C.B. Calsing's Blog, page 8

Book Review: Hold Back the Tide by Melinda Salisbury

Hold Back the Tide by Melinda Salisbury starts off as a thriller: Alva lives with her father, and everyone knows her father killed her mother several years before. Alva is trying to survive long enough to save money and move away from him. Every day, she fears she may be his next victim. The story is set in mid-nineteenth century Scotland, and when you get the audiobook, the narrator is Scottish, which goes a long way to making the story very atmospheric and engaging.

Eventually, however, we learn that this is not just a thriller about a girl living with her murderous father, but a vampire novel! Now, I have been a fan of vampires in literature since I was in middle school, and a lot of the time, I am sort of bored by new interpretations because I've read a lot of vampire stories and written a few of my own. The last one to get me excited was The Strain, both as a book and a television series. Hold Back the Tide got me interested again, the way The Strain did. I was excited to learn how the main character and her friends would combat the invaders to save their village and how Alva went from being an outsider to someone who was trusted and listened to.

Melinda Salisbury did such a good job with this book that I went and checked out another of hers right away, The Sin Eater's Daughter. I got both of them free using my library's Libby app. You should do the same.

Review: The Beast Is an Animal by Peternelle van Arsdale

The Beast Is an Animal by Paternelle van Arsdale is a compelling tale with pretty dark overtones. Alys is left orphaned by "soul eaters," twin sisters who float about the countryside with the promise of rest for the weary. Alys and the other surviving children of the village are taken to a new village, where they are forced to work nights, protecting the sheep and the citizens from the threat of the soul eaters. Alys learns as she grows that she is different than the other children and the citizens of her adoptive town, and she is forced to strike out on her own to set things right.

I particularly love this book because of how it plays off the ideas of what is truly good and what is truly evil, and how each individual can decide that for themselves. It's a good message for young readers, that right and wrong can be subjective and just because someone is in power doesn't make them good. The world-building and atmosphere of the book were also well done, so all in all it is a very satisfying read. According to the author's page on Amazon, this is being developed into a feature film, which I am very much looking forward to. I highly recommend this book to readers of all ages, though it is marketed as YA.

I got the audiobook of this using my library card and the Libby app. You should do the same!

Book Review: The Bone Houses

The Bone Houses by Emily Lloyd-Jones mixes folklore with fantasy, horror, and young-adult romance. Aderyn is the daughter of a grave digger, and she's one of the few people who believes in, and deals with, the bone houses, essentially the reanimated dead. Recently, they've started leaving the forest and terrorizing the village. Aderyn, with the help of a mapmaker from the capital Ellis, head into the forest to break the curse and free her village from their violence. Along the way, the relationship between the two grows as they confront their pasts and what they've believed true for their entire lives.

I feel so fortunate that I managed to download this audiobook right after House of Salt and Sorrow because I can give two glowing reviews back to back. I LOVED this book too. The heroine is not traditionally beautiful, but she is strong and comfortable in her body, and she makes her living in a traditionally male work, digging graves. She is an awesome role model for young readers. The hero has an old injury that prevents him from doing some things traditionally assigned to men, but he is kind and smart. Together they make a great team and work to save their small corner of the world. Plus, when was the last time you read a book where a dead goat was one of your favorite characters? In addition to the great writing, the narrator was spot on with different characters, pronunciation, and emotion. I would recommend The Bone Houses to anyone who loves a good zombie adventure love story mixed with some Welsh-inspired folklore.

Writing Article Posted

 I have a writing article posted over at Readers' Favorite. Check it out if you'd like to find a new way to motivate yourself to write. This method works for me, and helps me also keep track of how much I accomplish each day.

During my morning pages, where I review my tasks, set my intention for the day, and reflect on the previous day, I'll look at my score and think of why I got that and what I could do to improve it. I've found a low-scoring day leaves me feeling a little down as far as my writing goes. Striving to meet my bench mark, or beat a high score, keeps me working.

Book Review: House of Salt and Sorrows

Erin A. Craig’s House of Salt and Sorrows tells the story of the Thaumus family from the point of view of one of the twelve sisters, Annaleigh. At the beginning of the story, her mother and several of her sisters have already died, and the remaining sisters are burying another while trying to adjust to a new stepmother in the house. The circumstances around the most recent sister’s death are suspicious, and while there is talk of a family curse, Annaleigh attempts to uncover the truth about what really happened to her sister. During this, she deals with the competing feelings for her childhood friend, Fisher, and a mysterious newcomer to their island home, Cassius.
To be honest, my summary doesn’t even do justice to the rich, intertwined plot of this book. I loved it. It is mysterious, opulent, dark, romantic… It borrowed from fairy tales and Poe-esque plots and settings. It ticked so many boxes for me. I loved that I only figured out a few of the twists moments before they were revealed in the storyline, which means I was captivated but also satisfied throughout. I can’t wait to read the author’s other works. This book is entirely appropriate for upper grade advanced readers all the way through to adults, even though it is categorized as young adult. I’m a firm believer that just because the narrator is a teen doesn’t mean that teens will be the only readers who enjoy the story.
By the way, I listened to the audiobook version, and the narrator did an excellent job creating the right characters and moods with her voice. I thoroughly enjoyed it.  Check it out from your library through the Libby app!

Open to Editing Gigs!

I am currently open to new editing gigs and can promise a super quick turnaround on manuscripts up to 100,000 words. Check out the page on this site to learn about my rates and other information. Using the pen name G.G. Royale, I wrote and edited for Loose Id for over a decade. My specialty is spicy romance; the higher the heat level, the better, but I also want to make sure you have a good solid story line and characters your readers will love. I can help you create your owns style guide as we work together (if you don't already have one). I have the heart of the teacher, and my goal is to help you polish your work for publication or submission to agents.

Current endeavors

I have two current endeavors. 
Hit up bigislandbigeats.com or search your favorite podcast platform for Big Island Big Eats, the Hawaii Island Food Show.
Also,  head on over to rewriteyourmoney.blogspot.com or search your favorite podcast platform for Rewrite Your Money Story, narrative therapy and financial capability.

Review of A.L Sirous's "Jersey Ghouls"

Review
Make sure to read to the end for buy links and contests.
I love pulpy, trope-filled horror novels that are tinged with a bit of humor. And you get that right from the beginning with Jersey Ghouls. It starts with a blonde in a pith helmet in the jungle. And it all stacks up from there. You've got a small town and the trope of returning to that small town after many years absence. Tandem threats to the well being of the town, the centipedes and a big storm. A past-his-prime ex-cop protagonist. Power outages. Blocked highways...
There were some twists and turns, and some inventive characters that made this a really fun read. I unexpectedly loved the character of Mason the most. A self-aware titular "ghoul," he adds a sort of perspective stories like this are often missing.

I was also fairly impressed with the editing. A lot of indie and self-published stories lately have been so full of errors they were unreadable. This, however, only had a few errors that didn't really distract from the read, save for the name-change of a dog midchapter.

All in all I would definitely recommend this book for an entertaining take on this particular theme. Think Slither or The Crazies and you won't be far off. 

JERSEY GHOULSA.L. SiroisGenre: Horror
Publisher: Azure Spider Publications
Publication Date: June 15, 2018A disabled cop and his ex battle giant centipedes and ghouls in a small riverside community that's about to be flooded out.The rain-drenched riverside town of Sherwood's Landing, NJ is invaded by a species of centipede from Central America armed with psychedelic venom. Former cop Lafferty "Hoff" Hoffman and his ex-girlfriend Beatrice St. John are swept into terror as their neighbors are enslaved by a centipede-generated group mind. Those remaining free must band together to survive the onslaught of ravenous ghouls.Add to GoodreadsPurchase LinksAvailable on Amazon.comBook Tour ScheduleFollow the book tour from July 11 - 24, 2018.Join us and visit each tour stop daily and discover more features, excerpts, reviews, interviews, fun facts and more! To check the latest tour schedule, visit the Jersey Ghouls Book Page at Book Unleashed. About A.L. Sirois
A.L. Sirois is a writer, developmental editor, graphic artist and a performing musician. His publication career began in 1973 with the appearance of the short-short story "War Baby" in Fantastic (It would be called "flash fiction" nowadays.). He has gone on to have fiction in Isaac Asimov's Science Fiction Magazine, Fantastic, Amazing Stories, and Thema, and online at Electric Spec, Mystery Weekly, Every Day Fiction and Flash Fiction Online, among other publications. His story "In the Conservatory," from Thema, was nominated for the Pushcart Prize. In addition to JERSEY GHOULS, other Sirois works include a children's book, DINOSAUR DRESS UP (Tambourine Press / William Morrow), a graphic novel, THE ENDLESS INCIDENT (2014), and a fantasy novel, THE BOHEMIAN MAGICIAN, published in 2017.As an artist, he has hundreds of drawings, paintings and illustrations to his credit. Al has contributed comic art for DC, Marvel, and Charlton, and has scripted for Warren Publications. He wrote and drew "Bugs in the System" for witzend #12, the famous comics fanzine started by MAD artist Wally Wood. He lives in Rockingham County, North Carolina, with his wife and occasional collaborator, author Grace Marcus. Together they are writing a Young Adult novel set in ancient Egypt.Social media links: Facebook | TwitterGiveawayWIN FREE BOOK AND MORE Prizes up for grabs:1. Print Copy of Jersey Ghouls by A.L. Sirois
2. Color Rough of the book cover, painted in acrylics on illustration board
3. Drawing of the book cover on tracing paper
4. Drawing of the book cover on layout bond paperContest runs from June 15 - July 24, 2018.a Rafflecopter giveawayIn partnership with Book Unleashed Blog Tours

When Pie is Punishment

I've joined a lot of homesteading and pioneering groups on Facebook recently in an effort to get motivated to work my 1.1 acres here in Hawaii. A recent post had a comment which started, "Take your favorite sour cream and raisin pie recipe..." I laughed aloud because, who has a favorite sour cream and raisin pie recipe? I have a favorite peanut butter pie recipe, and a favorite key lime pie recipe. I also have a favorite apple pie recipe. But sour cream and raisin?

Now, this sour cream and rains pie is a pie with which I am not familiar. I assumed, correctly, that it had to be some regional favorite. I also assumed that it would have to have booze in it.

I was wrong about the latter. Which made me wonder, why would anyone eat a raisin pie without booze in it? It feels like a pie that is made to punish you rather than be enjoyed. Like, oh, you want pie? Fine, but it's going to have raisins in it. I viewed several slices online, and I thought to myself, now if those were blueberries, maybe we'd have something.

But raisins?

I don't really like raisins. If my grapes are going to be old, they'd better be in wine.

Review of "The Spitting Post"

I love stories which are reminiscent of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and The Wonderful Wizard of Oz,  where a hero or heroine is whisked off to another land and you're not entirely sure whether what's happening is a hallucination, coma dream, or reality.

While not a children's book, Jason R. Barden's The Spitting Post is firmly rooted in that tradition. Our main character (or so we are led to believe) is in a car accident and wakes up in another world. He then embarks on a quest to find the love of his life, The Green Maiden, at a location she has specified. Somehow our main character has inhabited this world before, though he has no memory of it.

The strength in this story lays with the gruesome details and imaginative antagonists the author developed to inhabit his imaginary world. The protagonist is propelled along on a series of quests, and this is a plot definitely driven by events, not by character development.

My three biggest complaints are as follows: I never really connected with the narrator. Some of the extensive song lyric inclusions seemed like an attempt to get word count up and didn't really lend to the story. Finally, I read up to the shaggy dog ending and it hit me like a brick wall, and not in a good way. The ending could have used some rethinking and a polish, since the reader does not get a real sense of growth or change in the final perspective.

Part Secret Window, and part Tarnsman of Gor this book draws on a lot of source material that readers will find familiar and satisfying.