Sheila Deeth's Blog, page 15

How dark is dark?

Darkest Before Dawn is the newest book in the Sergeant Windflower series, written by Canadian author Mike Martin, and coming soon... Since I'm hooked on mysteries set in different places, I just thought I'd give it a shout-out.



Darkest Before the Dawn by Mike Martin, Mystery, 280 pp.


Title: DARKEST BEFORE THE DAWNAuthor: Mike MartinPublisher: Ottawa Press and PublishingPages: 280Genre: Mystery

Darkest Before the Dawn is the latest adventure of Sgt. Winston Windflower, a Mountie who finds himse...

Is Cleveland cursed? Myths, Legends and Numbers

Today I'm delighted to welcome author Marty Roppelt to my blog with a game of myth, legends and numbers - that seems to hit most of my favorite things, though I must admit, I'm English--baseball will never be my game! However, you're welcome to try to convert me, Marty.

MORTAL FOE'S GAME OF MYTH, LEGEND AND NUMBERS

The novel Mortal Foe has the game of baseball as one of its themes. The game might turn some potential readers off. I can understand that.
It's been said that baseball is a game of nu...

Looking for some female protagonists?

Sometimes I feel like a bit-player in my life, as events outside my control rock the boat and threaten to engulf me. Maybe that's why I like to read at least a few novels with powerful female protagonists, just to remind myself I can steer the ship. (In fact, the protagonist in one of these novels is a pirate captain, more surely steering her own vessel!) And maybe it's why, as a child, I despaired of "girl's books" and devoured all my brothers' books instead, all the while telling myself sto...

I need to read children's books to stay sane!

Aghghghg! My book-world is quietly falling apart, as publishers change and close, and even self-publishers prove to be built on shifting sands. Createspace is going to merge with KDP (logical - they're both Amazon) and "some" of my books won't work, but no one will tell me which. Or was that just a general warning sent to everyone. Or... whatever, it caused unhappy (unproductive) hours researching "stuff." But those were hours when I was meant to be researching public domain images for re-rel...

Chilled Spines anyone?

Today I'm delighted to welcome the spine-chilling author, Nancy Gray to my blog, as she tours the internet with a cool scary book for middle graders, The Scarecrow. But what draws an author toward writing horror... and horror for kids? Here's Nancy's answer to the question:


Why Horror?
When I was asked to write a blog about my work, I honestly wasn’t sure where to begin. So I started thinking about questions people have asked me before, and one of the things that seem to surprise people when I...

Plotter? Pantser? Yes and yes, perhaps?

Today I'm delighted to welcome author Dan Jolley to my blog, with new about Gray widow, walk, web and war. If you look at those covers, you'll the spider-sense in these cool scifi, fantasy, superhero novels. Plus there's a female protagonist. I'm hooked and eager to read. But I'm also curious, so I've asked Dan:

 Do trilogies start with all three books planned out, or do they grow as you write them?

The answer is... yes and yes.
The Gray Widow Trilogy is a good example. I technically got st...

1984, Brave New World, and Narnia... What's you brave new world?

Today I'm delighted to welcome Stephen Zimmer back to my blog. He's written lots of scifi, swords and sorcery, fantasy and even steampunk--you can find my reviews of Heart of a Lion and Thunder Horizon by clicking on the links--two books that I really love! But today he's touring with something a little different...


Dream of the Navigator Blog Tour
August 15-22, 2018
I've heard this new young-adult release described as "1984 and Brave New World meets Narnia."  So, of course, I had to ask th...

Boxed or Trained? Where does Steampunk Inspiration come from?

Today I'm delighted to welcome JL Mulvihill to my blog, author of the Steel Roots series which began, not so many years ago, with the wonderful Boxcar Baby (click for my review) I'm eager to "meet" her here... and eager to read more of her series. (Will someone please invent time travel so I can fit more reading hours into the day!) So here she is, ready and waiting to tell us about inspiration, steampunk, history, fantasy, and, of course, trains. If you ever dreamed of growing up to be...

Is it the mystery or the voice that entices a reader?

I've been rereading Divide by Zero ready for its rerelease (with Ink-Filled Stories... watch this space!). I guess there's something appealing about actually enjoying my own book. I like the way each chapter is a story in its own right. I'm enjoying getting to know so many characters. And I've realized it really is still a mystery, though I changed my mind so many times while writing it. It's a mystery because I didn't know (really... I have a really bad memory) quite where it was going. I re...

The When, Where and Why of Who

An author whose books I've reviewed is revamping her Amazon page, but who...? Well, Who is one of the novels she had on that page. It's set in the not-too-distant future, here among everyday regular people, and an enticing strangeness has its characters wondering why. Here's my review:

Who - a tale of not-too-future technology and very present-day relevance...
Author Karen Wyle has the knack of taking present-day technology to a not-so-far-fetched future and asking those difficult questions tha...