Larry Enright's Blog, page 4

A King in a Court of Fools - NOW 99¢ FOR A LIMITED TIME

"A King in a Court of Fools," the story of kids growing up in the 50s when life was simpler and every day was an adventure, is on sale for 99¢ today on Kindle and Nook. Grab your copy today! If you're so inclined, post a review on Amazon. I'd love to hear what you thought of it!
Amazon U.S.Amazon U.K.Barnes and Noble Nook

How Teddy Roosevelt Slew The Last Mighty T-Rex - a review

How Teddy Roosevelt Slew The Last Mighty T-Rex


Teddy Roosevelt was a renaissance man of the type you just don't see any more. He was a writer, a naturalist, an explorer, a politician, a soldier, and President of the United States for two terms. This story takes places after his unsuccessful run at a third consecutive term (back when that was still allowed) and he was sorely in need of something outlandish to refill his bruised ego. What better than go exploring an uncharted river in the jungles of Brazil?
At that time in history (1913) the Amazon jungle was a fairly mysterious and unexplored place and full of danger and adventure, perfect for a man like Teddy Roosevelt. The exploits of his expedition as portrayed in this book are based on the actual ill-fated Roosevelt 1913 expedition with, of course, the addition of the Mighty T-Rex and some intrigue and suspense within the various characters in between.
As you read this story, you will find yourself traveling down the River of Doubt in a dugout with Teddy Roosevelt, swatting away the millions of biting insects, admiring the famous president’s unique leadership and acumen, looking out for danger around every bend, and wishing there weren’t so many impassable rapids between you and your destination.
What I found most interesting in Jacobs’s telling of this tale was not the build-up to the moment when they were confronted by a dinosaur, it was the weaving together of the overwhelming hardships of such an expedition, the bravery of the men facing them, the politics of keeping it all together, and the nuanced interplay of human relationships that make for an overwhelmingly likeable story. And, of course, the Mighty T-Rex!
All in all, a wonderful story that I highly recommend to everyone.
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About the author

Mark Paul Jacobs lives in lovely Dauphin, Pennsylvania. He enjoys fishing the Canadian north, poker, and annoying his wife. He has authored two novels: How Teddy Roosevelt Slew the last Mighty T-Rex, a Historical Science Fiction tale set in 1914, and the hard science fiction novel: The Yaakmen of Tyrie, a powerful and mysterious tale of bravery, loss, perseverance, betrayal, and redemption. He is also quite proud of his awe-inspiring short story: The Day God Winked and his chilling novelette with the provocative title: The Watchers from within Moments Revealed, an almost universally well reviewed work for which he has written a screenplay suitable for an 'Outer Limits' episode. These and several other works are available through Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Apple, Sony, and Smashwords.com. How Teddy Roosevelt Slew the last Mighty T-Rex and The Yaakmen of Tyrie is available in paperback via Createspace.com. Mark is working on a movie screenplay tentatively called Stain which is a gritty murder conspiracy based in Central Pennsylvania similar to the movie 'Fargo' or 'Reservoir Dogs'. Please enjoy his works and don't be afraid to tell him what you think on his Facebook page, twitter account, or by email. And lastly, please take the time to leave him a review of his work; it doesn't have to be long or long-winded, but it does make him feel that his hard word has touched someone's life in some way. You can leave a review wherever his books are available.
Amazon purchase link

An Uncommon Family - a book review

“An Uncommon Family” is about just that – a six year-old girl who lost her mother in a car crash and still has nightmares about it, her aunt who survived a failed marriage and remains bitter and distant in her relationships with men, and an artist whose marriage ended in the tragic death of his wife. The story is about the intertwining of their lives from when Karla, the young girl, is six until her twelfth birthday. At the outset, she and Anna, her aunt and guardian, by chance, encounter Jonas, the artist, who offers to give Karla art lessons. From there, the relationships develop between Karla and Jonas, Karla and Anna, and Anna and Jonas in a steady, deliberate, and delicate way that I appreciated greatly.
Set primarily in Switzerland, the book has a nice local flavor that complements the story well and is interjected unobtrusively at various points as the plot moves forward. In terms of point of view, the story is seen through the eyes of the three main characters and, as such, the narrative is superb. This book is no lightweight by any means. The main themes of the story are trust, betrayal, honesty, loss, and love. Applicable in some degree to each of the three, the handling and development of these themes was top notch.
If you like stories of ordinary people thrown together into uncommon situations, I know you will enjoy this book as much as I did. I recommend it highly and look forward to reading Polkinhorn’s next installment.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Born and raised in Switzerland, Christa Polkinhorn has always had a desire to explore the world outside of her beautiful but tiny country. As a young woman, she traveled through Europe, came to the United States on an exchange program, and ended up staying. Her travels led her to China and Japan as well as South America. She studied literature and linguistics in Zurich and California. Now, she lives and works as writer and translator in southern California and divides her time between the United States and her native Switzerland. The tension and excitement this "double life" creates informs her literary work. Most of her novels take place in several countries. Aside from writing and traveling, Christa is an avid reader, a lover of the arts and dark chocolate. Christa has published three novels in the Family Portrait series, An Uncommon Family, Love of a Stonemason, Emilia as well as a collection of poems, Path of Fire. 

WHERE TO PURCHASE
Visit Christa's site for all the purchase links -> http://www.christa-polkinhorn.com/an-uncommon-family-2/

My Books on Goodreads

.gr_container { font-family:arial,verdana,helvetica,sans-serif; width: 250px; } .gr_book_container { border-bottom: 1px solid #d7d7d7; padding: 5px 0px; } .gr_book_image { float: left; padding-right: 20px; } .gr_book_title {} .gr_review_stats {} For those of you on Goodreads, please take a moment to check out my books there and add them to your shelves!

My books on Goodreads



Four Years from Home


reviews: 75


ratings: 304 (avg rating 3.65)








12|21|12


reviews: 55


ratings: 228 (avg rating 3.48)






A King in a Court of Fools


reviews: 29


ratings: 110 (avg rating 4.44)



Buffalo Nickel Christmas


reviews: 19


ratings: 82 (avg rating 4.82)



A Cape May Diamond


reviews: 6


ratings: 8 (avg rating 4.50)

New Book, Video, and Music Pages

Just a quick note to let you all know that I've added three pages to the blog - one is a single click to see all my book links, the second is all my book-related Youtube videos, and the third is all my music videos (where I play guitar and (gulp) sing.

You'll see the page tabs above the post area.

I hope you enjoy them!

Now on Nook

Exciting news! All of my books are available on Nook.



FOUR YEARS FROM HOME     ...one man's reluctant journey of discovery and self-discovery in his search for his lost brother.
Genre: Psychological MysteryPublished: October, 2010Barnes & Noble PaperbackBarnes & Noble Nook






A CAPE MAY DIAMOND    ...a story of life, love, and a thousand year journey.
Genre: Literary Fiction/MysterySeptember, 2012Barnes & Noble Paperback Barnes & Noble Nook







12|21|12     ...The world ends for someone every day. One day it will end for everyone.
Genre: Science Fiction/Literary Fiction
Published March, 2012 Amazon Paperback  (not available in paperback on B&N) Barnes & Noble Nook  







 A KING IN A COURT OF FOOLS    ...when life was simpler and every day was an adventure.

Genre: Humorous Fiction, NostalgiaPublished September, 2011 Barnes & Noble Paperback Barnes & Noble Nook








BUFFALO NICKEL CHRISTMAS    ...for anyone who has forgotten the magic of Christmas.
Genre: Christmas story for kids of all agesPublished November, 2011 Barnes & Noble Paperback Barnes & Noble Nook

A Reading of A Cape May Diamond

It was a pleasant enough afternoon, and I wasn't feeling like writing, so I spent a half hour reading chapter one of "A Cape May Diamond" aloud. I recorded it. One take. No editing. No frills. Just me reading. And yes, I know I messed up in places, but I thought you could use a good laugh.

A CAPE MAY DIAMONDCHAPTER ONE





"A Cape May Diamond" is available in paperback and on Kindle and Nook. Find it on Amazon or Barnes and Noble, or click this link to see all the "buy" links -> Purchase links

Free Samples

Ever wish you could read a free sample of a book before you bought it? 



Amazon has a nice feature that allows you to sample freely the first 10% of most books online with your Internet browser. This "try before you buy" feature is available for all of my books. Just click the brownish link beside the book cover (below), and through the magic of the Internet you will be whisked away into my little world of fiction.

Just please come back and let me know what you think!

FOUR YEARS FROM HOME    ...one man's reluctant journey of discovery and self-discovery in his search for his lost brother.Genre: Psychological MysteryRead a sample at Amazon.com







  A CAPE MAY DIAMOND
    ...a story of life, love, and a thousand year journey.
Genre: Literary Fiction/MysteryRead a sample at Amazon.com



  




12|21|12     ...The world ends for someone every day. One day it will end for everyone.


Genre: Science Fiction/Literary Fiction
Read a sample at Amazon.com










 A KING IN A COURT OF FOOLS    ...when life was simpler and every day was an adventure.
Genre: Humorous Fiction, Nostalgia Read a sample at Amazon.com









BUFFALO NICKEL CHRISTMAS    ...for anyone who has forgotten the magic of Christmas. Genre: Christmas story for kids of all ages Read a sample at Amazon.com

Free Mystery - Thriller Sampler

Eight mystery and thriller authors (including myself) have gotten together to offer you a free eBook sampler of some of their works. There is a Kindle version and an everybody-else version. Pick your poison and sample some of the coolest writing out there today. (I can say this because I am sitting on a block of ice while writing this.)


Download Kindle VersionDownload Everybody-else Version



The authors
Russell Blake is the bestselling author of twenty novels, including the thrillers Fatal Exchange, The Geronimo Breach, Zero Sum, King of Swords, Night of the Assassin, Revenge of the Assassin, Return of the Assassin, Blood of the Assassin, The Delphi Chronicle trilogy, The Voynich Cypher, Silver Justice, JET, JET II - Betrayal, JET III - Vengeance, JET IV - Reckoning, and JET V - Legacy.His blog can be found at RussellBlake.com where he publishes his periodic thoughts, such as they are. Douglas Dorow is a thriller writer from Minneapolis Minnesota, the home of many thriller/suspense writers. Is it something in the water or the long, cold winters?His first thriller is The Ninth District.He is working on the second in the series featuring FBI Agent, Jack Miller. He has also started another action/adventure series.You can learn more at DouglasDorow.com


Shawn Hopkins' novels, PROGENY and THE SOLOMON KEY, are speculative action thrillers. PROGENY has been described as, "Dan Brown meets LOST meets Left Behind" while THE SOLOMON KEY is a novel of ancient conspiracy that "makes the DaVinci Code look like a walk in the park."His earlier two novels, Noahic and Even The Elect, are the first editions of PROGENY and THE SOLOMON KEY. His newest novel, A MAN OVERBOARD, is a mystery thriller with a twist of espionage and intrigue He can be found at shawnhopkinsauthor.com
Larry Enright was born to Irish Catholic first-generation immigrants and raised in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. His works include: the best seller "Four Years from Home" (2010),"A King in a Court of Fools"(2011), "Buffalo Nickel Christmas" (2011), "12|21|12" (2012), and "A Cape May Diamond" (2012).Find him at larryenright.net




Helen Hanson writes thrillers about desperate people with a high-tech bent. Hackers. The CIA. Industry titans. Spammers. Guys on sailboats. Mobsters. Their personal maelstroms pit them against unrelenting forces willing to kill. Throughout the journey, they try to find some truth, a little humor, and their humanity -- from either end of the trigger.While Helen writes about the power-hungry, she genuinely mistrusts anyone who wants to rule the world.Find her at HelenHanson.com

Jeff Bennington is the author of REUNION, an Amazon #1 bestselling supernatural thriller, and TWISTED VENGEANCE, an Amazon "Customer Top Rated" supernatural thriller. He is also the author of CREEPY, CREEPY 2, and CREEPY 3 a unique paranormal collection that blends true ghost stories with short supernatural tales that will keep you up at night. When Jeff isn't writing, publishing, and blogging, he's busy homeschooling his four children with his wife near Indianapolis, Indiana.Jeff's latest release (Dec 7, 2012) is CREEPY 3, a killer collection of true ghost stories from around the world, and supernatural short stories from Jeff Bennington, Katie M. John, Jay Krow, and many others. Find him at thewritingbomb.blogspot.com
Libby Fischer Hellmann claims she’s “writing her way around the genre.” With ten novels and twenty short stories published, she has written thrillers, suspense mysteries, historicals, PI novels, amateur sleuth, police procedurals, and even a cozy mystery. At the core of all her stories, however, is a crime or the possibility of one—the more political, the better.Find her at libbyhellmann.com





Claude Bouchard writes: I was born in Montreal, Canada, where I still reside with my spouse, Joanne. I completed my studies in human resources, accounting and management at McGill University and worked in various management capacities in the fields of HR and finance for a handful of firms for what seemed like decades, because it was. I should also mention I love pizza, but who doesn't and, in my opinion, nothing rocks more than cooking on the grill.Find him at claudebouchardbooks.com

the S.H.E. Anthology

I am happy to host this post from my friend, Cynthia Meyers-Hanson, author of Mom's on the Roof and I Can't Get Her Down. She has put together the S.H.E. anthology in response to what happened at Sandy Hook Elementary. 
What follows is her fascinating story of this book. Enjoy and share!
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A SPECIAL NOTE to the reader: Each blog about the S.H.E. Anthology has a unique excerpt to keep things fresh.
When I heard about the massacre at Sandy Hook Elementary School, due to my experiences with many deaths in our small community within a short period of time, I felt that the kids and folks might feel less alienated and alone if they were shown the light at the end of their tunnels . I wanted to find a way to be empower the children and their community while revealing to them a HOPE that things can and do get better. I thought that town might enjoy rhetoric from those kindred spirits.  PLUS, I felt others including health care professionals might enjoy those types of stories.
After pondering a bit, God illuminated my next step. Thinking of three books that I had partial copyrights to, I began compiling that book. Plus, I immediately had the title of an anthology in my mind. By the way, the S.H.E. Anthology is NOT a romance anthology but it was written by all females. In this book, the girls recollected traumas, mostly related to death, that they faced while in elementary school. Their stories reveal their path out of mourning along with many minor miracles that they encountered. Their tales of hope and inspiration are true accounts from those children turned authors. One writer and illustrator is only six; Thai wanted to be a part of empowering children to survive harsh things in life; so, her piece is story number three in this compilation.
The abbreviation ‘S.H.E’ also refers to Sandy Hook Elementary. Isn’t God the best at setting up coincidences?
This book is meant to empower Newton as well as others that read it. We hope that this anthology, also, sheds some new light on grief recovery in the minds of teachers, mental health professionals, and adults handling major life changes. The compilation’s royalties will help charities involved in grief counseling or with mental health issues- especially for children therapies for the types of traumas witnessing massacres produce. For example, one local group ‘New Hope for Kids’ (Orlando) will get some of the profits from this compilation because the group that started this organization helped Stacey over 20 years ago; her story is in the anthology as well as excerpts in my blog @  http://mchanson714.weebly.com/
In the book, The Evans Terrace Girls give their account of what happened when 7 or more parents died within a year or 2 of each other in a small subdivision of about 110 homes. People started saying their land was CURSED. The children heard those rumors about their subdivision and were scared to death. Then, when a neighbor lost her dad to a blood clot after surgery, the kids felt the need to help. When one of the girls heard the rumor that the mourning family ran out of milk, she setup a traditional solution or proverbial lemonade stand. That day, other angels or young children arrived; many of those neighbor kids ran door to door selling half glasses of hot lemonade. They raised enough quarters to buy milk and other perishables. More importantly, they formed a group that became a club and led their neighborhood out of grief. An excerpt from their story follows. 
When we went to the nursing home for Valentine’s Day, it was fun.  While decorating, there were many conversations with patients and staff.  Most of us felt great satisfaction.  It would have been entirely an uplifting experience except for the loneliness we witnessed.            As the club members strolled giggling and chattering towards the elevator, an elderly man rambled on in Spanish.  He cried out to us.  Then, this patient followed us in his wheelchair to the only elevator.  Luckily, a nursing assistant intercepted his attempt to escape this institution.  The lady explained the situation to us. “He looks for his son to come visit everyday but that doesn’t happen much anymore,” she trailed off. “Sad, this man could use some company because most of us don’t know Spanish.”            “Awe, he’s so lonely,” Joy blinked back tears as she entered the open elevator.            “Poor guy,” Mia empathized as well.  “I hope I can visit my mom everyday if she ever is as sick as that guy is.”            “Yeah,” Ann added.  “We should come back again and visit.”            Two months passed with that thought haunting some of us.  Since, our group met impromptu and irregularly, we rarely discussed what to do for the patients at that nursing home.  Meanwhile, the club was meandering and having trouble staying together as a group.  In fact, our Vice President, Linda, lost interest right after Easter because her best friend arrived back from North Carolina.   This friend’s mother died in the car accident that kept the girl in a coma and her brother in a body cast for months after their visit with relatives in that state.              “This girl could benefit from joining our club; you can ask her to be a member.”  Linda never delivered my invitation.   Instead, she chose to spend her weekends with that pal instead of with our volunteer group.              Four months after the lemonade stand, we were faltering due to a lack of meetings to set goals.  The resistance to gathering this way resulted from hectic schedules with no time to devote to a meeting rather than from lack of interest.  Joy, my sister, had an overpowering soccer schedule and so did Nicole.  Ann had synchronized swimming commitments that took much of her spare time.  Meanwhile her sister, Mia, took horseback riding lessons at least twice per week.  Jane was into competitive gymnastics that restricted her leisure time as well.  Linda was just too busy rekindling a friendship. It seemed the only available time was late Sunday afternoons.  Finally, after a period of floundering, the girls met and discussed our future plans as well as electing a new Vice President.            “Okay,” I began our agenda.  “We need a new leader. Also, a time should be set aside for meetings to be held more regularly.”  My executive ability caused me to set up all our ideas at once. “Finally, a decision on future projects should be made, today, so we can prepare.”            “I could be the new Vice President,” Ann offered raising her hand shyly or slyly.            “We have to vote,” our democrat, Nicole reminded us.            “Are you going to run this time?” I questioned our rule guardian.            “No,” she answered. I could never figure out if Nicole was afraid she’d lose or just not interested.  Obviously, she was into our right to vote.            Ann, Jane, and Mia showed interest in this office.  Their speeches didn’t change much from our first elections.  However, Jane didn’t mention her dad’s tragic death made her the obvious choice for leadership.  Since she was the youngest, not one of us really saw her as a contender.  It‘s the politics of youth!   Meanwhile, Ann spoke less of her handwriting skills and more of her leadership ability.  Finally, Mia did her usual speech with less empathy this time.  Therefore, Ann won.            Next, a good meeting time appeared to be after church and potential activities.  “Every Sunday,” I proclaimed.            “Every other Sunday,” Our fearless leader or chaperone, mom, interrupted.  This club as well as our other activities consumed her free time.            “Does that work?” I took the vote by counting nodding heads.  Briefly, it seemed unanimous.            “Except that I have gymnastics competitions,” Jane added a disclaimer to her nodding head.            “Soccer,” Nicole and Joy added while still voting affirmatively.            “Swim meets, what about if I have one?” Ann joined the bandwagon of yes and no votes.            Frustrated, I barked, “Okay! Okay! Do you guys want to quit the club?”             “Settle down, Jeannie,” mom warned.  “They are being honest- not mean.  We can work around those occasional activities.”            “Right!” Added Jane with her usual giggles.  Tossing her dirty blonde hair off her face and shoulders, “We can work around my gymnastics.”            “Right,” it was unanimously agreed that Sunday was the best possible day as long as it was late in the day.            “Okay,” I continued the meeting realizing we all wanted this club to work.  “What is our next project?”            “The nursing home?” Mom reminded us of our desire to return.            Some of us were graduating elementary school and were in the mood to prance.  Ann mentioned her idea that related to this emotion,” Let’s entertain the residents.  You know, dance and sing.”            Mia had just finished performing a play for a local civic group, she squealed, “Or do a play!”            “I’d be too nervous to do a live play,” Nicole objected.            “Me, too,” Joy demoted Mia’s idea.            “We could sing, dance, and do a skit,” Ann promoted all the ideas.            “Let’s tape the play, so we won’t have to do it live.  It would make it easier.” I plugged that idea because Mia and I were attending acting lessons.  The sketch idea appealed to me.            “Yeah, we could sing and dance live then show a movie as well,” Ann interrupted.            “What if we mess up while we dance or sing?  Should we tape it all?” Joy, the shy one, timidly inquired.            “Old people don’t care if you trip and fall.  They love you to sing even off key.  They’ll applaud anything we do,” Ann tried to curb the fears.  “Old folks just love visits from kids.  No matter how bad we perform, they’ll hug us and applaud like we were the best.”            “She’s right,” Mom laughed.            “If they have Alzheimer’s, they won’t even remember we messed up,” Jane giggled.  Sad but funny, we all chuckled as our apprehension diminished.            “Then, it is decided,” I closed our conversation. “We will tape the play and perform the dancing or singing live.”            “It will take a month to get the recreation director to place your show on the docket,” Mom added.  “We have that amount of time to learn the play and tape it.  Also, to practice the rest of the acts.”            “Let’s write our own play,” I suggested.  “I’ll write a cool one for us!” My leadership was only surpassed by my desire to act before a camera.            “Sure,” Ann as well as the rest agreed with me.            Two weeks later, my mother pulled her dusty, bulky, ‘on its last legs’ VCR camera out.  We went on location to film.  Everyone found it easy to do their parts because I mirrored the play after their real lives.             Our movies began with a slumber party.  Each one of us dreamed of successful lives and discussed it in this mini drama.  Next, the show jumped ahead a few years.  Guess what?  The movie depicted us attaining those goals.    What other minor miracles happened when these angels joined forces with others to make wishes come true?  Read The Evans Terrace Girls or their section in the S.H.E. Anthology.
 The eBook copy of the S.H.E Anthology is available @
The paperback version comes in BLACK & WHITE on AMAZON @ http://www.amazon.com/S-H-E-Anthology--In-Black-White/dp/1482076225/ref=sr_1_19?ie=UTF8&qid=1359383172&sr=8-19&keywords=mchanson714Plus, the S.H.E Anthology is in color paperback format @ http://www.amazon.com/S-H-E-Anthology-Cynthia-Meyers-Hanson/dp/1481987100/ref=sr_1_18?ie=UTF8&qid=1359382582&sr=8-18&keywords=mchanson714
as a KINDLE @http://www.amazon.com/the-S-H-E-Anthology-ebook/dp/B00B6C4NQ8/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1361303178&sr=8-2&keywords=the+S.H.E.+Anthology
in other eBook formats @ SMASHWORDS.com @ http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/278511

So, come on buy to be inspired and help grieving children. It’s a WIN-WIN.
My main author page is @ WEEBLY and you can follow my blog, there. http://mchanson714.weebly.com/