Lance Greenfield's Blog, page 98
December 29, 2014
Help me help some authors out.
This is a good way to spread the word about aspiring, ambitious new authors. We should all make our own judgements, but a quick look at each one should be sufficient to be able to make a decision to support or not.
Originally posted on ronovanwrites:
There is something I would like to ask for all of you to do.
It’s not for me but for the authors I am trying to help by doing interviews on LitWorldInterviews.
If you see me Tweet something about an author, I would like to ask that you ReTweet it. Some of these people are friends of yours and I want all the help you can give them as well as the others. I don’t plan to favor one author over another but I do get stretched thin at times (I wish that worked for my waistline). If you can RT those Tweets then that gets the message out to that many more people. The only day I even put out a lot of Tweets for them is on a Wednesday and then it’s one for each around lunch time Eastern, otherwise it’s just when an interview comes out or…
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December 28, 2014
A tiny milestone for “Eleven Miles”
It may seem insignificant to almost all of you, but, to me, exceeding £100 revenue for my debut novel, less than 12 days after its launch, is tremendously pleasing.
If you haven’t taken a look at it yet, I urge you to do so. You may even decide to read it yourself.
Thank you to all who have already purchased a copy. I hope that you will post your reviews on both Goodreads and Amazon (.co.uk and .com), and on your own blogs if you have them.
Review: …Can Be Gold
…Can Be Gold by Serena Akeroyd
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
…Can Be Gold (Naughty Nookie, #4) by Serena Akeroyd is the golden climax to the four book series of Mona’s adventures. I really do think that all four books could have been rolled into a single volume, but that is a subject for further readers’ discussion.
This book contains the real story. It gets much deeper. All of the implications of the three-way relationship between Mona, Zane and Jake come home to roost. They are forced to make changes, but it all comes good in the end, I promise you.
The sex scenes are absolutely brilliantly described. Either Serena Akeroyd’s creativity and imagination is exceptional and beyond the bounds of most of us, or she has been lucky enough to have experienced some of the most amazing sex ever!
In conclusion, the story is good, the sex is good, and this series is a jolly good read.
Review: The Elements of Eloquence: How to Turn the Perfect English Phrase
The Elements of Eloquence: How to Turn the Perfect English Phrase by Mark Forsyth
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
My father bought me Mark Forsyth’s valuable little book of thirty-nine rhetorical devices. I am sure that it has helped me with my writing style, even though I have not deliberately employed any of them.
It starts with a very familiar example: alliteration.
I adore alliteration, but it is possible to overdo it, and there is even a term for that appalling affliction.
The cleverest aspect of this book, in my humble opinion, is that each chapter flows naturally into the next. A chapter will typically conclude with a possible example of the rhetorical device which has been discussed in that chapter, but is actually an example of the tool which will be discussed in the next.
I am pleased that there will be no test of the terminology used in this book, because I could not possibly remember them all. Nor could I remember what the names mean without reference to the book.
There were times when I felt a bit overwhelmed. Perhaps the content is too intellectually challenging for me. Or maybe I was suffering from information overload at the time.
The Elements of Eloquence is a book that I shall keep close at hand, and I’ll be referring to it whenever I am stuck for writing inspiration.
Review: The One You Love
The One You Love by Paul Pilkington
My rating: 3 of 5 stars
If this book were a series of questions in a multiple choice survey, my scores would all be in the middle column: “neither agree nor disagree.”
It is a thriller, consisting a sequence of promising events and circumstances which build towards their individual climaxes only to turn into damp squibs.
Having said that, the story as a whole does eventually go somewhere and it reaches a satisfactory conclusion. There are enough open questions to allow a sequel, but I am not sure that I would bother with it, although it might make a reasonable holiday read.
Review: Crazy Little Thing Called Lust
Crazy Little Thing Called Lust by Serena Akeroyd
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
So Zane is married: to Jake!
Is it the end of a beautiful, lusty, romance before it has even really started? Of course not! There would be no more story to tell.
Some of the descriptions of the sex scenes, particularly the details of Mona’s amazing orgasms, are terrific. It makes the reader wonder if the author is writing from personal experience. It must be the most enjoyable possible research if that is true.
There are lots of great twists and turns, many unexpected, in these stories. Yet again, at the end of book two, we are left wondering what will happen next and feeling sorry for poor Mona. Will her life ever be straightforward? I hope not!
Time to read on: All That Glitters….
Review: One Month to Live
One Month to Live by Eloise De Sousa
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
I liked this strange little story. It is told in the first person by the ghost of a woman who has pre-deceased her mother. She knows that her mother’s time has come, but wants to make her last days more comfortable than the Grim Reaper has in his mind. She does her best to persuade him to be gentle.
More than that I cannot say, as this is a short story and I am already in danger of telling it all. I haven’t given away more than you’ll find in the first couple of pages though.
It is an imaginative piece of writing, with a very faint flavor of “The Book Thief” about it. You’ll see what I mean if you read both.
It is slightly spoiled by the number of typos and tiny errors, which are a distraction, but I would recommend it as a quick read to any of my friends.
Review: Fall Into Love
Fall Into Love by Serena Akeroyd
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
This is not so much book one in a series, although it really is, as an introduction to the series.
The story starts with Simone, also known as Mona, who is recently divorced and is feeling down and worthless, being taken to a club by her best girlfriends with a view to meeting a sexy man. That’s exactly what happens. He is a hunky, retired, marine commando called Zane, who has become a bestselling author.
They conclude the evening with the hottest sex of Mona’s life.
However, when Zane has left and Mona starts to research his background, she discovers the shocking truth.
That is where the first episode ends. The question is, will Mona see Zane again? I think that, as we all know this is the first in a series, there isn’t a single one of us who can’t work out the answer to that particular question.
As Serena Akeroyd intended, I cannot wait to read number two in the Naughty Nookie series!
Catching up on my book reviews
Normally, I post reviews of all books that I read within days of finishing them. Recently, I have lapsed in this habit because I have been concentrating on writing, reviewing and publishing my debut novel, Eleven Miles.
Today, you will see by the flood of posts on my blog, as well as on amazon.co.uk, amazon.com and goodreads.com, that I have resolved to catch up on my book reviews. I hope that my time is not wasted, and that these reviews will help potential readers to make informed decisions.
Happy reading in 2015!
Review: Quantum of Tweed: The Man with the Nissan Micra
Quantum of Tweed: The Man with the Nissan Micra by Conn Iggulden
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
I really loved this quirky little tale of a man who accidentally becomes a hired assassin. Impossible? Well, it is slightly far-fetched, but that’s what makes it such fun.
The story reminds me of Walter Minion’s Secret Life, which I also thoroughly enjoyed.
Highly recommended to all who would like to escape into the world of Albert Rossi for a few hours. You don’t know him? Well read the book!
