Michael Loring's Blog, page 5
October 20, 2014
My Top Ten Halloween Movie List 2
Halloween Movie List 2
In 2012, I put together my very first Top Ten Movie List, “My Top Ten Halloween Movie List.” It has thus far become my most viewed series of posts of all time. I thought that since Halloween is right around the corner I’d put together part dos to that list!
Yes! My Top Ten Halloween Movie List 2 is here! I’ve gotten a few messages asking for it, which is surreal to me because I never thought people would actually be interested in my ramblings haha! I’m glad to see I’m not just pointlessly talking about random movies for nothing!
Beginning this Wednesday (October 22nd) I will be sharing my top 10 movies for this Halloween season. Included in these posts will be photos, a synopsis, and my thoughts on why the movie deserves to be on the list. Ranging from the plain creepy to the horrifically gory, I will post 1 movie a day from the 22nd up the Halloween Day itself, Friday the 31st. Beginning from #10 leading up to #1, these are the movies I most believe will send a chill down your spine!
**WARNING: This list is meant for 18+ viewers and will contain blood, gore, sex, depictions of horror that most might not be able to handle, and cursing. Viewer discretion is advised for all that are under the age of 18.**
Hope you guys have a howlin’ Halloween!
-Michael
P.S. In each post there will be one or two little secret videos you can watch pertaining to the movie the post is about. They won’t be hard to find, but at the same time it won’t be a walk in the park either! There might also be a video hidden in this post as well…
Enjoy!
October 18, 2014
The Rule of Thoughts (The Mortality Doctrine #2) by James Dashner
The Rule of Thoughts (The Mortality Doctrine #2) by James Dashner
Synopsis:
Michael completed the Path. What he found at the end turned everything he’d ever known about his life—and the world—completely upside down.
He barely survived. But it was the only way VirtNet Security knew to find the cyber-terrorist Kaine—and to make the Sleep safe for gamers once again. And, the truth Michael discovered about Kaine is more complex than they anticipated, and more terrifying than even the worst of their fears.
Kaine is a Tangent, a computer program that has become sentient. And Michael’s completing the Path was the first stage in turning Kaine’s master plan, the Mortality Doctrine, into a reality.
The Mortality Doctrine will populate Earth entirely with human bodies harboring Tangent minds. Any gamer who sinks into the VirtNet risks coming out with a Tangent intelligence in control of their body.
And the takeover has already begun.
Review:
The Rule of Thoughts by Author James Dashner is the second in his bestselling series, The Mortality Doctrine. Starting off immediately after the first book, The Eye of Minds, this is the continuation of Michael’s story.
He’s completed the Path. Michael should feel victorious, but instead he feels like he’s lost in the greatest way possible. Lost and alone, Michael sets out to find answers to what Kaine – the cyber-terrorist Tangent – is doing and what his plans are for the entire human race. Along the way he finds his friends, Bryson and Sarah, and together they set out to defeat Kaine and his legion of KillSims.
Using their hacking, gaming, and deduction skills to their limit, the trio will face one of the greatest foes ever to exist.
I can’t explain how impressed I am by the sheer genius of this book. Author James Dashner is a bestseller for a reason. The complex storyline weaves together like fine silk, each twist and turn as exciting as the last. The writing is impeccable, as always with this fantastic author, and the characters are fleshed out to the max. I couldn’t help but relate to each and every one. Michael in particular, as he’s the main character, and we get to see his emotions and thoughts the most. The turmoil he’s going through is intense, and is portrayed expertly through Mr. Dashner’s brilliant writing prowess.
I’d recommend this book to all my hardcore gaming friends, as the central basis for this novel is that most of this goes down in a VRMMORPG world called The VirtNet. The future is grand when you look at it from the outside, but take a peak inside and you’ll find the dystopia that it truly is.
Five out of Five stars!
October 17, 2014
Killing From Inside by Bea Brugge
Killing From Inside by Bea Brugge
Synopsis:
Killing From Inside will take you on a sadistic journey inside the mind of Porter Booth. The anger he had towards his parents, growing up, turned deadly as he begins his adventure around the country. Porter arrives in Georgia, only to find the lovely Sophia. He realizes that she makes him feel like a human being. His love for her soon turns to betrayal. Demons that possess Porter will not allow him to live a normal life. They thrive on blood. Human blood! Porter quickly comes to terms that they will never let him escape.
Review:
Killing From Inside by Bea Brugge is a psychological horror story about Porter Booth and how he was abused by his parents, taken in by his aunt, and his eventual rise as a serial killer.
This is a pretty quick read, which was what had me buying it. It seemed interesting enough, and I figured I could use a nice, short read between novels. Unfortunately, I couldn’t really feel myself get drawn in to this book.
The editing was poor, and the structure of the writing was weak. I don’t like talking bad about others’ books, but I just couldn’t bring myself to like this book. The concept was interesting, but the execution was just not up to snuff.
There’s potential, and I’d love to see the author grow and improve.
Two out of Two stars!
October 7, 2014
Tempt by Rene Folsom Cover Reveal
BOOK INFORMATION
Title – Tempt (A Twisted Wolf Tale)
Series – Red Hot Treats
Author – Rene Folsom
Genre – Paranormal Romance Publication
Date – October 15, 2014
Length (Pages/# Words) – Approximately 130 pages / 20,000 words
Cover Artist – Rene Folsom with Phycel Designs
ABOUT THE BOOK
Deep in the Shrouded Wood, on her way to her granny’s cottage, Rosetta is ambushed by an unseen force. Soon after, she finds herself plagued by strange dreams—visions of a large wolf and a seductive woman beckoning her.
Not knowing what to do with these dreams and the odd changes happening to her body in the waking world, Rosetta sets out to confront whatever lies in the Shrouded Wood, determined to discover the temptations within. But what she finds is beyond anything she could’ve ever imagined… or hoped for.
Get ready to dive into Rosetta’s world and enjoy a new twist on the classic tale of Little Red Riding Hood.
This Halloween, something sinfully wicked is coming your way. Give yourself a Red Hot Treat this fall with ten spine-tingling stories sure to warm up your night. Scary just got sexy with TEMPT, part of the Red Hot Treats multi-author series (stands alone for reading enjoyment).
Warning: This supernatural romance novella contains f/f adult situations and is meant for ages 18+.
Find out more on Rene’s website at http://renefolsom.com/tempt or Goodreads
ABOUT RENE
Rene Folsom, author of paranormal romance and erotica, lives in Florida with her husband and three kids. She has officially diagnosed herself with creative ADD and often has a million and one writing projects going at once. In addition to writing, she is also a graphic artist who enjoys creating custom book covers for indie authors. She is definitely an artist at heart and would love nothing more than to be elbow deep in clay during her waking hours.
Rene believes that all fiction is based on some form of reality—otherwise we would never have the inspiration or knowledge to dream up the realistic situations we portray with our words. She is proud to say that her personal experiences have been inspirational, though perhaps not always identical to that of her fictional characters. Where reality and fantasy diverge, however, must remain her little secret…
FOLLOW RENE HERE
Amazon Author Page – Website/Blog – Facebook Twitter – Google+ – Goodreads – Newsletter
Cover Reveal Hosted & Organized by
September 24, 2014
The Eye of Minds (The Mortality Doctrine #1) by James Dashner
The Eye of Minds (The Mortality Doctrine #1) by James Dashner
Synopsis:
Michael is a gamer. And like most gamers, he almost spends more time on the VirtNet than in the actual world. The VirtNet offers total mind and body immersion, and it’s addictive. Thanks to technology, anyone with enough money can experience fantasy worlds, risk their life without the chance of death, or just hang around with Virt-friends. And the more hacking skills you have, the more fun. Why bother following the rules when most of them are dumb, anyway?
But some rules were made for a reason. Some technology is too dangerous to fool with. And recent reports claim that one gamer is going beyond what any gamer has done before: he’s holding players hostage inside the VirtNet. The effects are horrific—the hostages have all been declared brain-dead. Yet the gamer’s motives are a mystery.
The government knows that to catch a hacker, you need a hacker.
And they’ve been watching Michael. They want him on their team.
But the risk is enormous. If he accepts their challenge, Michael will need to go off the VirtNet grid. There are back alleys and corners in the system human eyes have never seen and predators he can’t even fathom—and there’s the possibility that the line between game and reality will be blurred forever.
Review:
The Eye of Minds is the first in New York Times Bestselling Author James Dashner’s The Mortality Doctrine series, telling the story of Michael and his friends as they hunt down the notorious Cyber Terrorist Kaine.
In the near future, a new way of gaming has established itself: the VirtNet. A Virtual Reality MMORPG where you can meet with friends, fight monsters on other planets, or enjoy a tasty virtual burger. Michael, Bryson, and Sarah are three friends who regularly hang out in the VirtNet, and are considered highly competent hackers – people who know how to alter the surrounding code of the VirtNet to bend virtual reality to their will. On the outskirts of their awareness, a Cyber Terrorist named Kaine is killing gamers, both in the VirtNet and in the real world. Michael and his friends are recruited by a secret organization to help stop Kaine, thus begins a journey through the VirtNet that leads to bonding between the friends, visions of horrors beyond imagining, and revelations that shake the very foundation of Michael’s entire life.
Having been a huge fan of Author James Dashner’s The Maze Runner series, I didn’t hesitate to pick up this book once I discovered it. As an avid gamer myself, I couldn’t help but fall in love with the story almost immediately. A virtual world where anything is possible? Count me in!
Author James Dashner once again brings his unique talent of crafting vivid imagery to the first in his new series, portraying a world where anything from conjuring fireballs to animals shedding their skin is possible. I was enraptured by the story right away, and was tangled in its plot until the very last sentence. I can’t wait to pick up the next book, because I’m certain it will be just as fantastic!
Five out of Five stars!
September 22, 2014
Adventurous (A Favorite Things Story #1) by Rene Folsom and Juli Valenti
Adventurous (A Favorite Things Story #1) by Rene Folsom and Juli Valenti
Synopsis:
ad·ven·tur·ous – adjective – willing to take risks or to try out new methods, ideas, or experiences.
Having been married for over a decade, Josh and I often find ourselves needing some new ways to fuel the excitement in our lives. So, when he proposes we spend some rather intimate moments in the back seat of our truck after a sporting event, I don’t even think of hesitating to jump on it.
My name is Cari, and these stories are just some of the Favorite Things my husband and I love about each other.
Review:
Adventurous is an erotic short story done by the combined efforts of Authors Rene Folsom and Juli Valenti, the beginning in the Favorite Things series of shorts.
As a short story, there’s not much I can say that won’t give away the plot. What I can say is that this is chalk full of steamy goodness. Erotica galore, would be the best way to describe this little gem! Rene Folsom and Juli Valenti have come together to push the limits of how far the blush of a reader could go, and have done a terrific job in doing so.
I am extremely excited to see how the rest of this short story series goes, as I’m sure each story will be just as fantastic as this one! Authors Rene Folsom and Juli Valenti have created a joyous world, and I can’t wait to see what happens next in it!
Five out of Five stars!
Check out Rene Folsom’s website here!
September 20, 2014
Doctor Who: Engines of War by George Mann
Doctor Who: Engines of War by George Mann
Synopsis:
“The death of billions is as nothing to us Doctor, if it helps defeat the Daleks.”
The Great Time War has raged for centuries, ravaging the universe. Scores of human colony planets are now overrun by Dalek occupation forces. A weary, angry Doctor leads a flotilla of Battle TARDISes against the Dalek stronghold but in the midst of the carnage, the Doctor’s TARDIS crashes to a planet below: Moldox.
As the Doctor is trapped in an apocalyptic landscape, Dalek patrols roam amongst the wreckage, rounding up the remaining civilians. But why haven’t the Daleks simply killed the humans?
Searching for answers the Doctor meets ‘Cinder’, a young Dalek hunter. Their struggles to discover the Dalek plan take them from the ruins of Moldox to the halls of Gallifrey, and set in motion a chain of events that will change everything. And everyone.
An epic novel of the Great Time War featuring the War Doctor as played by John Hurt.
Review:
“NO MORE.”
Doctor Who: Engines of War by Author George Mann is a tie-in novel with the phenomenal BBC program, Doctor Who, and tells a pivotal story in the Doctor’s life.
When this book was announced, I was beside myself with excitement. We barely even got a glimpse of the potential John Hurt’s War Doctor had in the 50th Anniversary special, so to see that he was getting his own book I knew I had to read it. There’s a whole chapter in the Doctor’s history that we’re missing, and thanks to Author George Mann we’re getting a glimpse of it.
The Doctor, in this incarnation, is as he seemed in the special: weary, battle hardened, but still with that same jubilance we’ve come to love about the Doctor in all of his lives. He’s forsaken his moniker for the sake of the Time War, and refuses to accept it again until he’s found a way to end the war.
Alongside the Doctor is a new companion, Cinder. She’s a fiery red-haired warrior from the planet Moldox – a future human colony’s home. Or rather, former home. The Daleks have ravaged her home world, and she has resigned herself to a lifetime of battle until the day the TARDIS falls to the planet after being shot out of the sky by a Dalek battle ship. The Doctor emerges from the box, and brings her along for the adventure that takes them to a Dalek prison camp, the Citadel of Gallifrey, and to the very end of the universe.
With the lives of ten billion people at risk, Cinder and the Doctor set out to defy the wishes of the Time Lords and destroy the Daleks’ new weapon, one that could destroy Gallifrey and erase the Time Lords from history.
An absolute brilliant read, is my first thought when describing this book. The author did a magnificent job portraying a version of the Doctor we barely got to see on-screen. The character was full of life, but weighed down by the burden of the War. It was a marvelous progression, to see the Doctor solemn to determined to end the War once and for all. Kudos goes to George Mann, who was given an impossibly difficult task and flourished under the pressure to write a fantastic War Doctor novel. Good job!
Five out of Five stars!
August 31, 2014
Ready Player One by Ernest Cline
Ready Player One by Ernest Cline
Synopsis:
It’s the year 2044, and the real world is an ugly place.
Like most of humanity, Wade Watts escapes his grim surroundings by spending his waking hours jacked into the OASIS, a sprawling virtual utopia that lets you be anything you want to be, a place where you can live and play and fall in love on any of ten thousand planets.
And like most of humanity, Wade dreams of being the one to discover the ultimate lottery ticket that lies concealed within this virtual world. For somewhere inside this giant networked playground, OASIS creator James Halliday has hidden a series of fiendish puzzles that will yield massive fortune — and remarkable power — to whoever can unlock them.
For years, millions have struggled fruitlessly to attain this prize, knowing only that Halliday’s riddles are based in the pop culture he loved — that of the late twentieth century. And for years, millions have found in this quest another means of escape, retreating into happy, obsessive study of Halliday’s icons. Like many of his contemporaries, Wade is as comfortable debating the finer points of John Hughes’s oeuvre, playing Pac-Man, or reciting Devo lyrics as he is scrounging power to run his OASIS rig.
And then Wade stumbles upon the first puzzle.
Suddenly the whole world is watching, and thousands of competitors join the hunt — among them certain powerful players who are willing to commit very real murder to beat Wade to this prize. Now the only way for Wade to survive and preserve everything he knows is to win. But to do so, he may have to leave behind his oh-so-perfect virtual existence and face up to life — and love — in the real world he’s always been so desperate to escape.
A world at stake.
A quest for the ultimate prize.
Are you ready?
Review:
Ready Player One is a standalone and the first novel by bestselling author Ernest Cline, following the rags to riches story of Wade Watts – video gamer.
Set in the year 2044, the world has fallen to decay and poverty. The only light in the darkened future is the OASIS – a virtual reality MMORPG that has become one of the world’s largest powers. Everyone has taken the VRMMORPG as a way of living, using it as not just a source of entertainment, but for working, schooling, dating, and, especially for Wade, an escape.
For some, just living peacefully within the OASIS is enough, but for others the “Hunt” is what keeps them going. The Hunt was set into place by James Halliday, the creator of the OASIS, and its goal is to allow the winner of the Hunt to gain the fortune left behind after James Halliday’s death. Those that hunt for the easter egg are called “gunters,” and Wade has become the world’s most popular gunter by discovering the first clue in five years towards finishing the Hunt.
After discovering the first clue, Wade’s life undergoes a serious change. People are dying, money is being thrown around, and romance is blooming. Wade has no choice but to see it all to the end, because there’s no going back… ever.
Chalk full of 80′s Geekdom, Ready Player One is a terrific novel about a slightly apocalyptic future that has become governed by a virtual MMORPG. There are aspects that seem so magnificent about this possible future, but then there are others that just seem horrific. I’m very torn on whether or not I’d want this future…
Probably not.
I love the 80′s trivia involved in the Hunt for Halliday’s easter egg. It was such a nice throwback to such an amazing era for geekdom, and a lot of things I enjoy were mentioned which made me even more excited! It was exhilarating to see a story about a culture that embraces the wonders of the 1980′s.
On top of it all, the writing was brilliantly done. Author Ernest Cline expertly crafts a genius story about gamers trying to preserve their way of life, whilst improving it for themselves and for those around them. The ending was a very fitting one, and one I greatly enjoyed. This has worked its way into one of my favorites, and I swear this deserves to be a movie – NOW.
Five out of Five stars!
August 25, 2014
Dehumanized Cover Reveal/Re-Release!
Dehumanized Cover Reveal/Re-Release!
Yes, the time has come my wolves! Dehumanized is once again live, and with a brand spanking new and improved cover!
What do you guys think? Brilliant, isn’t it? Well, you all have Rene Folsom of Phycel Designs to thank for it! She’s the absolute best, and is beyond talented. If you’re looking to have a cover done, she’s the one to go to! Check out the Phycel Designs website for more info! It’s definitely worth it, trust me!
This is the cover design idea I had while I was in the midst of writing Dehumanized. “A werewolf’s clawed hand grabbing at a chain-link fence with the full moon in the background,” is what I always described it as. Thanks to the wonderful talents of Rene Folsom, my dream cover has come to life! And I hope you guys fall in love with it as much as I have!
Now, since I know you guys aren’t here to hear me ramble, here’s what you came for…
Dehumanized (Book One)
Synopsis:
“WE WILL NOT BE CAGED.”
Ryan Zachery lived his life the way all high school teenagers should – carefree, and oblivious to anything around him. He had an attractive girlfriend and hope for the future. One night when he was walking home he was attacked by an unknown assailer. He awoke in the hospital to learn he had been infected by lycanthropy, a disease he had heard about but had ignored.
Taken by armed guards Ryan was thrown into a US camp made for those ‘suffering’ from lycanthropy. Treated like prisoners, he and other lycanthropes were abused by the guards and by their own kind. But at the night of the full moon, the beast within him is freed. When an experimental procedure allows the beast and Ryan to communicate, the two enemies become unlikely allies who will stop at nothing to tear down the walls keeping them prisoner.
They caged the beast, but now he will show them that he will never be dehumanized.
Links:
B&N Nook (Coming Soon)
Thank you all who has supported me and my goals. This book is the labor of my love for you all. I hope that you guys will enjoy it, and will share it around with all of your friends!
Howl!
-Michael
August 24, 2014
OC Blog Tour
$10 ticket for the Authors in the OC book signing and Meet & Greet afterwards. Event benefits the Avon Walk for Breast Cancer via the Fifty Shades of Pink team.
October 4, 2014
Embassy Suites Anaheim – North
1-4pm Book Signing
5-’Till we can’t hang Meet & Greet
Tickets: http://bit.ly/1u1UkDF
www.authorsintheoc.com
https://www.facebook.com/AuthorsintheOC
https://www.facebook.com/groups/475973005838108/
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