Andrea Murray's Blog: Author of the Vivid Trilogy and Omni, page 7

Book Review: Miramont's Ghost by Elizabeth Hall

I have an author website now, and I will be posting reviews there.

http://byandreamurray.com/book-review...

Claus

I wrote this recently for a fellow author's blog. Thought I'd share it here.
Most children have happy memories of pets. Me? Not so much. When I was very young, I can remember having a couple of hamster, one of which embedded its sharp little chompers into my thumb and the other which committed suicide in our toilet. My mother swore no more pets, but then she consented to goldfish, and I’m not sure they really count. I mean, you can’t interact with them. You can’t pet them; they can’t nuzzle next to you in your bed. But it was the one animal my mother allowed in the house, and they all mysteriously ended up dying in a tragic tank cleaning incident though my mother will swear she didn’t do anything to them.
So, growing up, I wasn’t exactly batting a thousand in the animal department. When I married, my husband had an ill-tempered Rottweiler, which I absolutely loved because we had an understanding. He kept away strangers, and I fed him. It was a working relationship until he died about eight years into our marriage. After that, we tried again with a couple of other Rottweilers and one crazy lab that my husband had to track down on a regular basis, but one disaster after another made it seem we’d never have a dog.
When I had my children, I thought about getting them a dog. Okay, maybe I was trying to compensate for my “petastrophes”. I blame it on those dog food commercials, the ones with the dogs running along the beach in slow motion. I could picture my little cuties playing in the yard with a golden-haired dog running behind them. But my husband was very specific about the kind of dog he’d be willing to let into our family. He wanted a “manly” dog, so when my sister’s German Shepherd had puppies, we thought we’d give it a try. That’s when Claus came into our lives.
I didn’t do my research. I was completely unprepared for how smart and active this dog would be. From the moment we brought him home, Claus has been a furry tornado with a tail about two feet long that is downright lethal. My poor entertainment center no longer sports a picture frame that hasn’t suffered from the whiplash of that weapon. At eighty-five pounds, he still thinks he’s puppy. His favorite thing to do is to put his enormous paw on my forearm when I pet him, but that’s not quite enough. He’s recently started putting both paws on me—the problem with that, he’s incredibly clumsy. When he stands on his back paws, he falls over and invariably scrapes his claws down my arms and/or legs and often knocks me down then takes advantage of my prone state to pounce all over me. And the hair! I could knit a sweater by this point! Forget about leaving stuffed animals in the floor. Claus is quick to snatch them up and chew them into submission. I’ve rescued countless pink bears with slightly gnawed ears and spit-covered Pillow Pets.
I was really regretting this whole pet thing until the first time a stranger came to our house late one night. My husband is a coach, so he was at a game, and I was home alone with the kids. A distraught woman I didn’t know pounded on my front door, and my awkward puppy showed his true worth. Though the woman proved to be strange but harmless, I was never so glad to have a dog in the house! I was shocked by his fierce protection, and my daughter commented later that she hadn’t been scared because Claus would protect us. So while my kids may not have that slow-motion- commercial dog, they have a guardian, a stumbling, slobbering guardian.

Book Review: Death Wish by Megan Tayte

I received a copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review.
I didn’t read this novel; I devoured it! The first thing I do when I receive a novel to review is check out the length, and when I saw the length of this one, I cringed. This new genre, new-adult, is a bridge for those YA readers wanting something more mature, and three hundred pages is a commitment many YA readers don’t want to make in this ultra-busy life where their attention is so divided. But this is one I would definitely recommend to my YA/NA readers. It is worth the time.
The story isn’t entirely a new one, but the twist is interesting. Scarlett is in search of answers about herself (That’s the well-worn story.) but also about her sister, who drowned in a cove near the cottage where her grandparents once lived. In her need to solve the mystery of whether or not her sister committed suicide, Scarlett discovers a much deeper mystery. At times, I felt I was reading two different stories until the two became woven into one unusual paranormal tale. The characters are endearing and well-defined, and the writing is lovely. The ending will leave you wanting more. You will be left with unanswered questions, but isn’t that the whole point of a series?
5 Stars

Guest Post

I recently had the chance to write a guest post on Word Menagerie. It's about our furry family member, Claus. :)

http://wordmenagerie.weebly.com/

Vivid 99 cents January 26-31!!!

My recently re-published YA novel, Vivid, will be 99 cents January 26-31!
Her entire life she has feared her power and its connection to her mother’s murder.
When Vivian Cartwright was five years old, she witnessed her mother’s death. Now, sixteen-year-old Vivian only wants a normal life, hard to accomplish when you possess the power to control energy. She has kept her ability a secret from everyone except her guardian, Charlotte, who has hidden Vivian from the man responsible for her mother’s murder.
Her secret is safe until Vivian defends herself at school using her power. After this first use of her gift in many years, Vivian’s power seems to take on a mind of its own, increasing in strength and demanding to be used. This increase in power also brings dreams of her mother’s death and the mysterious man associated with it. In her desire to unlock her past, Vivian is forced to use her supernatural gift over and over. With each use, Vivian fears she is losing control and discovers her powers are growing—maybe too much—bringing her unknowingly closer to the man who murdered her mother.

Book Review: A Highlander's Passion by Vonnie Davis

I received a copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review.
There were things I liked and things I really, really disliked about this novel. In all fairness, it is a sequel, and I haven’t read the first one, but any novel with shape-shifting, kilted Highlanders is worth a try on my part, and as far as the bearded hero goes, it doesn’t disappoint on that front. Bryce sounds completely sigh-worthy with his chivalrous masculinity, but Kenzie . . . she got on my nerves severely. Her storyline seemed way over-the-top. Okay, okay, I realize the series centers around a werebear clan with witches, both good and bad, abounding, but how much misery can we heap on one character? Kenzie’s the widow of an abusive, drug addict who’s had two miscarriages AND (spoiler alert) the daughter of an evil Faustian—literally—character hell-bent on draining her blood? It all seemed a bit much for one novel with little to no foreshadowing.
The novel does begin in medias res and accelerating, and there is certainly no shortage of “adult” scenes, but between the plot overload and the never-ending crying, my interest waned. It is humorous, and I loved Effie, but it just wasn’t for me.

Book Review: What a Lady Requires by Ashlyn Macnamara

I was given a copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

When I was given this novel, I didn’t realize it was the third novel in a series, but it didn’t matter. I had no difficulty following the plot. It wasn’t until late in the novel that it even occurred to me this might be part of a series. It’s enjoyable on its own.
I loved this novel. It was really unique among its genre. The time period of the work is one I read often, and the author does a tremendous job showcasing the problems of the London ton in the early 19th century. The constraints placed on Emma, a woman with a head for business, is clearly a crux in the plot. Every word, every letter, every conversation is scrutinized by societal ladies who expect her to enjoy gossiping and drinking tea in the receiving parlor rather than scheming money-making deals with the gentlemen in the gaming room. Any modern woman can truly feel her frustration at not being able to voice her opinion. I only wish she’d been allowed to voice aloud her internal monologue at times. But, again, this is part of her base conflict.
Rowan isn’t the typical hero either. Yes, he’s handsome and silver-tongued, a perfect ballroom gentlemen, but many times, he was more stumble than swagger. In fact, I think he could definitely be labeled learning disabled. (Too many years in the classroom had me diagnosing his issues with math!) It’s his very lack of skills which made him so endearing and made his match with Emma so perfect.
My one complaint with the novel: Vocabulary for the sake of vocabulary. I understand using terms of the period, and I also understand that, if you are true to the period, the language usage will be different from our time period; however, when I marked the fifth word in as few chapters that seemed extraneous, my frustration level ratcheted up a notch. Why use a $5 word when a 25 cent word works just as well? Is it for the sake of the reader or the author?
4.5 Stars

Re-Release of Book 2

WOOHOO! Book 2, Vicious is being re-released by Booktrope. New editing, new cover!
http://www.amazon.com/Vicious-Vivid-T...

Book Review: Raintree: Oracle by Linda Winstead Jones

I received a copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review.
I was first drawn to this novel because of the magic. You would think that novels like this in the world of paranormal/sci-fi romance would be easy to find. But in a genre overloaded with vamps and wolves, the premise behind this one stood out to me. I love the idea of two magical beings (over the age of seventeen) getting together to battle evil and, of course, falling for each other in the process, and after finishing this novel, I still love the idea, but I’m afraid this one didn’t quite “abracadabra” me as much as I’d hope. In all fairness, this is my first Raintree novel, and perhaps reading the others would have made a difference. Kudos to Jones, though, on her great job of catching up the reader. Considering this is number four in the series, I really wasn’t that out-of-the-loop.
One issue that drove me a crazy were inconsistencies in the story. For example, Ryder is from a small, covenlike village in Ireland. He’s important and powerful, and his family has resided there for generations. It’s the kind of place where everyone knows your business, but one of the “bad guys” (who is also residing in the village) makes the comment that, “Few here knew who he’d been, what he’d done, but she knew.” Huh? That didn’t make sense to me. One minute another bad guy is talking about doing away with his fellow henchmen then on the next page he’s praising them and talking about how they will rule together. At one point, Echo is furious with Ryder yet she turns around and gets more than friendly with him. About halfway through the novel, an incredibly powerful character is kidnapped, yet she can’t free herself from the danger of a single knife? Some things just felt a bit disjointed.
Another complaint was with the stilted dialogue. At times, it felt so wooden, almost archaic. Some conversations seemed so unrealistic, and I caught myself asking, “Would a twenty-something girl actually say that?”
However, all that said, it’s a fast read and something different. For those of you who are tired of the typical, this one is for you.

VIVID release day!

It's finally here! My first novel, Vivid, is officially released as a Booktrope novel. I'm so grateful for all the friends and family along the way who helped make this possible, and I want to thank my team at Booktrope-Samantha Janning, Cathy Shaw, and Greg Simanson. And a BIG thanks to Jesse James who took the chance and signed me. If you've read it, please leave me a rating. Thank you, thank you, thank you!
http://www.amazon.com/Vivid-Trilogy-B...