Sage Nestler's Blog, page 26
February 19, 2018
Book Review: Reflections of a Scurvy Bastard by Joseph Ferguson
Title: Reflections of a Scurvy Bastard
Author: Joseph Ferguson
Rating: 5/5
Synopsis:
Poems of nature.
Poems of the street.
Gritty, light.
Nostalgic, raw.
Stark, indelible images that leap off the page and smack you stupid.
Poems to make you flinch.
Poems to make you smile.
They’re all here.
Waiting.
Short Review
Reflections of a Scurvy Bastard is a raw poetry collection that captures glimpses of life and dreams in quick, painful excerpts.
Full Review
I adore poetry. As a poet myself, I relish in the raw prose of my fellow authors. Joseph Ferguson is one of the greats. He is able to write poems about various subjects in a way that is both jolting and beautiful. His work reminds me of the great Charles Chbosky in the way that some of his poems come across as brash and gritty, but his use of phrasing turns the language into art.
Ferguson’s poem Santa Clause is an excellent example of his brash phrasing. The way that he paints Santa Clause as a drunk is both satirical and metaphorical, and it challenges the reader to look deeper into his wording.
Reflections of a Scurvy Bastard is a mix of both brazen poems about various everyday subjects, as well as deeper insights into literature and the art of poetry. I found most of the poems to be freeform with a sprinkling of haikus throughout the collection. My favorite poem from the book is Classics Illustrated due to its take on comic book illustrations. I loved the way that Ferguson used language to bring book illustrations to life. I felt as though he insinuated that comic books and illustrated books present alternate worlds and realities that are just as alive as ours. The mystification of Ferguson’s writing always astounds me, and I appreciate how he challenges the reader to look at various situations in a deeper light. His poetry is not light, but difficult to read, and that is what makes his poetry a true gift.
Final Thought
Reflections of a Scurvy Bastard is an excellent poetry collection that connects each poem in a way that becomes a jumbled story. If you are familiar with my reviews you may know I rarely give out 5-star reviews, but this collection deserves all 5 of those stars. I applaud books that deepen my awareness and challenge me to read outside of the box. I highly suggest this quick collection to any poetry lover who is looking for a brazen new artist to follow. You won’t be disappointed.
February 18, 2018
Literary Vacation Club: January Box Reveal
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It is time to reveal our January “Future World” box at Literary Vacation Club!
This box was a celebration of the future and the sci-fi genre.
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INCLUDED:
Book: Husks by Randall P. Fitzgerald + Author Letter
TO SEE: H.P. Lovecraft Notebook + Multi-Colored Pens + Exclusive Passport Stamp
TO HEAR: Exclusive Spotify Playlist
TO TOUCH: Sci-Fi Inspired Platinum Crochet Phone Pouch
TO SMELL: Aromatherapy Face Scrub + Crochet Face Scrubbers
TO TASTE: Survival Mix Including Fruit Snacks + Powdered Lemonade + Moon Pies
BONUS: 2018 Reading Log
NEW SUBSCRIBERS ONLY: Reading Passport
This box was designed to propel subscribers into the future! Our 2018 Reading Log is split up by months and includes TBR lists with book review pages. Our reading passport is also given to new subscribers and comes with slots for our passport stamps with book review pages.
Our current destination is New Orleans!
Order your box by March 10 to receive this festive reading vacation.
USE CODE “NOLA10” for 10% off!
Book Bundle Giveaway!
To celebrate my author takeover today on Author Friends with Benefits, I am giving away a mystery paperback book and author swag bundle. This is a HUGE prize pack, and it is open WORLDWIDE.
To enter, follow the directions on my Rafflecopter giveaway AND comment on this post when you are done.
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ENTER NOW
February 17, 2018
Author Takeover
Tomorrow I will have an author takeover on Facebook, and I would love for you to join me!
This spotlight event is to celebrate K.M. Pyne’s new book, and there will games, prizes, and so much more! During my takeover, I will be giving away a paperback book bundle including one of my books and a few books from my fellow indie authors. To participate in the giveaway, you will need to visit the event during my time slot at 1 PM EST (11 AM MST).
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To attend, join the Author Friends with Benefits group on Facebook! This is a great group to meet authors and books as well.
February 12, 2018
Theme Reveal: Literary Vacation Club – New Orleans, Louisiana
It is time to reveal our March theme destination at Literary Vacation Club! This March we are taking you to New Orleans, Louisiana, and I can’t wait to share our chosen book with you! Each item in the box is exclusive to New Orleans, and the experience will bring Mardi Gras to you.
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As always, our box includes:
1 Book
Items to See
Items to Hear
Items to Taste
Items to Touch
Items to Smell
Our multi-sensory reading experience is one of a kind, and it is designed to bring you a self-care experience to relax and rejuvenate you for the year ahead!
Use Code “NOLA10” for 10% off!
February 10, 2018
Pre-Order: Kallista by Sian B. Claven
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There is an awesome new horror novel coming out on February 15 that you just have to check out! The novel is called “Kallista” by Sian B. Claven, and the ebook is now available for pre-order. I am so happy to be sharing with you another great female horror author for Women in Horror Month! I know that you will love her work. Check out the thrilling blurb below!
Much love,
Ashley
*•.¸(*•.¸(*•.¸★¸.•*´)¸.•*´)¸.•*´
★★★★NEW RELEASE★★★★
¸.•*´(¸.•*´(¸.•*´★`*•.¸)`*•.¸)`*•.¸
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I told you watch your back.
An itch that needs to be scratched.
A case that needs to be solved.
A mastermind killer on the loose.
A sister who wants answers.
Delve into the mind of The Butcher who has an itch that needs satisfying. The only way to satisfy it is to take another life. Follow Kallista, the middle child of the Metz family and younger sister of Tatum, while she pursues him, going over each case she thinks is related to him, trying to find out the truth.
Is she having a psychological break every time she sees the apparition of one of his victims, or is she actually seeing spirits that are trying to tell her what really happened?
The Butcher can’t get away with it again. His body count is getting too high. Sooner or later the odds won’t be in his favour and they’re not in Kallista’s either; but she’s too busy obsessing over him to see the obvious coming for her.
Death comes to those who do not see.
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February 7, 2018
Behind Broken Glass Walls: New Review
After looking at my books on Goodreads today, I came across a new 5-star review for my novel, Behind Broken Glass Walls! There is nothing that makes me happier than knowing that my work has impacted someone in some way. Please read on to for the lovely review! Thank you all so much for your support.
Much love,
Ashley
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Well, this certainly was a book that had me sitting on the edge of my seat, tissues in one hand, and a glass of wine in the other. Heavy, heavy subject matter, but oh my, so incredibly GOOD!
I thought the Author handled it brilliantly. The taking of such innocent, young lives in a school massacre is not an easy topic to talk about, let alone write an entire novel on. But the Author did it, and did it exceedingly well. It was handled with tact, dignity, and an enormous degree of compassion, for both the victims, and the perpetrator.
As the reader you are given a rare insight into the mind of a mass murderer. Yes, I know, those words sound harsh, because they are harsh. And at no time in the story do you ever forget that despite the fact the killer is only a child, she still needs to be labelled as a mass murderer. She murdered seventeen students, and there is no escaping that horror. It was an evil, monstrous thing to do, and something no parent should ever be forced to live through.
But here’s the thing that got me thinking while I was reading this story. Rarely do children commit such vile acts unless provoked. Adults yes, adults often do despicable things to each other, but children, not often, and not without reason.
Now while nothing excuses what the lead character Drachea did to those poor innocent children, you have to ask yourself, what type of emotional torment and hell was she in to make her feel this was her only way out? How cold and dead was she inside to enable her to take lives in such a cold blooded way? And what the hell had happened to her to make her become like this?
Bullying and sexual assault. ‘Boys will just be boys’ was the way the Principal of Drachea’s school described it to her mother. I’m sorry, but sexual assault goes way beyond ‘boys being boys’, and to have someone in a position of authority condoning that type behaviour is an insult to the entire female population. How dare someone trivialize such a violation of our bodies and our rights. Especially when those bodies are children. Had the principal taken the assault against Drachea’s best friend Emmalynne more seriously, he could have perhaps prevented the horror that was to follow. But no, he waved it away, ‘boys will just be boys’.
Again, nothing excuses what Drachea did, she was wrong, her actions were wrong, but it’s very clear that her mind was wrong. Should her mother have picked up on her strange behaviour? I don’t think so, and even if she had, what could she have done? I think Drachea was gone long before any shots were fired. The damage had been done, she’d shut down and shut everyone out.
I loved this book, even though at times it was so difficult to read. I would have to walk away sometimes, just for a break, the emotion too much and too raw.
It deserves all the fives stars I’m giving it, and I believe it is a book that should be read by everyone, especially those who have children, you can learn so much from it, and from so many different perspectives. That’s another thing the Author has done brilliantly, she has been able to show the reader how this horrific incident impacted each individual life it touched, so you walk away knowing what it feels like to be the mother of the murderer, the father, the best friend, and the victims.
This is a story that will stay with me long after I finished reading.
February 5, 2018
Women in Horror Month – Feature 1
February is Women in Horror month, and I am so excited to share the month with you! As a female horror author and horror fanatic myself, I am very passionate about female representation in horror.
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To kick off the month, I am introducing to you the table of contents for a new horror collection that will be featuring my poem “In the Shadow of the Damned”! This collection is called “Death’s Garden”, and it is filled with short stories and poems by numerous horror authors (many of whom are female).
Enjoy!
Much love,
Ashley
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Table of Contents
1 Sugar and Spice by Jill Hand
2 Flesh Floret by Sara Tantlinger
3 Hell is More Than Half of Paradise by O.R. Dalby
4 Eve of All Souls by Susan A Sheppard
5 Song of the Soil by Steven Wynne
6 In the Shadow of the Damned by A.M. Nestler
7 The Plague Trees by Ross Baxter
8 Death’s Garden by Michael H Hanson
9 The Final Coupling by Shaun Avery
10 Eternal Blossom by Mathias Jansson
11 Green Growing Things by Dale W Glaser
12 Nursery by Chad Lutzke
13 Rhymes With Orange by Gregory L Norris
14 Plant Them Deep by Jordan King-Lacroix
15 How Does Your Garden Grow by JG Faherty
16 Relief by R. Bratten Weiss
17 Monstrous Veg by Liam Hogan
18 Roaches in the Wormwood by David Shultz
19 Cornographic by Jonah Buck
20 Seeds of Guilt by Claire Smith
21 The Master and The Mushroom by Max D Stanton
22 The Bodies Never Ripen in the Grapeyard by Kurt Newton
23 Fleurs Du Mal by Edward Ahern
24 The Garden by Alan Rozinski
25 Queensfield by John McCallum Swain
February 1, 2018
Cover Reveal: It Started With A Kiss by Cathy Johns, C.J. Welles, J.A. Collard, and Stacey McCoy
With Valentine’s Day fast approaching, I am excited to reveal to you a new cover for a collection of romance novellas! It Started With A Kiss is brimming with steamy romance stories to keep you company this Valentine’s Day. Enjoy!
Much love,
Ashley
*´¨)
¸.•´¸.•*´¨) ¸.•*¨)…
(¸.•´ (¸.•` COVER REVEAL
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TITLE : It Started With A Kiss
AUTHORS : Cathy Johns, C.J. Welles, J.A. Collard, Stacey McCoy
GENRE : Romance
COVER DESIGN : V Designs
RELEASE DATE : February 14th 2018
BLURB : Four talented authors have teamed up together to bring you four sexy, hot, romance novellas.
Be captivated as they take you into the lives of their main characters and how all it took was just one kiss to change their paths forever.
Be prepared for some sultry, sexy and steamy romance to hit the pages of It Started With a Kiss.
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January 27, 2018
Series Spotlight: The Blood of Dragons
I am SUPER excited to share with you a new high fantasy novel that is just waiting to sweep you away! Heshayol is the sequel to Anaerfell, which I won in a giveaway awhile back, and I fell in love with it from the start. If you love dragon-centered novels, then you are going to fall in love with The Blood of Dragons series. Enjoy!
Much love,
Ashley
Heshayol: The Blood of Dragons Book 2
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Over a millennium ago, at their father’s command, Tyran and Drast sent the Horned God to the Netherworld in hopes of gaining everlasting life. Instead, they sparked a chain of events that led to the near destruction of the Ash Tree and the liberation of the old gods. Now, with the world waning, the two brothers are freed from Anaerfell to travel to the frozen realm of the dead and resurrect their enemy with hopes of restoring balance. Tyran and Drast journey between time and space with limitless magic at their fingertips to face demon legions, forsaken immortals, and the realization that the malevolence of their father is not yet done.
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They knew killing a dragon wasn’t going to be easy. Especially not one that was also a god. But they never expected to be punished so brutally, or for so long. Death is no escape when you’ve already slain the Horned God to the Netherworld.
Pre order only $2.99 and for a limited time you can get the first book Anaerfell for only $.99.
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Authors
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Joshua Robertson is an award-winning author in epic, dark fantasy. You may recognize him as the dude whose dragons were said to destroy George R.R. Martin’s and Christopher Paolini’s dragons in a very biased Twitter poll. His first novel, Melkorka, was released in 2015, and he has been writing fantasy fiction like clockwork ever since. Known most for his Thrice Nine Legends Saga, Robertson enjoys an ever-expanding and extremely loyal following of readers. He currently lives in North Carolina with his better half and his horde of goblins. Learn more at http://www.robertsonwrites.com or connect with him on Instagram @RobertsonWrites.
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J.C. lives in the Midwest with his wife and two dogs. He recently earned his MA in English Literature and is working on his debut novel for his own fantasy world. Despite growing up with Dungeons & Dragons, Lord of the Rings, and a collection of both Dragonlance and Forgotten Realms novels, J.C. has an abiding love of classics and spends his free time reading anything he can get his hands on.
Heshayol https://www.amazon.com/Heshayol-Blood-Dragons-Book-2-ebook/dp/B078Y8G2VX/ref=asap_bc?ie=UTF8
Website http://www.robertsonwrites.com
Amazon http://amzn.to/1HOhIth
Goodreads https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4452549.Joshua_Robertson
Facebook https://www.facebook.com/AuthorJoshuaRobertson
Twitter http://www.twitter.com/robertsonwrites
Newsletter https://www.subscribepage.com/thriceninelegends
