Emily Stone's Blog, page 2
July 7, 2019
Three things cannot long stay hidden: the sun, the moon and the truth. – Buddha
Her discovery of an old silver locket hidden in the attic prompts Laura to delve into the history of the house and its former inhabitants. But the locket is more than just a pretty trinket. Under its influence Laura’s sleep becomes increasingly troubled; her dreams are haunted by the young girl who once wore the locket and her waking hours by a sinister old woman in a brown coat who seems to be following her.
Laura engages the services of a landscape gardener, Tom, to help her restore the old kitchen garden at the back of the house. Their work is hindered by a series of disturbing and unexplained incidences and when Tom tries to fell an old damaged oak tree he is almost killed.
Then a violent storm brings an ancient oak crashing to the ground and reveals a tiny human skeleton tangled in its roots. Convinced that her dreams and the discovery of the bones are connected, Laura goes in search of the truth. But the secret that has been hidden for so long is not to be given up willingly.
I was excited to read this book because the mystery of the locket really sucked me in. It begins with Laura who inherited a home from a relative that she didn’t know she had. Enlisting the help of a local gardener she brings the grounds back to their former glory and eventually learns he is the grandson of the original gardener for the property. While repairing the property and closing the estate, she finds an old locket hidden in the floor of an upstairs room and wonders about the person who put it there. She begins to have dreams about a young girl, her family and their housekeeper. After some research she discovered that the family she had been dreaming of, existed and had sold the home to her relative. She continues to have dreams that portrayed a secret that had been hidden for decades. I felt she described her characters well and a sense of despair and foreboding was tangled up in the excitement of a forbidden love. The book is well written and I enjoyed it so much that I read it in a day.
July 6, 2019
Painting with a pen…
The author of this book of poetry has a flair with words. Like Leonardo with his paintbrush, she eloquently expresses herself and takes the reader on a journey of yearning and love. I could hear her soul singing about missing a lover, the loss of time or youth and even the loss of a parent. There were some that brought out such waves of emotions that I was surprised by them. There are many that made me smile and some that brought a tear to my eye. I hope that others get an opportunity to lose themselves in her soul’s palette.
Paradise Island anyone?
As soon as she lands Evangelina perceives that there is something special about the island. Something other than the indescribable views and luxury accommodations. Little by little she learns things about herself that she never even dreamed about.
Will she find what she has been missing her entire life?
This steamy tropical paranormal romance will leave you feeling satisfied in every which way possible
Incubus Soulmate by Alexandra Ortigas
If you have time for a quickie, then grab a copy of this book. Its a paranormal romance but instead of the usual vampires and werewolves, we have an Incubus and a mortal woman who has trouble keeping the men in her life. She has an extremely high sex drive and when they can’t keep up with her they lose interest. The latest was her fiance who bailed after she had already purchased the honeymoon and planned the wedding. So instead of cancelling, she decided use the honeymoon paradise as a vacation and went alone. There she realizes that the island isn’t what it seems. It is a vacation spot but designed for couples looking for a place to explore their sexuality with minimal rules or codes. She roams about the island, and experiences strange but erotic encounters. She eventually dreams about her soulmate and becomes aware of her true self.
I loved the description and feeling in the book and enjoyed the direction the author took the story. It was unusual and new. The only bad thing, is that like Evangelina’s unquenchable desire, I wanted more after reading this book. I can only hope there will soon be a second to continue the saga.
Gotta have faith!
As told through the eyes of a loving father, Patchwork Kid invites everyone into a moving portrayal of his son’s unrelenting fight with a life-threatening sickness. Noah was born with an undetected medical condition that would later determine the course of his young life. When his world later became bullied by a sudden crisis, life-saving efforts rescued him from certain death. A frightened boy and his family were left to face the unknown future with a diagnosis of short bowel syndrome and the daunting reality living with this illness brings.
A boy shackled with the restricting irons of medical crisis chose to rise above his circumstances. He wielded his sharp wit and his unwavering humor to battle the odds with survival as his mission. With pounding waves of ongoing health challenges, Noah eventually became face to face with his most desperate hour and embraced a “transplant life” that required every bit of his faith. The Gift of Life rescued him and Noah would never be the same again.
You are invited to experience this amazing display of love, immovable faith, and strength of family. This transplant story reminds those who are captured in the stormy seas of life that hope never dies.
“With the delicate fabric of two lives stitched together into one, Noah became…our Patchwork Kid.”
Patchwork Kid: A Boy’s Transplant Journey of Hope through the Midst of Tragedy
What lengths would you go through to live? What would you do to save the life of someone you love? I think most of us would do anything to save the person we love, but how long would you fight the odds to live? This book brought these questions to my mind and made me wonder about my own tenacity to survive. The name of the book in question is The Patchwork Kid: A Boy’s Transplant Journey of Hope through the Midst of Tragedy by Rodger R. Ziegler. As the title suggests, it is the tragic story of a father detailing the life of his son, who from birth has had to face struggles that would make an adult want to throw in the towel. It follows the Ziegler’s battles with the illnesses that their son Noah faced and their determination to overcome all obstacles. Noah was born with gastroschisis, and after having surgery to put his intestines into his abdominal cavity, he stayed in the hospital for months recovering and eventually was able to go home and grew to be a normal boy.
Tragedy struck when he was nine and he became critically ill. Noah was complaining of a tummy ache and had a fever. He began to vomit blood so his father rushed him to the hospital while his mother stayed with the other kids until a sitter could get there. The first hospital could not determine the cause of the vomiting and recommended he be taken to another hospital nearby. When his condition continued to deteriorate, he was flown to the nearest hospital in the area with the facility to treat him. He almost died on the flight when his blood pressure dropped. His parents prayed and hoped to find an answer to save their child’s life. Once there, he had to undergo exploratory surgery to see if they could determine the source of the illness. What they found was a midgut volvulus, or a twist in his intestines right where the main blood supply fed his intestines. They had to remove ninety-five percent of his intestines due to necrosis. He would require a Jujunostomy and survive on TPN or IV nutrition mostly since he now had no intestines to absorb nutrients. The book describes their day to day life and the care and constant vigilance needed by his mother.
After being on the IV nutrients for a couple of years his liver began to fail. Roger explains the frequent hospital visits and eventually being placed on the transplant list. Noah was then referred to the best hospital in the country for liver and intestine transplants for children in Pittsburgh. He made several trips to this hospital before having to be admitted on a permanent basis until the organs became available. The stress that the family had to endure not only with the diagnosis, the daily care, and then having to be split up while Noah waited for his new organs was intense. There were several times that I cried over the decisions that they had to make for Noah and their family. Their faith through it all never wavered. They trusted that God had a plan and prayed for continued hope and strength.
Because of this book, I have a more profound respect for the doctors, nurses and surgeons that cared not only for this boy but his family. That is what it means to treat the patient not the disease. I also have to tip my hat to the supporting churches and families that helped them in their time of need. Its so easy to see all the negative in the world, but his book reminded me that there are still good people out there and to not lose faith in God or humanity. I admire Mr. Ziegler’s sense of humor throughout the whole book. He tried to lift his wife and son’s spirits with humor when he could and even in his writing he threw in funny statements to catch the reader off guard and to lighten the darkness of that situation. I enjoyed his writing style and recommend reading the book. Don’t forget to give your loved ones a squeeze when you are done.
June 15, 2019
Update
Sorry I’ve been gone for a few weeks, but I am gaining momentum on book two of the Lincoln County Medical Examiner Series and have been writing like a mad Oliveoil. I have hit 14,771 words and cannot wait to get this next book in the hands of my readers. I will continue to provide updates and book reviews when time permits. Hope you have a great weekend!
May 18, 2019
Happiness is a direction, not a place. — Sydney J. Harris
Are you bored with the daily grind?
Tired of feeling exhausted at the end of the day?
Do you wish you could feel happier in your everyday life?
In Turn your Happiness ON, you will find the most powerful, scientifically proven, simple strategies to increase your feelings of happiness right now.
What would you say if I told you that I found a compass for happiness, an
actual instruction manual for all areas of your life? Your response would probably be an eye roll,
or maybe a cheeky response like “I also have ocean front property to sell you
in Oklahoma.” All joking aside, I had
the privilege to be able to read Norma Nikutowski’s Turn Your Happiness On and
was pulled in by the simplicity and candidness of her writing and real-life scenarios.
She provides uncomplicated advice on how to enhance your life and find lasting
happiness. Each area of your life is covered, from relationships with family,
to career, dreams and self-doubts. She included activities to get your mind
working to look beyond your narrow view of your situation and to find a way to
live your best life. I found her advice helpful and will be incorporating it in
my life immediately. I feel this book
would be a great gift for a high school or college graduate, to get them started
on the right path for a happy and enriched life. So, do yourself a favor and take some time to
read this book and work through the questions in each chapter. Your future self
will thank you.
Follow the crimson dots…
Hey I’m back with another great read! To shake things up I decided to check out short stories for some quick entertainment. I chose Blood Drops by WB Welch because I had heard good things about it and decided to buy it. I was not disappointed. There are several short stories to awaken your imagination and send it into overdrive. As I mentioned on the show, it’s like all the weird little thoughts that get caught in the drain of your subconscious get scooped up and re-purposed into a brief delicious bite of bloody fear. I love a good horror story that will let my mind wonder on all of the possibilities. These short stories are just enough to get that jump start, and in some of them, leaves you to come to your own conclusions. While I liked them all, I especially liked one about a serial killer who learned how to kill and dismember from none other than Jeffrey Dahmer. It describes how Dahmer had attempted to kill him and the narrator admitted he had wanted to kill him as well. They started living together while Dahmer taught him his art of killing and disposing of the bodies. The main character continued his killing spree after narrowly avoiding arrest with Dahmer only to be caught later by an undercover police sting. The second story I enjoyed was about a woman on house arrest that goes out to check her mail and steps into the grass, only to have chunks taken from her flesh. She tries to figure out what is in the grass that is snacking on her, only to fall and have numerous bite marks covering her legs. She gets back inside and then decides to head to her neighbor’s house to see if they know what is going on. She is knocking on the door and is blindsided by a tree branch, grabbed and devoured by the nearby tree. I enjoyed the short stories and letting my imagination off of its leash for a little while. I hope you decide to give this book a try, and let me know what you think!!
April 28, 2019
A detective, a priest, and a demon walk into a bar……
What if Paul Farrington, a veteran fixer for a shady corporation, found himself targeted for elimination just as he was trying to finance his daughter’s Ivy League education? How far would he go to provide for his family and keep them safe? What if detectives Frank Mallory and Alberto “Gunner” Gennaro were forced to play catch up with a killer who may or may not be a demon and who leaves trails of Dantesque murders, each one occurring further south in Manhattan and deeper into his version of The Inferno? How could these situations be connected? How long can the detectives stick to strict police procedural facts when confronted with increasingly bizarre events, especially once they begin invading Mallory’s private life? And how does he find a balance between his rejection of the case’s alleged demonic elements and his strong desire to believe his dying father’s visions of long dead relatives beckoning him to heaven? When must a detective reconsider what exists outside man’s law?
It sounds like the set up to a really great joke,
right? This book is no joke. The City of
Woe by Christopher Ryan is a wild ride down the rabbit hole with two of New
York City’s finest, on the trail of a serial killer. The main character Mallory, a
second-generation detective of Irish Catholic descent, and his partner Gunner
take the lead on the murder of a youth that had been at the Who concert in Madison
Square Garden. The murderer left his thoughts written out on index cards, at
the murder scene. As the detectives
follow procedure to try to solve the case, it gets weird. The killer manages to
stay one step ahead of them, and continues to kill while taunting the police.
The killer plans his kills and links them to Daunte’s Inferno all while leaving
clues for Mallory to chase down. The trail leads them to a local priest who had
ties to a troubled man Mallory believed was the killer. Father Carry had befriended
the young man to monitor him for demon possession. The priest tried to assist
Mallory and Gunner in their investigation convinced that the demon residing in
the disabled man had jumped to a new host. The killer begins to make things
personal by leaving evidence at Mallory’s home which causes Mallory to close
ranks to protect his family. In the middle of the investigation, Mallory’s
world is shaken by the imminent death of his father. Mallory had to choose between the
investigation and his family and chose the investigation at his father’s
urging.
The book was a
suspenseful read, with never a dull moment. I enjoyed the banter between
Mallory and Gunner and their relationship felt natural. The turmoil that
Mallory feels about the Catholic church and God, in general, is relatable and
Ryan even captured the Catholic guilt that seems to be instilled in us at a
young age. I like that he included the
priest and the exorcism rites as it completed the fight between good and evil.
The attention to detail that he had during the investigation was great and kept
the story moving and interesting. I will definitely be reading the subsequent books
in the series to see what Mallory and Gunner are up to next. I hope you get a chance to follow Mallory and
Gunner in their investigations as well.
Thanks for checking out my reviews and don’t forget to follow me on Facebook or my webpage!
March 30, 2019
Karma is a Bitch.
According to Merriam-Webster, the definition of karma is the force generated by a person’s actions held in Hinduism and Buddhism to perpetuate transmigration and in its ethical consequences to determine the nature of the person’s next existence. But I prefer my definition – the way I make people pay for their action, good or bad. I bring karma much sooner than the next life to those who deserve it. I am taking fate into my own hands, and it just might kill me, but then it’ll be what I deserve too.
How many times have you wished you could be the instrument of karma or at
least be able to witness when people receive their just deserts? I admit I am
guilty of wishing to be a fly on the wall when the moment of judgement hits. If
you ever had that urge this book would satisfy it.
It’s the story of Karma Sandborn who lives up to her name and her parent’s legacy by helping those that are deserving and metering out justice in cases where the system failed. She begins by helping a lesbian couple who recently adopted their niece and nephew after the death of the children’s parents. Karma anonymously bestowed financial blessings on the struggling family. To balance the scales, she followed the headlines of the case of a drug dealer that ordered the hits of five people, three of them children. The hitman was sloppy and it resulted in his capture. He then rolled on his boss. However, the lab tech that analyzed the hitman’s DNA from the scene was accused of tampering with the evidence in light of her relationship with the detective of the case. The DNA results were dismissed, the hitman retracted his confession and would later end up dead. The charges against the dealer were dropped and he was freed. Karma decided that it was her duty to deliver the justice that he escaped. The story is fast moving, and the main character is tenacious in her desire to make things right for the people that drug dealer Poppock murdered. Her struggles with anxiety, and following the plan to the letter give the character depth and make her easily relatable. I would recommend this book and hope you have trouble putting it down like I did.
February 24, 2019
Becoming….
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I was looking for something a little outside of my normal reading genre, when Becoming by Michelle Obama was mentioned. I was instantly intrigued because while I greatly revered the former FLOTUS, I was ashamed to admit I knew nothing more of her beginnings other than she was from Chicago. What I knew of her was what her presence on TV provided and the information that the news filtered and spun depending on who was reporting. I had assumed, albeit falsely, that because she was in the public eye that she had come from a wealthy family with affluence. I realize how horribly wrong I was to make such assumptions. I know that all celebrities and politicians are people with ideas and opinions all based on their own life experiences, and we never know their struggles unless they decide to share them. I didn’t consciously think about where our politicians or leaders come from, but learning about Michelle’s struggles and victories made me admire her so much more.
I decided to download the audio book so I could listen to it on my way to work. I enjoyed listening to Michelle narrate her life in her beautiful melodious voice, beginning when she was a young child living on Euclid Ave in Southside Chicago. She described how they rented their upstairs apartment from her great aunt who taught piano lessons below. Her family dynamics consisted of her father who worked for the water plant, her mother who was a homemaker, and her older brother who was not only a good student but a talented basketball player. She shared her memories about her school and how she worked hard to make good grades and excell. She was selected to be in advanced classes in elementary school, which allowed her to learn independently and fueled her competitiveness. She went on to go the prestigious Whitney Young High School because of her hard work. From there set her sights for Princeton, following in her brother’s footsteps. She expressed frustration over her interview for Princeton, where she was told that she may not be Princeton material. That only fueled her determination to succeed.
Michelle also relayed fond memories of her youthful friends and I was surprised to learn that she was good friends with the daughter of the Rev Jesse Jackson. She expressed that by hanging out with Santita Jackson she realized that did not enjoy the uncertainty of politics. She went on to describe how she went on to Harvard to study law and enjoyed working with people in the legal aid department. She eventually went to work for a law firm going over legal memos and advertising scripts. This is where she met her future husband and the future POTUS. She lovingly described her first impressions of Barack with his thin frame, large smile and pointed out that he was late for their first meeting. She was to be his mentor while he worked for the law firm as a summer associate. They began as colleagues, became friends, and eventually their friendship blossomed into love. It was endearing to hear Michelle talk about their budding romance and her concerns about work propriety and eventually overcoming the long distance obstacle that resulted from Barack leaving at the end of the summer to go back Cambridge. I enjoyed listening to her tell the sweet story of his proposal.
There were also times in the book that brought me to tears. I cried when Michelle bared her anguish at witnessing her father’s battle with multiple sclerosis and his eventual passing. I empathized with her shock and loss of her beloved grandfather who brought Jazz music into her life at a young age. There was also her friend’s death from cancer at just 26 years old and which forced her to think of her life and the contributions that she wanted to make to society. Michelle made changes in her life that would help the minorities in Chicago. She moved away from practicing law and worked for the Chicago city government as an Assistant to the Mayor and then the Assistant Commissioner of Planning and Development. Eventually she gave up the city office job for the meager earnings of a not for profit agency that was dedicated to young adult leadership development called Public Allies. Mrs. Obama continued to fight to make lives better for minorities and the poor by working tirelessly for the University of Chicago to reach out to the surrounding community to encourage them to look at the University for their higher education. She also worked at the University of Chicago Hospital to try to better the treatment of low income and minority patients who did not have ready access to health care.
The book detailed her life not only before the Presidency of Barack but also detailed how their life was impacted by his rise into politics. She described the long hours Barack would put in while in the Senate and the missed meals, and sacred minutes they shared when he was able to return home. She spoke honestly of their struggles with this strain on their relationship and the counseling that helped them both. Michelle described the difficulty that she had becoming pregnant and the use of fertility drugs and IVF. She had grieved a miscarriage and had the realization that it was not an uncommon occurrence, just one that was not often spoken of. Luckily she had good friends that were supportive and could also relate. She celebrated the births of her two beautiful daughters and described their personalities as they began to grow older.
After Barack won the Presidency, she relived moving into the White House. She gave an inside perspective of what it was like to pick out the things that her family would need in their quarters. As she spoke she painted a picture of life in the White House that only a select few could ever witness. She was adamant about her girls growing up and being independent and refused to let staff make their beds and pick up their room. She fought with the security detail about balance for the girls to be able to be kids and do normal kid things. Michelle was also extremely concerned with the health of children of America and began to push for better food in schools and more exercise for today’s youth. She even started a garden on the White House lawn that would provide fresh food for the family and staff. Michelle worked hard to make life better for children. She fought for better opportunities for girls not just in America but also in other countries.
There was so much in this book that I loved and I couldn’t begin to cover everything. I applaud Michelle for her tenacity to overcome her meager background and the determination to destroy the barriers that she faced by not only being black, but being a black woman. She admitted the sting of pain that it caused her, because she ultimately cared what people thought, however she did not let it stop her from shining. I whole-heartedly believe that all young girls should read this book and see what a strong, intelligent, black woman really is. Instead of idealizing pop stars or movie stars, she is the example that we should be setting for our girls, of any color.
