’t get it finished in time. I’m editing it now and it’s taking forever because I stupidly wrote it in first person so it didn’t turn out right. By ‘editing’ I basically mean rewriting it from scratch which is why it sucks so much ass.
Resolutions:
To put all other writing projects on hold until I finish editing Back From The Dark. I will have this novella ready in the next month or so if it kills me!
To get one extra novel written in 2014 so I can start clearing my backlog of book ideas. In theory this is a sure thing if I drop my reviews down to 30 for the year. We’ll see how well that pans out once my professional procrastination skills kick in.
Recommendations:
Like your supernatural stories action-packed with a good sense of humour and full of surprises? Check out The Gallows Novels. Already have? I’d be forever grateful if you left a short review on amazon or goodreads. Oh and just for info Curse Corrupted is still only $0.99 / £0.77 right now but the price will be increasing on Monday 6th January so now’s the best time to buy!
To finish up I’d like to thank everyone who has downloaded, shared, liked or reviewed any of my books over the last year. You are all greatly appreciated, you have no idea how much!
Happy New Year Everyone! Here’s to a great 2014.
I wrote 175 book reviews
Holy crap! I started writing reviews at the end of 2012 so to figure out how many I did in 2013 I had a look on my Amazon account and take away the reviews from the previous year. I would have guessed 150 so the actual figure was a bit of a shock. Now, considering it takes me about an hour to write up and distribute each review to Amazon, Goodreads & one of my blogs, I already decided last month that I was going to cut back on reviews in the future. Hey, I could get another novel written in 90 hours, never mind 175. Wow.
Regrets:
None. I read a lot of awesome books and I left a lot of reviews. If everyone who reads did this at least once in a while, a whole lot more authors would have one of those permanent-smile days on their calendar. That’s worth every minute.
Resolutions:
This was a tough decision to make but I’d have to be crazy not to make it. I’m going to review less and use some of that previously allotted reviewing time for writing novels instead. Next year’s reviewing figure will read more around the 30 mark which leaves me plenty of time to write a whole other novel and maybe even try my hand at some short stories – hooray!
Recommendations:
Looking for something to read? Here are my top 15 picks from my 2013 reading pile (stacked by genre: fantasy-scifi-horror-thriller):
Dark Fantasy with a flawed and totally kick-ass heroine: Thief by Sarah Jane Lehoux
Urban Fantasy with an exotic flavour and a high fantasy twist: Year of the Wolf by Heather Heffner
Urban Fantasy that is gritty and with deep, dark levels that cut to the bone: Pierced by J.C. Mells
Epic Fantasy with vividly depicted horror sequences: The Dim Realm by Matt Holgate
Fantasy Comedy about RPG geeks being sucked into their game: Critical Failures by Robert Bevan
Fairy Tale with a sense of humour, told from the evil queen’s POV: Dewitched by E.L. Sarnoff
Paranormal Mystery Comedy about two psychic twins and their telepathic cat: The Cat Food Chronicles by Maya Pruett
Action Sci-Fi with horror and a fantastic main character: The Might of Fortitude by Jonathon Fletcher
Sci-Fi Horror with fantastic characters & brilliantly built world: The Underlighters by Michelle Browne
YA Zombie Horror full of action and shocks: Zombie Attack! Rise of the Horde by Devan Sagliani
Supernatural Horror about a brutal war between species: Bloodlines by Dylan Morgan
Horror Short Story Collection with fantastic twists and turns: Death Throes by R.M. DuChene
Crime Comedy with a brilliantly witty sense of humour: Cigarette by Jason Purdy
Crime Thriller with dark horror elements and a fast-paced storyline: The Rockstar by Rick Soper
Psychological Thriller about Death coming to collect souls: Don’t Fear The Reaper by Garry Kay
These are the books I read that stuck out to me the most in the last year. There are tons of other excellent reads too, considering my review policy means I don’t finish reading the books that fall under a 3 star rating, and I read and reviewed 175 great books. Want to see if you can stump me? Ask for a recommendation in whatever genre you like and I’ll see what I can come up with.
I wrote, edited and published 3 books
Yeah, this doesn’t sound so impressive when it’s compared to the review figure hence my first resolution. I fully intend on continuing to release 2 Gallows novels a year until the series finishes – I have 6 more books planned before it ends so don’t worry there’s a good few years left to go! The After Death series I originally planned 2 releases a year but I just haven’t had the time so it’s 1 release a year for now. I may review this again once I see how 2014 goes with my first resolution in place.
Regrets:
Hmm. I had really wanted to release Back From The Dark – Teri’s story, a Gallows spin off – at the same time as Fate Fallen but I couldn’t get it finished in time. I’m editing it now and it’s taking forever because I stupidly wrote it in first person so it didn’t turn out right. By ‘editing’ I basically mean rewriting it from scratch which is why it sucks so much ass.
Resolutions:
To put all other writing projects on hold until I finish editing Back From The Dark. I will have this novella ready in the next month or so if it kills me!
To get one extra novel written in 2014 so I can start clearing my backlog of book ideas. In theory this is a sure thing if I drop my reviews down to 30 for the year. We’ll see how well that pans out once my professional procrastination skills kick in.
Recommendations:
Like your supernatural stories action-packed with a good sense of humour and full of surprises? Check out The Gallows Novels. Already have? I’d be forever grateful if you left a short review on amazon or goodreads. Oh and just for info Curse Corrupted is still only $0.99 / £0.77 right now but the price will be increasing on Monday 6th January so now’s the best time to buy!
To finish up I’d like to thank everyone who has downloaded, shared, liked or reviewed any of my books over the last year. You are all greatly appreciated, you have no idea how much!
Happy New Year Everyone! Here’s to a great 2014.
December 20, 2013
New Release: Curse Corrupted
Curse Corrupted
Curse Corrupted, Gallows Novel No 4 is now out and $0.99 / £0.77 for a limited time so if you’ve been waiting for it now’s the best time to grab it as I can guarantee it won’t get any cheaper than that. To make it really easy for you here are a couple of links:
Amazon US: www.amazon.com/dp/B00HEXF7GS
Amazon UK: www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00HEXF7GS
If you’re reading this post thinking what’s this then? you probably haven’t checked out this action packed supernatural series. If that’s the case then I have even more good news: books 2 & 3 are free from 21st-25th December! If that isn’t enough, the first book, Blood Bound will also be free 25th-29th December. You can grab them using these links (keeping those dates in mind):
Amazon US: www.amazon.com/Sharon-Stevenson/e/B00...
Amazon UK: www.amazon.co.uk/Sharon-Stevenson/e/B...
I would also just like to say thank you so much to everyone who downloads and/or reviews any of my books. You are all very much appreciated and I thank you for your time. Special thanks to those of you who have already been following the series - you are awesome.
Have a great holiday season! Happy reading!
November 23, 2013
Spotlight on Peter: A Darkened Fairytale
‘Peter: A Darkened Fairytale’ is the enchanting fantasy story of a young boy who stumbles into a magical realm and goes off on an adventure full of fantastical beings. This book has been written for older children but is written in a way that adults will also find captivating. Read on to find out more about this darkened fairytale…
Peter: A Darkened Fairytale
Author Q&A: William O’Brien
Can you sum up the plot for ‘Peter: A Darkened Fairytale’ in either: a one sentence synopsis, a haiku, or a short poem?
Swirling Dreams
Dragons knew
Touching life to win
Deep inside many other worlds
Where should we begin?
You’ve written an enchanting children’s fantasy book which is also being thoroughly enjoyed by adults. Did you expect it to find such a wide audience or were you primarily focused on writing it for the enjoyment of older children?
Thank you Sharon. Yes, as difficult as the task was, addressing differentiation was a priority. My MSc is in Science Communication, so engaging all age groups was a major concern for the first book. Although, the underlying concept was enjoyment, fantasy and drawing in the reader.
You capture a child’s sense of wonder extremely well in this novel. How did you prepare yourself to write from the perspective of a young boy?
The simple answer is I am a child at heart. I have never grown up and never want to – in this or any other life.
Read the rest of this interview, including an extract at: http://sharonstevensonauthor.com/369/
Peter: A Darkened Fairytale
Author Q&A: William O’Brien
Can you sum up the plot for ‘Peter: A Darkened Fairytale’ in either: a one sentence synopsis, a haiku, or a short poem?
Swirling Dreams
Dragons knew
Touching life to win
Deep inside many other worlds
Where should we begin?
You’ve written an enchanting children’s fantasy book which is also being thoroughly enjoyed by adults. Did you expect it to find such a wide audience or were you primarily focused on writing it for the enjoyment of older children?
Thank you Sharon. Yes, as difficult as the task was, addressing differentiation was a priority. My MSc is in Science Communication, so engaging all age groups was a major concern for the first book. Although, the underlying concept was enjoyment, fantasy and drawing in the reader.
You capture a child’s sense of wonder extremely well in this novel. How did you prepare yourself to write from the perspective of a young boy?
The simple answer is I am a child at heart. I have never grown up and never want to – in this or any other life.
Read the rest of this interview, including an extract at: http://sharonstevensonauthor.com/369/
September 22, 2013
Spotlight on The Blood War Trilogy by Dylan J. Morgan
With two books out now, the Blood War Trilogy tells the story of a brutal war between Vampires, Werewolves and the hybrid offspring of these two species. This is a dark and bloody horror series full of savage creatures that are intent on destroying one and other. The story-telling is fantastic, the characters believable and the fight scenes tense and gruesome. Read on to find out more about this brilliant horror trilogy and its creator…
BLOODLINES
Monsters and Mortals
Check out what reviewers have to say about these books:
“Dylan revitalizes the tired mythology of werewolves and vampires, returning them to their former classic movie glory–this is not a paranormal romance, but the raw material for your nightmares.”
“Dylan Morgan has given me hope for once again reading about werewolves and vampires.”
“Morgan moves the story along at a brisk pace with excellently described settings. Fight scenes are plentiful and if you’re a fan of highly trained vampires squaring off against savage lycans, you won’t be disappointed.”
Author Interview: Dylan J. Morgan
Dylan J. Morgan
Hi Dylan, thanks for agreeing to be interviewed.
Hi Sharon, thanks for allowing me the opportunity to promote my work on your blog.
To start can you give us a one sentence synopsis that sums up your life so far?
Filled with happiness and few regrets, a disjointed journey that has spanned countries and continents has brought frustration to some, confusion to others, and joy to many.
Can you give us a song, movie or book that is meaningful to you or your writing?
Just one? Ah, I don’t know, forget the movies and books, it’s the music that’s the most important to me. I am never without my iPhone, filled with my favourite songs by my favourite bands. I have my music with me when I’m doing practically everything, from driving to housework, and definitely while writing. These days I can’t write a word without Disturbed, or Rammstein, or Motley Crue blasting in my ears.
If I had to choose one, though, I guess it would (surprisingly) be Times Like These by Foo Fighters. It’s not really meaningful to my writing (except for being mentioned in my novel, Hosts), but the lyrics are awesome and just say so much. Plus it’s one of my favourite songs.
Your books are solidly based in the horror genre. What is it about this genre that gets your imagination flowing?
I believe that you can incorporate all genres into a horror book. Apart from the obvious horror, you can have mystery, crime, a touch of sci-fi, romance, erotica. A horror book can include terror or joy, sadness or laughter. There’s just so much to write about in the horror genre.
Read the rest of this interview on my blog: http://sharonstevensonauthor.com/spot...
BLOODLINES
Monsters and Mortals
Check out what reviewers have to say about these books:
“Dylan revitalizes the tired mythology of werewolves and vampires, returning them to their former classic movie glory–this is not a paranormal romance, but the raw material for your nightmares.”
“Dylan Morgan has given me hope for once again reading about werewolves and vampires.”
“Morgan moves the story along at a brisk pace with excellently described settings. Fight scenes are plentiful and if you’re a fan of highly trained vampires squaring off against savage lycans, you won’t be disappointed.”
Author Interview: Dylan J. Morgan
Dylan J. Morgan
Hi Dylan, thanks for agreeing to be interviewed.
Hi Sharon, thanks for allowing me the opportunity to promote my work on your blog.
To start can you give us a one sentence synopsis that sums up your life so far?
Filled with happiness and few regrets, a disjointed journey that has spanned countries and continents has brought frustration to some, confusion to others, and joy to many.
Can you give us a song, movie or book that is meaningful to you or your writing?
Just one? Ah, I don’t know, forget the movies and books, it’s the music that’s the most important to me. I am never without my iPhone, filled with my favourite songs by my favourite bands. I have my music with me when I’m doing practically everything, from driving to housework, and definitely while writing. These days I can’t write a word without Disturbed, or Rammstein, or Motley Crue blasting in my ears.
If I had to choose one, though, I guess it would (surprisingly) be Times Like These by Foo Fighters. It’s not really meaningful to my writing (except for being mentioned in my novel, Hosts), but the lyrics are awesome and just say so much. Plus it’s one of my favourite songs.
Your books are solidly based in the horror genre. What is it about this genre that gets your imagination flowing?
I believe that you can incorporate all genres into a horror book. Apart from the obvious horror, you can have mystery, crime, a touch of sci-fi, romance, erotica. A horror book can include terror or joy, sadness or laughter. There’s just so much to write about in the horror genre.
Read the rest of this interview on my blog: http://sharonstevensonauthor.com/spot...
August 30, 2013
The Week In Links
It's still Zombie time on my website blog! Check out these posts if you're a walking dead fan -
Last Saturday I got the chance to interview my favourite zombie author Devan Sagliani!!! Find out which character he'd be in The Walking Dead, and read an extract from his new book Undead LA:
http://sharonstevensonauthor.com/auth...
On Monday I posted a spotlight on Jonathon Fletcher's latest Josiah Trenchard adventure 'Onamuji':
http://sharonstevensonauthor.com/cool...
On Tuesday YA Zombie author Rusty Fischer stopped by:
http://sharonstevensonauthor.com/gues...
On Thursday I shared my Top 5 Zombie Movies:
http://sharonstevensonauthor.com/my-t...
Still to come this weekend:
My Top 5 Zombie Horror Books
This week has been insanely busy! I've read 5 books I haven't had time to review yet. Watch out for reviews of the following going up over the weekend:
Oh and there's still time to enter the latest competition. Got a favourite vampire? Tell me about it and you could win:
http://sharonstevensonauthor.com/vamp...
Last Saturday I got the chance to interview my favourite zombie author Devan Sagliani!!! Find out which character he'd be in The Walking Dead, and read an extract from his new book Undead LA:
http://sharonstevensonauthor.com/auth...
On Monday I posted a spotlight on Jonathon Fletcher's latest Josiah Trenchard adventure 'Onamuji':
http://sharonstevensonauthor.com/cool...
On Tuesday YA Zombie author Rusty Fischer stopped by:
http://sharonstevensonauthor.com/gues...
On Thursday I shared my Top 5 Zombie Movies:
http://sharonstevensonauthor.com/my-t...
Still to come this weekend:
My Top 5 Zombie Horror Books
This week has been insanely busy! I've read 5 books I haven't had time to review yet. Watch out for reviews of the following going up over the weekend:
Oh and there's still time to enter the latest competition. Got a favourite vampire? Tell me about it and you could win:
http://sharonstevensonauthor.com/vamp...
August 27, 2013
Fun 5 - 'Nexus' by Nicolas Wilson
Today Nicolas Wilson is answering my Fun 5 questions on his book 'Nexus'.
Nexus
Fun 5 Q & A:
Can you give us a one sentence synopsis that sums up your story?
A corporation builds a star ship to seek out new worlds and secure mining rights while their guinea pig crew weighs the ethics of the corporate forced breeding scheme and the things they’re being told to do to the aliens.
What do you want your readers to get out of the book?
Enjoyment.
But since it’s not my microphone, I won’t drop it and walk out. Seriously, entertainment is the most important thing. I think there’s some weighty topics discussed, as well, all manner of ethical issues and things about self-determination and the relationship of employers and employees, and if people think the occasional big thought, then great. But there’s lots of space laser fights, space piracy and alien sex.
What message lies at the heart of your story?
I think it’s ultimately a story about how society organizes itself. At the beginning, the ship has been hand-picked by human resources staff using dry criteria to decide who can best push the futuristic spaceship buttons. By the end it’s become a functional community with its own organizing values and principles. So maybe the message is to play nice, lest someone fire you out of an airlock.
What makes this book different from others in the genre?
I think there’s an awareness to the characters that’s rarely seen in the genre. Star Trek, for example, doesn’t spend a lot of time thinking about the impact of showing up on other species' doorsteps unannounced. In fact, the series as a whole plays out a lot like a series of simplified chess-games played by a gaggle of dimwits while the rest of the universe gawps. Not that I’m mocking it, mind- Star Trek at least manages to have gotten away from the completely human-centric story-telling and as often as not was more budget-constrained when it comes to designing and utilizing exotic species, as opposed to, say, Star Wars. But I like to think I still bring enough of the 'splodo and giant rampaging alien monsters to make it fun and exciting.
How bad is your bad guy, on a scale of mildly fiendish to brutally evil?
I think most of my villains, in this novel and in general, tend towards the Magneto part of the scale. By that I mean to say ‘evil’ as a concept is too simplistic. A character should want something, whether it’s survival for their race or world peace or to collect all the doll heads in the entire world. Because of that, my villains- and there are I would say there are between 4 and 5 at various points of this novel- can be horrifically evil, or simply antagonistic, depending on the amount of murder/betrayal/puppy-stomping they think they need to do to reach their goals.
Nexus
Fun 5 Q & A:
Can you give us a one sentence synopsis that sums up your story?
A corporation builds a star ship to seek out new worlds and secure mining rights while their guinea pig crew weighs the ethics of the corporate forced breeding scheme and the things they’re being told to do to the aliens.
What do you want your readers to get out of the book?
Enjoyment.
But since it’s not my microphone, I won’t drop it and walk out. Seriously, entertainment is the most important thing. I think there’s some weighty topics discussed, as well, all manner of ethical issues and things about self-determination and the relationship of employers and employees, and if people think the occasional big thought, then great. But there’s lots of space laser fights, space piracy and alien sex.
What message lies at the heart of your story?
I think it’s ultimately a story about how society organizes itself. At the beginning, the ship has been hand-picked by human resources staff using dry criteria to decide who can best push the futuristic spaceship buttons. By the end it’s become a functional community with its own organizing values and principles. So maybe the message is to play nice, lest someone fire you out of an airlock.
What makes this book different from others in the genre?
I think there’s an awareness to the characters that’s rarely seen in the genre. Star Trek, for example, doesn’t spend a lot of time thinking about the impact of showing up on other species' doorsteps unannounced. In fact, the series as a whole plays out a lot like a series of simplified chess-games played by a gaggle of dimwits while the rest of the universe gawps. Not that I’m mocking it, mind- Star Trek at least manages to have gotten away from the completely human-centric story-telling and as often as not was more budget-constrained when it comes to designing and utilizing exotic species, as opposed to, say, Star Wars. But I like to think I still bring enough of the 'splodo and giant rampaging alien monsters to make it fun and exciting.
How bad is your bad guy, on a scale of mildly fiendish to brutally evil?
I think most of my villains, in this novel and in general, tend towards the Magneto part of the scale. By that I mean to say ‘evil’ as a concept is too simplistic. A character should want something, whether it’s survival for their race or world peace or to collect all the doll heads in the entire world. Because of that, my villains- and there are I would say there are between 4 and 5 at various points of this novel- can be horrifically evil, or simply antagonistic, depending on the amount of murder/betrayal/puppy-stomping they think they need to do to reach their goals.
August 25, 2013
Author Interview: Devan Sagliani
Today I’m interviewing horror author Devan Sagliani. Devan’s books include the adult zombie novel ‘The Rising Dead’ and YA zombie adventure ‘Zombie Attack! Rise of the Horde’. Both of these books make my Top 5 Zombie Horror Novels for their brilliant characters, believable scenarios and tense horror scenes. Read on to find out more about these excellent novels and their creator.
Devan Sagliani
Hi Devan, thanks for agreeing to being interviewed! So, to start can you give us a one sentence synopsis that best describes your life so far?
A bitter sweet tale of redemption and triumph comes to life as one man decides to fulfill his lifelong ambition to write novel length fiction…about zombies.
Can you tell us five random interesting facts about yourself?
(1) I hate wearing shoes and jewelry for that matter. I think it’s because I’m a native Southern Californian, born and raised in Los Angeles. The weather is nice enough that you never need to wear shoes unless you’re going to the gym or court or maybe a funeral. I even got married barefoot on the beach. I grew up loving the beach and surf culture. I’m happiest in a pair of board shorts, a T-shirt, and flip flops. I don’t like being too far from the ocean. It makes me anxious.
(2) When I was 5 I used my birthday money to buy a toy typewriter. From a very early age all I’ve ever wanted to be was a novelist. I remember writing a short story when I was in grade school, a horror story about a man trapped on an island with a monster coming to kill him. It seemed totally normal at the time but I’m sure it set some bells off for my teacher. Still the people in my life weren’t very supportive of the idea of me writing books for a living. They told me I’d starve to death if I tried to go that route but they couldn’t kill the dream growing inside of me. My whole life I’ve fantasized about what it would be like to sign a book deal. I never had the audacity to imagine that when the time came I’d actually be signing 4 at once but that’s exactly what happened.
(3) I used to love hitchhiking around. I enjoyed the thrill of it, the danger, but also the freedom it offered. I’ve hitchhiked into downtown Los Angeles before, which was pretty freaky because a truck full of gang bangers tried to pick me up. I took off running and they started laughing and throwing beer bottles. Scary stuff. Generally though people were nice, telling me they’d hitchhiked when they were young too. It was like being admitted to a secret club for brave rebels who lived on the edge.
When I was 17 I hitchhiked from Los Angeles to Canada with a friend for fun, stopping along the way in Portland and Seattle. That’s the farthest I’ve ever gone by thumb. We met a lot of cool people, climbed Mount Hood, slept under the stars, and I even had a romance with a beautiful red head in Seattle that was my same age. I came this close to marching across Canada with an Indian tribe and coming down on the East Coast side in New York but I was homesick so I took the train back, going stir crazy in Santa Barbara and hopping off. I thumbed it back from there to home alone.
There were a lot of amazing stories on the road but there were scary moments on the trip too. We had a guy pick us up with a hunting knife jammed in his dashboard. I sat up front with my pack between him and me. My buddy sat in the back and I was so pissed at him for putting me up front. Turns out neither of the doors back there had handles to get out and the windows didn’t roll down. The guy then starts telling us how he was too violent and unstable to go to Vietnam and how he ran down a pedophile once with an 18 wheeler but no one dared to charge him for murder. He said he was headed up to meet his paramilitary buddies who lived off the grid in the Oregon wilderness. I was pissing myself but I didn’t want him to know it. I thought, ‘this is exactly why they tell you not to hitchhike. This is it. He’s going to murder us and wear our skin.’
An hour later he pulled over and let us out at our next stop. He waved and smiled as he sent us one our way. He couldn’t have been friendlier to be honest. I couldn’t believe it. Something tells me that guy is going to show up in one of my future stories. How can he not?
(4) I used to live in a broken down car and be what you might technically call homeless. It happened just after high school and didn’t last too long, but it made a permanent impact on me. I know just how quickly you can go from having everything to nothing. Friends helped me out during that time and I eventually worked my way out of it and put myself through college. I think it’s made me a tougher, more resourceful person, and also more compassionate in some ways.
(5) I’m a practicing Buddhist in the New Kadampa Tradition. Although I’ve always had an inclination towards Buddhism, I didn’t start practicing until in 2007, Shortly thereafter while looking for a church I discovered the works of Geshe Kelsang Gyatso and began to practice Modern Buddhism in the Mahayana tradition. It’s a pure lineage as passed down from Buddha made available to Westerners by his extraordinary kindness. While I’m far from the perfect example of a Buddhist I have found it’s brought a lot of peace and clarity to my life. There is so much wisdom in these teachings, enough to keep my busy for several lifetimes. They are amazing. If you look closely you will see elements of dharma woven into everything I write.
If you had to compare yourself to a character from ‘The Walking Dead’, who would you say you were most like and why?
Naturally I want to be Daryl. Who doesn’t want to be Daryl right? He’s strong. He’s loyal. He’s a survivor like me. And he looks badass on that chopper. Still some days I feel like I’m more like Glen than Daryl to be honest. Not to say that Glen is a bad character. He just doesn’t inspire the same kind of fandom that Daryl does. If I was a chick I’d want to be Michonne. You know how much I love the katana.
Go to: http://sharonstevensonauthor.com/auth... to read the rest of this interview, which includes an awesome extract from Devan's new book...
Devan Sagliani
Hi Devan, thanks for agreeing to being interviewed! So, to start can you give us a one sentence synopsis that best describes your life so far?
A bitter sweet tale of redemption and triumph comes to life as one man decides to fulfill his lifelong ambition to write novel length fiction…about zombies.
Can you tell us five random interesting facts about yourself?
(1) I hate wearing shoes and jewelry for that matter. I think it’s because I’m a native Southern Californian, born and raised in Los Angeles. The weather is nice enough that you never need to wear shoes unless you’re going to the gym or court or maybe a funeral. I even got married barefoot on the beach. I grew up loving the beach and surf culture. I’m happiest in a pair of board shorts, a T-shirt, and flip flops. I don’t like being too far from the ocean. It makes me anxious.
(2) When I was 5 I used my birthday money to buy a toy typewriter. From a very early age all I’ve ever wanted to be was a novelist. I remember writing a short story when I was in grade school, a horror story about a man trapped on an island with a monster coming to kill him. It seemed totally normal at the time but I’m sure it set some bells off for my teacher. Still the people in my life weren’t very supportive of the idea of me writing books for a living. They told me I’d starve to death if I tried to go that route but they couldn’t kill the dream growing inside of me. My whole life I’ve fantasized about what it would be like to sign a book deal. I never had the audacity to imagine that when the time came I’d actually be signing 4 at once but that’s exactly what happened.
(3) I used to love hitchhiking around. I enjoyed the thrill of it, the danger, but also the freedom it offered. I’ve hitchhiked into downtown Los Angeles before, which was pretty freaky because a truck full of gang bangers tried to pick me up. I took off running and they started laughing and throwing beer bottles. Scary stuff. Generally though people were nice, telling me they’d hitchhiked when they were young too. It was like being admitted to a secret club for brave rebels who lived on the edge.
When I was 17 I hitchhiked from Los Angeles to Canada with a friend for fun, stopping along the way in Portland and Seattle. That’s the farthest I’ve ever gone by thumb. We met a lot of cool people, climbed Mount Hood, slept under the stars, and I even had a romance with a beautiful red head in Seattle that was my same age. I came this close to marching across Canada with an Indian tribe and coming down on the East Coast side in New York but I was homesick so I took the train back, going stir crazy in Santa Barbara and hopping off. I thumbed it back from there to home alone.
There were a lot of amazing stories on the road but there were scary moments on the trip too. We had a guy pick us up with a hunting knife jammed in his dashboard. I sat up front with my pack between him and me. My buddy sat in the back and I was so pissed at him for putting me up front. Turns out neither of the doors back there had handles to get out and the windows didn’t roll down. The guy then starts telling us how he was too violent and unstable to go to Vietnam and how he ran down a pedophile once with an 18 wheeler but no one dared to charge him for murder. He said he was headed up to meet his paramilitary buddies who lived off the grid in the Oregon wilderness. I was pissing myself but I didn’t want him to know it. I thought, ‘this is exactly why they tell you not to hitchhike. This is it. He’s going to murder us and wear our skin.’
An hour later he pulled over and let us out at our next stop. He waved and smiled as he sent us one our way. He couldn’t have been friendlier to be honest. I couldn’t believe it. Something tells me that guy is going to show up in one of my future stories. How can he not?
(4) I used to live in a broken down car and be what you might technically call homeless. It happened just after high school and didn’t last too long, but it made a permanent impact on me. I know just how quickly you can go from having everything to nothing. Friends helped me out during that time and I eventually worked my way out of it and put myself through college. I think it’s made me a tougher, more resourceful person, and also more compassionate in some ways.
(5) I’m a practicing Buddhist in the New Kadampa Tradition. Although I’ve always had an inclination towards Buddhism, I didn’t start practicing until in 2007, Shortly thereafter while looking for a church I discovered the works of Geshe Kelsang Gyatso and began to practice Modern Buddhism in the Mahayana tradition. It’s a pure lineage as passed down from Buddha made available to Westerners by his extraordinary kindness. While I’m far from the perfect example of a Buddhist I have found it’s brought a lot of peace and clarity to my life. There is so much wisdom in these teachings, enough to keep my busy for several lifetimes. They are amazing. If you look closely you will see elements of dharma woven into everything I write.
If you had to compare yourself to a character from ‘The Walking Dead’, who would you say you were most like and why?
Naturally I want to be Daryl. Who doesn’t want to be Daryl right? He’s strong. He’s loyal. He’s a survivor like me. And he looks badass on that chopper. Still some days I feel like I’m more like Glen than Daryl to be honest. Not to say that Glen is a bad character. He just doesn’t inspire the same kind of fandom that Daryl does. If I was a chick I’d want to be Michonne. You know how much I love the katana.
Go to: http://sharonstevensonauthor.com/auth... to read the rest of this interview, which includes an awesome extract from Devan's new book...
