Thea Isis Gregory's Blog, page 3

Book Review: Paradise Earth: Day Zero by Anthony Mathenia

End-of-the-world scenarios are a dime-a-dozen. From your everyday zombie apocalypse to a giant meteor smashing the Earth, it’s all been done. But, what if an event that is suspiciously like the Jehovah’s Witnesses’ prophesies came to pass? Smart, believable, and certainly blasphemous to our door-to-door friends, Mathenia’s Paradise Earth hits hard and hits home. I read it in four hours, without putting it down.

The first chapter won me over. Its darkness and utter despair pulled me in–the imagery and emotion of it was like a punch to the gut. I needed to know what happened. After that, I was held captive by the storytelling. The narrative follows an unnamed brother throughout the early stages of the apocalypse. The dissection of his faith and the loosening boundaries in his mind between past and present are fascinating. Much of the character’s back story is explained via flashback, which makes it seem as though two stories are being woven together.

In the end, all he has left is his naked faith.

As far as religious-themed books go, this one is presented in a way that both the religious and non-religious can take enjoyment in. Perhaps not for the same reasons, but I can see it as being interesting to either perspective. It’s not preachy and does not seek to give the heavy-handed treatment to the reader. You’re left to draw your own conclusions, much like the main character has to. I greatly enjoyed the Zombie Bible for similar reasons, so if you’re familiar with Litore’s work then you’ll have an understanding of the treatment faith has.

I was given a copy for purposes of posting an honest review.

Cover Reveal: The Charge by Sharon Bayliss

Questions for quIRK blog hop winner!

In order to build some excitement for my debut novel, Sanity Vacuum, my partner in crime Courtney Worth Young and I threw a blog hop. Now, I’m about to announce the long-awaited, celebrated winner of the grand prize.

First, let’s roll that cover again.

Beautiful.

And, the winning question belongs to James Wymore! What did he ask?

Well, James just happened upon the entire theme of the second novel with no foreknowledge whatsoever. So, he wins extra-big there.

The question: What is the role of freedom in obtaining happiness?

It’s deep. It’s pertinent to daily life. I love it.

Congratulations, James!

Book review: The Green-Eyed Monster by Mike Robinson

I was asked to review Mike Robinson’s new book “The Green-Eyed Monster.” It’s a paranormal horror/mystery that twists through the interlinked lives of two men: Martin Smith and John Becker.

This is a mystery laced with metaphysical and philosophical questions. You start off at the end–the final battle in the war between two competing giants. Much of the rest of the book is presented in flash-back, where the characters who had been influenced by the tendrils of chaos that emanate from the two boys tell their story.

The two main stories are those of Mrs. Chatsworth, their first grade teacher, and Harry Zweig, a classmate of theirs. This makes up the real meat of the book. Each character had a distinctive voice, and even though you knew in advance what happened to them, their stories were fascinating. They felt like real people–or as real as possible when their reality is rapidly approaching insane. These stories take up the majority of the book, which is good, because they’re what I most enjoyed.

The monster/philosophical part never takes concrete form–the “grandfather” can always been identified by his butterflies, but he seldom communicates directly with the characters. What is interesting is how both Becker and Smith appear to be two halves of the same soul–their books are almost identical, as are their life stories. They don’t really seem human–too lost in some other world to interact with the other characters well. It makes them seem mysterious and a little dangerous–especially after Mrs. Chattsworth’s story is told.

In short, don’t accept favors from anyone’s grandfather. Ever. Bad idea.

quIRK #SanityVacuum Contest Hop

Sanity Vacuum is coming soon (tomorrow!) and I’m announcing a blog hop. But first, I’m going to give a big shout-out thank you to Courtney Worth Young for not only helping me set this up, but donating part of the prize! Also, she’s helping me host a super-cool twitter party (details at bottom).

The rules are simple: you need to answer the following question on your blog, and sign up for the linky so I can find it:

Q: If you could ask a quIRK, the supercomputer, ANY QUESTION in the universe, what would it be? Why?

The prize:

A gifted copy of Sanity Vacuum, donated by Courtney
The winning question will appear in book two of The ABACUS Protocol, The Pandora Machine.

Happy Hopping! The contest will run through December 12 and the winner will be announced on Monday December 17th. Good luck all!

 

WE WILL BE PARTYING ON TWITTER DEC 6, 2012 FROM 8:00pm – 11:00pm EST using the hashtag #sanityvacuum. Prizes will be given to random participants every 30 minutes! Make sure to join us! I recommend using Tweetchat to keep up with the conversation. It’s simple, free, and you won’t miss a second of the Q&A, revelry or debauchery.

I’ve been tagged! – Author tag

I’ve been chosen to participate in the life-or-death game of Author Tag by James Wymore, a fellow CQ author.

What is the working title of your book?

Sanity Vacuum. It’s part one of The ABACUS Protocol. It was the first good name I came up with, and it stuck.

Where did the idea come from for the book?

I used to do psych studies when I was in university. It was an easy $10 or $20 when good food was hard to come by. I was biking there, and the original story idea came to me. It’s morphed a bit, but the general idea is kind of the same.

What genre does your book fall under?

Science fiction.

Which actors would you choose to play your characters in a movie rendition?

I honestly have no idea. I don’t pay attention to actors as a rule.

What is the one-sentence synopsis of your book?

What is self-awareness, and why does quIRK care?

Will your book be self-published or represented by an agency?

I’m being published by Curiosity Quills Press.

How long did it take you to write the first draft of your manuscript?

One month. It was part of NaNoWriMo 2011.

What other books would you compare this story to within your genre?

I’m honestly not sure. quIRK could be construed as a bit like Data from Star Trek. A galactic human civilization is a pretty common theme. Like Dune, there are no sentient alien species. I took some inspiration from a made-for-TV movie called Moon, too. (Amazing movie, totally check it out. I love the AI/robot character.)

Who or What inspired you to write this book?

It’s mostly based on my love of science fiction, and my fascination with sentient artificial intelligence. I’ve always wanted to meet one.

What else about your book might pique the reader’s interest?

I try to explore some deeper things–elements of sentience, intelligence and ethics. How does quIRK evolve from an automation into a self-aware superintelligence? Can the human characters accept him, or will they recoil from the revelation that humanity isn’t the only known form of sentient “life?”

Also, the character Alec. He’s just so outrageous, but he has a heart of gold.

 

Now, it’s time to tag. I choose… Courtney Worth Young!

It’s that time of year, again: The Coffin Hop!

CLICK THE PIC TO GO TO THE LINK LIST! There are lots of sweet giveaways going on.

Now, for my own fiendish offerings:

Sign up using the Rafflecopter below to win one of five copies of the Zombie Bedtime Stories!

I’m using Rafflecopter (sorry, life is too crazy for a zombie limerick contest this year!) So, go right on over to Rafflecopter to enter!

Cover Reveal: Paradise Earth by Anthony Mathenia

It gives me great pleasure to lend my blog to a great title’s release. I was a proofreader for this story, and it will move you, shake you to the core and sucker punch you in the gut while you’re down. Mark your calendars, it’s coming on December 21!

The book is Paradise Earth by Anthony Mathenia. Now, feast your eyes on the cover, and don’t forget to read the blurb.

 

When the ground quakes and blazing balls of fire fall from the sky, a religious sect interprets it as the fulfillment of long-held prophecies foretelling the end of the world. The members flee to their religious sanctuary, believing that this global cataclysm is the portent of a new paradise of eternal happiness.

Inside, one cold and starving man struggles to hold onto his hope for the future. He’s sacrificed everything for his faith in the prophecy, including his family. As the tortuous night drags on, he struggles to hold onto his hope for the future and grapples with a lifetime of beliefs, and expectations.  If he survives to see the paradise earth, will it be worth it?

Paradise Earth is a deconstruction of faith at the end of the world and beyond. The first volume of the trilogy, Day Zero, will be published by Curiosity Quills Press on December 21, 2012. Week One and Forever After will follow.

Anthony Mathenia is a novelist and freelance writer. He has a weekly romance serial titled Happiness: How to Find It published on curiosityquills.com and a weekly offbeat travel column on Vagobond.com. Paradise Earth: Day Zero is his debut novel. He was raised in a religious cult and sincerely apologizes for waking you up on Saturday morning in order to recruit you.  www.anthonymathenia.com

Cover Reveal: Sanity Vacuum, my debut novel!

I’m very excited to finally be able to reveal my amazing, beautiful cover to the world! It’s been as though I’ve been hiding a cosmic secret for the past month. Now that I have a release date, I’m going to reveal its beauty to the world.

Release Date: December 6, 2012

Sanity Vacuum Synopsis:

Vivian Skye just finished university, and qualified for her first-choice internship. Not many would consider the distant and isolated Extra-Galactic Observatory cushy, but it’s a dream come true for Vivian. Hailing from the low-tech planet of Aurora, she studied hard for this opportunity—and to leave her old life, and planet behind.

Her assignment is simple: perform a routine upgrade for the station’s supercomputer, quIRK. Her reception isn’t a friendly one, and eccentric quIRK becomes her only friend. However, the station’s administrator, Bryce Zimmer is obsessed with quIRK—he suspects that the station’s computer may have achieved sentience, something explicitly prohibited by the ABACUS Protocol. Compounding their issues, Bryce’s traumatic and privileged past makes him distrust Vivian from the beginning. Desperate to keep control, he sabotages quIRK in order to eliminate Vivian. But, his plan threatens to consume the entire station and send them into the unknown void of intergalactic space.

Vivian must struggle to survive not only Bryce’s megalomania, but also the emerging artificial super intelligence that is quIRK. Can Vivian and quIRK learn to trust each other and work together, before it’s too late?

Sanity Vacuum is book one of The ABACUS Protocol.

 

Author Bio:

Thea Gregory is a farm girl from English Western Quebec, a total nerd, and she loves science fiction, zombies and physics. Between marathon cooking sessions, her clerktastic day job, and part-time studies, she manages to find time to write. Author of the Zombie Bedtime Stories, her debut sci-fi novel, Sanity Vacuum releases December 6.

Haunted Writing Clinic – The first page!

Hello everyone! So sorry to have not been around as much as I should have been. New job, craziness all around. But I’m here now, and I’m going to show (not tell!) my first page of upcoming novel, Sanity Vacuum. But first, here are some observations about first pages in general:

I like to start the story in some action, mixed in with anticipation. It keeps the readers reading, and it keeps me writing.
Keep it simple. I establish a main character. Ever been hit with a story that slaps you with multiple characters in the first couple of pages? Or worse, switches POV multiple times. Pick one character and stick with her for a while. She’ll grow on your audience–complexity can come later.
Set a scene: descriptions! Show, don’t tell. Give the reader enough detail to paint a beautiful picture in their imagination. Stay away from minutiae. Learn to love body language. Avoid excessive adverbs.
Avoid too much jargon. This mostly applies to science fiction and other-universe fantasy. You’ve created a vibrant, beautiful world, we know, that’s what we’re here for! Don’t overload our neurons with it all at once… that leads to overcooked brains. The master chef won’t approve.

Now, I’m going to serve up my own first chapter. I’m doing a cover reveal for this beauty on Friday, so do check back!

Chapter One

 

The deafening boom of the rocket’s engines filled the air, and Vivian Skye’s lungs. She watched in awe as the spacecraft took flight, climbing into the scintillating green-red glow of Aurora’s chaotic skies.  This was her first visit to the spaceport in the capital city of Antica, Aurora’s only major link to the stars and galaxy beyond. Located close to the planet’s equator, the site was one of the few places on the planet where the electronics required for space flight would work unshielded above ground. Aurora’s star, Helios, was unstable and often experienced geomagnetic storms. While there was little danger to humans in terms of radiation exposure outside the forbidden Polar Regions, most technology would be disabled or damaged beyond repair after leaving the equatorial zone. Aurora had been one of the first worlds colonized by Earth in the early days of space travel—in modern times, it would be passed over as unsuitable for advanced human life.

Vivian swallowed in an effort to center herself, lost in thought. She had never been off-world before. Few Aurorans ever left, preferring a simple life of agriculture and crafts to braving the rigors of deep-space travel and the burgeoning interstellar economy. She gripped the rail as the trail of smoke parted the dancing green and red lights, nerves and stress rattling in her stomach. She didn’t understand her trepidation and fear, because she’d worked her whole life to be able to leave Aurora and travel among the stars. Vivian had studied hard, forsaking friends and a social life for a chance to attend Aurora’s Advanced Technological Institute, the only university on the planet that taught her subject of choice—quantum informatics. Quantum computers fascinated her; she’d read all of the non-classified papers she could find without the benefit of having access to a reading pad, and had collected every book about the ABACUS incident that was available on Aurora. She smiled at the unthinkable reality, that advanced computer intelligence had conquered Earth almost a century ago. So much of humanity relied on ABACUS-type quantum computers that it was impossible to eliminate them, so securing them from being able to become sentient became a renewed focus in quantum informatics.