It Sleeps at Dawn by Anthony Renfro

***Thank you to Anthony for sending me his short story! It is much appreciated!***

Anthony Renfro is one of our own talents here in the blogosphere. You can check out his blog over at Poetry, Books, Movies and Music . He writes up haiku posts every day and he has released a very good selection of short stories with unique twists, predominantly in the horror genre.

With Halloween right around the corner, his new short story, It Sleeps at Dawn, is here right on time.

It Sleeps at Dawn (Short Story)
by Anthony Renfro

This short story is about a Vampire who stalks the Appalachian Mountains. A traditional Vampire who uses fangs instead of guns. He hunts. He kills. He sleeps at Dawn. – Goodreads 

Excerpt

She gripped her nerves tight, pushed back the fear, and stepped up to the door that she hoped led out of the long hallway and into freedom. The door was made of solid oak, black from top to bottom and side to side, with a gold door knob in the shape of a demon with two emerald green eyes. Bright red pentagrams were embedded into its wood. These pentagrams were so red they seemed to be filled with blood, ready to bleed at any moment, almost pulsing from their plumpness. She reached down for the handle, deep breaths filled with dread ran through her lungs, as her heart drummed a loud terror beat inside her chest. She turned the handle and opened the door, which was so heavy that it took two hands and a healthy dose of sweat to move.

Her heart sank once the door was wide open because there he stood, the man who had brought her here the night before. Her cloudy memory had finally opened up, spilling forth the information. It was the bar where they had met, the bar where he had laid on his charms, the bar where he had asked her to go home with him, the bar was the last memory she had before waking up in this mysterious place. And she was sure of another thing, he wasn’t the same man who had picked her up. That dashing handsome young man with the long black hair and dusty blue eyes, who stood at least six foot five, and was easily a foot taller than her was now nowhere to be seen. Instead of the young man dressed in modern clothes, here stood an ancient older man in dated black three piece suit with a cape tied around his neck. The cape fell to somewhere near the middle of his back. It was black to match the suit, but the interior of it was as red as the pentagrams on the door. His cologne wafted through the air as he stood there, an ancient smell of High Karate.

He smiled at her, an evil dark eat you alive from head to toe smile, which revealed large white fangs that hadn’t been there when he picked her up.

Review

Something about going back to the basic vampire formula is very dazzling. Everyone right now wants to add a new tweak to the vampire stories to make it unique but no one realizes that vampires in their traditional forms have a certain appeal. They create a danger through their clever, one-minded goals. They are sly and yet still have a disadvantage of living only in the evening. Plus, it adds a bit of mystery and magic to what they are. This is where Anthony’s story comes in as a rather fun one to read. On one hand, we get a view of the vampire and how he hunts for his victims. On the other hand, there is a portion of how his victims get lured into the trap. Through this short story, we already get a complete image of what a vampire’s abilities and his ruthlessness. While I can’t say that this is terrifying to read, it did feel slightly tense in the second half as the vampire’s plans seem to unfold and we, as the audience, looks in and can see the victims walking into a plan and are way above what they expected to find in the first place. Plus, Anthony uses very vivid imagery and language for a top notch writing that made it even more engaging to read. Definitely one of his finer short stories!

Where to get it

US: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01LXYPP02
UK:  https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B01LXYPP02
AU: https://www.amazon.com.au/dp/B01LXYPP02
CA: https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B01LXYPP02

Triple Feature: Fables of the Undead #4-6

The first few short stories for Halloween month is here! A year or two ago, I did the Fables of the Undead’s first three books (which are more like short stories). They belong to a bigger group of books called Zombie Kids Books by Dina T. Seth.

We are back with the remaining three books of Fables of the Undead series. You can check out my review of the first three HERE.

Beauty vs the Beast (Book#4)
by: Dina T Seth

When her father inadvertently brings the zombie plague to the Castle of the Beast, little does Belle know that she will have to live there too, as the sickened Prince’s prisoner. But how long can she survive against a zombified Beast before she too falls prey to the terrible sickness? – Goodreads

Beauty vs. the Beast doesn’t quite have the charm the first three had. For the most part, the stories are still morphed but they are predictable, even in how our Disney princess Belle gets zombified. The writing didn’t feel as engaging either but it did give a more honorable take on Gaspard (aka Gaston). Some of the description is very vivid near the end and I still question how suitable it is for kids to read but they do hold a horror element and those descriptions are usually at a minimum. However, the idea of Disney princess as zombies still has an appeal to me just because I like how they twist the story around. The pacing here is a little lacking but it remains a quick read. Plus it makes an effort to link to a previous story and that helps with the story while still keeeping it a standalone story.

Sleeping Zombie (Book #5)
by: Dina T Seth

Cursed by the Witch Queen, baby Princess Talia spends eighteen years living in fear of needles. But when the inevitable happens, an ancient curse of the undead is brought to Vernalia Castle, and the Princess and all its residents must be preserved by a magical spell……One hundred years later, a brave knight discovers the castle hidden within the Deep Forest of thorns, and inadvertently wakes up a zombie horde. Can he escape a living tomb of risen royalty, zombie fairies and a fearsome undead dragon!? – Goodreads

Sleeping Zombie is a twist on Sleeping Beauty. I’m sure its all wildly apparent. This story starts piecing together the whole series where we see a connection to the zombie plague that has broken out. Its not hard to imagine what will happen especially since I’m not a kid anymore. However, this book is a bit more exciting. It plays similarly to the original and the twist is rather apparent however, the characters here are fun to read. There is more to think about and more to look forward to. There is a solid setting and it seems that the plans of why this undead plague has hit the fairy tale world is starting to reveal itself of who the culprit is.

Rapunzel-Tower of the Dead (Book #6)
by: Dina T Seth

For seventeen years, Rapunzel has been held prisoner in a hidden tower. Her only contact with the outside world is via her “mother”, the evil Witch Queen – and now her slave, the brave knight Sir Cecil. Unfortunately for them all, a century-old zombie plague has awoken in the nearby Kingdom, and Rapunzel’s prison has become a tower of the undead. A Sir Cecil fights to protect her from the risen dead, little does he know that Rapunzel is infected too… – Goodreads

This is what I’m talking about. The last book of the Fables of the Undead wraps up the story a little more. We have continuing characters and links back more to previous books. It is well-paced and pretty clever with what it does. I don’t know much about the Rapunzel story other than her long hair and being in a tower so it didn’t matter to me how it would go since it would all be a surprise. However, it is fun to read and pretty exciting with some action and some mystery and even a bit of romance. There was a nice balance to everything. It is definitely a fun read. Even if you haven’t read the previous books in the series, it would matter too much either.

Overall, Fables of the Undead series is good because these books are standalone stories but keep a few links to make sure that it still has some connection. It is quick and short and rather easy to read. Some of the books fall a little flat at times but for the most part, it is pretty entertaining for the most part. There are some vivid descriptions that could be a little disgusting. However, it isn’t too disturbing, although I am still confused whether this is for kids (even I assume it should be seeing as its called Zombie Kids Books).

Have you read any of the Fables of the Undead yet?

Skin Job (The Car Nex Story Series #7) by Michael Thomas-Knight

A huge thanks to Mike over at Parlor of Horror and the author of this novella for sending it over to me to read and review! If you don’t know Parlor of Horror, you should check it out!

Skin Job
By: Michael Thomas-Knight

Alex, a tattoo artist in Queens, NY, is being driven out of business by Johnny Needles, a rival tattoo artist connected to the local gangs and biker clubs. As he falls further into depression and drug abuse, Alex is drawn to a nameless book he saw at his neighbor’s apartment. The book haunts his dreams, until he can’t resist and he finally steals it. At his lowest point, in the basement of the tattoo parlor, Alex uses the book to call forth the Car Nex demon. He is completely unaware of what he is about to unleash upon the neighborhood.-Goodreads

Skin Job is book seven (according to Goodreads) of the Car Nex series. I haven’t read any of the previous ones but it doesn’t matter because these seem to be individual stories. We don’t need prior knowledge to enjoy it.

I am no expert in reading about occult or “monster violence”. In fact, I can go to the extent of saying that its one of the few genres I do actually read. It is also probably why there was some nerves and excitement when I started. Skin Job starts off in a rather slow way to build up the main character Alex and the situation he is in. However, novellas are short in length so it doesn’t take long to set it all up and charge up the tension as it all elevates and pretty much goes out of control. Characters in Skin Job are deliberately flawed. Alex wallows in his own mess while we can tell from the relationship with Johnny that he lacks a bit of ethics perhaps as well. No one is perfect. Johnny doesn’t exactly ask for us to root for him either. As far as charming characters go, they are definitely some of the smaller supporting characters which provide a change in dynamic, especially that of a neighborhood restaurant owner.

There are so many aspects of Skin Job and are done well. For one, the writing style is fantastic. It has been a while that I’ve read such a great use of vocabulary and descriptions in stories. The words just flow onto the page. It feels natural to picture the setting and the characters and everything that is happening which makes it more absorbing to watch. Along with that, it quickly elevates where the Car Nex demon is released and things just go out of control in the most violently fun way. The Car Nex monster is also one that needs to be more known because it seems to be a rather smart monster also.

Overall, Car Nex is a very well-written novella with a slow start that quickly picks up its pace and builds on the intensity especially after the Car Nex demon dies.

The One You Love (Emma Holden Suspense #1) by Paul Pilkington

Next book to read is another one sitting in my Kindle for quite some time. I have to say that it is something I’ve been really intrigued by as a change of pace. I mean, the genre of thriller or suspense or mystery or the likes. It is nice to read something geared for an older audience than YA novels. I remember The One You Love being intriguing when I first downloaded it off the free bestsellers a few years back. Its been sitting in my Kindle for so long that the entire trilogy is now all available.

The One You Love
(Emma Holden Suspense Mystery #1)

By: Paul Pilkington

Emma Holden’s nightmare has just begun. Her fiancé vanishes, leaving the battered and bloodied body of his brother in their London apartment. Someone is stalking her, watching her every move. And her family are hiding a horrifying secret; a secret that threatens all those she loves. In a desperate race against time, Emma must uncover the truth if she ever wants to see her fiancé alive again.-Goodreads

 I feel like I say this a lot nowadays. Its a new wave crashing into my life. The One You Love has a really good premise. Its an overall effective suspense about stalking and obsessing and handling delicate situations and desperation and all kinds of stuff related to losing a fiancee right before a wedding, two times in a row. Emma just believes she has bad luck until her past starts haunting her. It is a good mystery and does have some pretty good moments, except it always feels like it drags on too long. There were some parts that honestly didn’t feel like it needed to be there and some extra editing would have gotten a better pacing.

The One You Love does do something really good.  It builds up a rather good twist to the mystery. It was a good level of deduction to guess who it was but at the same time, there were multiple little secrets that were brewing in the background however, it never felt convoluted. Plus, the last third of the novel was a page turner with a good ending. More novels should end like that because while it is a trilogy, it doesn’t drop you off in a cliffhanger that manipulates you to read the next novel. For choosing that path, good move! I appreciate it a lot. In fact, not being manipulated into a situation makes me more likely to want to read the next book which is something I’m thinking about however, it does cost money and that would break my promise this year. It’ll go straight to my next year reading list. 🙂

 There isn’t much to say about The One You Love mostly because I appreciated the book. It was a decent read, especially as its a free book. The quality is much better than what we find out there. This is however possibly the stepping stone of the series. The mystery and suspense is done well although the pacing could be better. While the ending plays on being a twist, it isn’t hard to eventually deduce who it might be and it does a good job and also misleading the readers to think of other possible suspects. The other secrets in the background keep the story intriguing. Give it a little patience and The One You Love might be one that is enjoyable.

Have you read The One You Love?

The Tale of the Golden Pirate by Anthony Renfro

Today’s book review is for a book sitting in my Kindle for a little while from a fantastic blogger and author Anthony Renfro over at Poetry, Books, Movies, and Music. I’ve read a few of his short stories before and read his first full novel AWOL as well. I’ve reviewed all of them here. This is the second novel I’ve read of Anthony’s called The Tale of the Golden Pirate, previously called as I realized Ghostly Visitations and Southern Destinations.

The Tale of the Golden Pirate
by Anthony Renfro

An Action-Adventure tale about pirates, ghosts, buried treasure, doomed love affairs, double crosses, drug deals, and creatures made of slime. An eclectic tale combining the world of Jimmy Buffett and Stephen King. Follow Parson’s journey as he is pushed into endless peril, and asked to do things most people are rarely asked to do. Does he get his buried treasure? Does he get that easy life so many of us dream about? The answers lie within the pages. –Goodreads

I haven’t read a lot of books about pirates. There’s a little bit of paranormal factors in here. The Tale of Golden Pirate is definitely an adventure. There are some little bumpy patches here and there but overall, its an enjoyable read. The story is pretty much about being introduced to man called Parson, a jogger and uncommitted sort of guy to his job or the girl he is with. I can’t say that Parson starts off being a really likeable character but in the course of the story, the readers learn to warm up to him a little more. The best thing that Anthony does is set some interesting characters and here, he does a good job at it. Parson’s character has good development while also keeping up with injecting various characters throughout to make it not just a solo journey but one filled with worthy encounters. Even the pirates who are ghosts of the past pose a mystery that keeps us guessing what the deal is and why Parson was chosen.

The Tale of the Golden Pirate does have a few clunky bits. Its not enough to put off reading but there were awkward parts. In rare places, we’d jump to talking about jogging which somewhat breaks the momentum of the adventure on hand. In later bits, there are parts of talking to the readers which I’m not sure how I liked it. I think if it was done throughout the book, it would be more effective and add a little fun twist to it. Maybe give it a consistent character. However, I do like the addition of haikus throughout the story. It was a nice touch especially since bloggers who know Anthony know that he writes a lot of haiku posts on his site and he is really good at them.

In a whole, The Tale of the Golden Pirate was a decent read. It does start off strongly and sets up a good pace for the novel. The pacing does lose a little steam in the middle bits. Whenever we are in the main adventure mode, the story is tight knit and absolutely engaging to read however, it does tend to veer off a little in parts. At times, it felt a little like I was missing the point of it or maybe it was to add a few casual moments in there. I’m not sure of the reasoning behind it. However, once we enter into the last third or quarter of the novel, things really pick up quickly and it is one big well-written page turner sequence.

Even with some rough patches, The Tale of the Golden Pirate has something different. The ending is well worth the scattered slow bits in the middle. While I might not recommend this as highly as his first novel, AWOL (review HERE), The Tale of the Golden Pirate deserves a chance. Its still an overall pleasant read.

Book Review: The Book of (Holiday) Awesome by Neil Pasricha

If you’ve read The Book of Awesome before, you’d know all about how this book is done. What started out as a blog has turned into a Bestseller for Neil Pasricha.  A quest to write daily about the little things in life that are in fact awesome or make us feel awesome! That was pre-book review days for me and a few years back and there are times when certain events that book mentions happens, I still think back and smile then cherish that moment because it is in fact awesome.

Following that book, he put out The Book of (Even More) Awesome which I’ve started but haven’t finished yet.  Same goes for this one, The Book of (Holiday) Awesome.  I started reading this book back in December 2012 and had originally wanted to read the whole thing and post it up as Christmas related posting.  As I eventually realized that it spread through little awesome things for holidays throughout the year, I stopped and only picked it back up earlier in June.  If I did put it down again, I’m probably going to forget it again and it’ll never be finished so the past week, I read it at night to relax until the end.

I’d have to say that this book was still enjoyable to read and I liked it quite a bit.  However, there is that “feel good” factor that isn’t as great as the first one.  I do say that the first part of the book when it focused on Christmas and New Year’s festivities. Along the way, there were some that stood out more than others for example, the Christmas lights on cranes.  I remember seeing that the day after I read that part and snapping a picture of it right away.  It was a pretty awesome feeling.

There isn’t really much to say about these but its really worth your time.  It helps us to appreciate the little things in life and on a bad day, they are just the perfect thing to brighten the day. It also lets us notice the details around us that we may miss.  Its all part of a very important underlying theme of being grateful for the things that we have and the everyday experiences that we go through.

If you had to pick one, I’d still say to go with the first one.  This was does a pretty decent job nonetheless 🙂

Book Review: World War Z by Max Brooks

My original intention was to finish reading World War Z before the movie hit theatres, however, that simply didn’t happen.  There were many reasons that I decided to see the movie without finishing the book, the main one being that the adapted version had about 10% correlation to the book.  If you happened to miss the review, you could check it out HERE! Moving on…

World War Z by Max Brooks is about the aftermath of the world surviving this zombie apocalypse.  The story is written as the person (Max Brooks) who interviews many of the men and women who witnessed it first hand in different countries with different backgrounds, contributing and taking advantage to or of the situation as it happened.  In their stories, we see the underlying social, economic, technological, political, etc issues.  The interviews and stories are separated in the phases of this war the almost ended humanity, from the warnings to the blaming, the panic, how it evolved in USA and then relating it to all around the world and eventually the way it ended, so to say, revealing the world they lived in as everyone rebuilds their life and many situations are reversed.

What started as a rather slow buildup in the beginning caught on slowly as each story progressed in their way and in their own direction. I supposed it was intended to be like that as in recounting the early stages of the zombie apocalypse and the warnings was slower.  It also reflects on the issues of ignorance.  The warnings were ignored and many eventually in the next part blamed it on the government or leaders, whichever organization for not acting at the correct time which would have possibly prevented this from happening or at least nipped it in the bud before it became a worldwide pandemic.

There was one part where I felt (as a Canadian) that there was a very pessimistic view of the American value.  I just wonder if an American reading this would feel that Max Brooks had a very strong feeling of hatred towards the population’s tendency to be self-centered and ignorant because for a few stories in the section of blame that was what I read between the lines.  However, those parts were also the ones that peaked my interest in the whole book from there.  However, if you think about it, many times we live our own lives and ignore a lot of issues going on around us until it is too late so maybe he was just using one population to reflect how many common people would react to a situation like this if it were to occur.

For the most part, this book was very intriguing.  The way it was set up was also very good.  The only issue I had was as I got to the end, I couldn’t remember the names anymore and in the last section when some of the previously interviewed men and women were saying their final parts and what they got out of this war, I had to flip back to the front and look at the countries and recheck their story to not be confused with what they would say.  That was slightly frustrating.  If it had an index or table of contents of the countries, that would’ve helped.  Just saying…maybe a lot of other people have better memory than me, but sometimes, after reading 30 different stories over 2 weeks, it gets a bit hard to recount it.

Overall, a great concept and an interesting read.  It spread through the worldwide spectrum and reflected the urgency and desperate situation that the zombie apocalypse brought and the different ways people fought it in different countries.  The majority of the stories were ones that would tug the heartstrings or make you sympathize or connect with the character, some other ones would make you wince in anger at the negative effects and how some people still was too selfish to see the big picture and many times causing it to be worse.  Its an eye-opener in general of human nature when put in the most gravest danger.

I gave it 4 of 5 stars in Goodreads but honestly, maybe it was more of a 3.5 (but I like to round up).  🙂

Have you read this before? How did you feel about it?

Book Review: Dead in the Family (Sookie Stackhouse #10) by Charlaine Harris

About a month ago, I read Sookie Stackhouse #9 Dead and Gone (see review HERE!).  I really wasn’t thinking of reading on this series after that one but I did find this one on special so I figured since I’m only 4 books away from the last one, I might as well tough it out.  Plus, I hate leaving things hanging.  Seeing as True Blood Season 6 starts this Sunday, I felt it appropriate to finish this Book#10 Dead in the Family up.

Dead in the Family is about the healing, conflicts and anger following the last book’s Faery War.  Sookie is now in a relationship with Eric.  Her fairy cousin Claude asks to move in with her as her great-grandfather Niall had decided to close the portal between the two worlds making the events of the last book feel somewhat stupid and useless.  Things get a bit complicated and they revolve mostly around the touchy issues of the two-natured weres and shifters exposing themselves causing Alcide and his pack to have to borrow Sookie’s land to shift.  Its there they smell an unknown fairy on her land.  This causes Sookie to be worried and to seek help.  On the other hand, Eric’s maker suddenly drops by with an unexpected “son” Alexei.  All these events eventually spiral out of control, as you’d expect.

I really don’t know how to summarize these plots anymore.  This one wasn’t boring like the last one.  It was just so scattered and choppy.  It was like 20 people (exaggeration, there’s not that many side stories) wrote a different part and put it together without bothering to add a link in between them and the previous books.  This caused some things that didn’t really mesh with the characters that has been known.  Eric seems to really lose how he usually is, and some parts of it aren’t too logical.  Although, if I was being totally logical, I don’t think I’d read these guilty pleasure reads. Claude does a 180 and turns into this caring relative.  I mean all this is just the beginning.

There were certain segments that was interesting to read unlike the last book.  Even without correlations, it was alright.  Not too boring, mostly because there was so much to follow.  What drops it a bit more is the ending which ended ridiculously fast. It makes everyone else in the story somewhat silly for not have thought of it in the first place.

Overall, an okay read which shows signs of bringing up questions that have to be considered.  We know that the situation will only get worse as always, just depends what path it will go the author will choose.  I’m assuming this book is a bridge to connect to the upcoming events.  I’ll only know later. For now, I’ll be taking a break from reading these since the season starts soon.  It will resume after the season is over(maybe).

Book Review: Quiet:The Power of Introverts in a World That Can’t Stop Talking by Susan Cain

I don’t usually read a lot of non-fiction but seeing as I’m an introvert this seemed to be relevant and interesting to read. Plus it won the Goodreads Best Nonfiction of 2012 🙂

This book, Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can’t Stop Talking is Susan Cain‘s research into the world of extroversion and introversion from the studies that start looking at its affect on youth to adolescent and as we get older, the personality traits, etc. We see as each research relates to someone or a situation that has happened to help us better understand what she’s trying to say.

Who knew I would pick up one of these without it being assigned to me, right? I was thinking about that throughout the book.

Don’t get me wrong though, this was a pretty good read.  Especially if you are like me.  Being introvert has really been something I’ve been fighting and criticized by my parents about.  Its made me (in certain times of my life) feel that I’m less worthy and that its bad to be who I am.  So I’ve changed on the outside to meet what they call the Extrovert Ideal.

Its a book that focuses on letting introverts, pseudo-extroverts, extroverts understand more about themselves or the people they work with, live with, or love in their life.  You can’t assume that introverts are a certain way and in their research, they’ve found that actually a greater proportion of people in the world are introverts just each finds their way to cope with it.

Heres a quote that sums up the essence of this book really well:

Whoever you are, bear in mind that appearance is not reality.  Some people act like extroverts, but the effort costs them in energy, authenticity, and even physical health.  Others seem aloof or self-contained, but their inner landscapes are rich and full of drama.  So the next time you see a person with a composed face and a soft voice, remember that inside her mind, she might be solving an equation, composing a sonnet, designing a hat.  She might, that is, be deploying the powers of quiet. – Susan Cain

Reading this made me somewhat understand myself a bit better as an introvert.  It makes me feel normal that I get overwhelmed and need breaks from being in huge crowds and socializing too frequently.  It lets me understand the traits that make me talk less and analyze more.  Maybe we can use being an introvert as an excuse to not socialize, but they also give possible solutions for certain scenarios.  It allows us to see them in another light and the misconceptions with that.

It doesn’t discredit extroverts to say that they are lesser in the society but rather it helps appreciate an introvert for the skills and abilities and traits that they can bring to a relationship, work or personal.  They look at so many different angles of introversion and in many cases, encourages introverts to stick to who they are and to find that comfort zone the works.

I definitely recommend this book to everyone because this book has something for extroverts, introverts, parents, coworkers, etc.  I am a bit more picky on research-filled books because I have read my fair share of them in the 20+ years of education.  This one really held me and maybe a part of it is because it relates to me and I kept asking myself which side of the spectrum in certain researches I fell in.  However, if it doesn’t relate to you directly, it will because you probably know someone in your life who is like that.

Let me end with another quote that I like:

Introverts are offered keys to private gardens full of riches.  To possess such a key is to tumble like Alice down her rabbit hole.  She didn’t choose to go to Wonderland – but she made of it an adventure that was fresh and fantastic and very much her own.

Book Review: The Better Man Project by Evan Sanders

*I’m going to change my structure of the Book reviews now.  I’m going to just post this link in the review section of Goodreads.  Again, if you’d like to add me to your Goodreads, I’d love to see what you are reading.*

A fellow blogger Evan@ The Better Man Project (click on the link there to see his latest pos) published his new motivational/inspirational book, The Better Man Project. If you haven’t checked out his blog, its a nice little space to visit with lots of motivational and uplifting words and posts.  I always like to stop by and I always leave with a little bit more.

I don’t usually read books in this genre but seeing as I adore reading Evan’s blog, I decided to buy it since he also made this available on e-book at a very affordable price of $4.99 USD.  I’m still adapting to reading e-books..so this one took me a 3 weeks to read. Hopefully the next book review will be in a shorter time frame 🙂

This book is about his ongoing journey to becoming a better man.  Explain what he values and the importance of it, its motivating and inspiring others to not be afraid to dream big and to chase your dreams.  I`m going to quote the book for writing the synopsis with one of his sentences in his book:

I always promised to make my writing as honest as possible, encompassing both the light and the darkness while setting out with the aim to inspire others to lead powerful and inspiring lives.-Evan Sanders

He talks about what he has gone through and the little things that happen in his life to lead him to change his perspective on things and uses it to show us how to view others and see issues in a more positive light.

There really isn’t much of a summary to the book but that.  Its not a fictional story but an account of what one person has gone through. I think his project is quite honorable and worthy of mention.  The path to become a better person, the path to have the courage to follow our passion is a huge step and one that maybe before I read this, I had already understood those perspectives.  However, sometimes we need to read it again for the reminder to keep things in positive light.

It was quite an inspirational read, mostly because there were many situations where I connected and related to.  It helped me see some issues I was having in another perspective.  I think the end goal of this book was right on.  It definitely was an enjoyable read 🙂

If Evan reads this, I wish him the best of luck with this book, and fellow readers out there (I know there’s a few of you), remember to check it out and give him some support!