Reaper: A Horror Novella by Jonathan Pongratz

Reaper: A Horror Novella
By: Jonathan Pongratz

Gregory and his little sister Imogen love spending Halloween with their parents. But this year is different. If he proves he can take care of Imogen all by himself, he’ll finally have the allowance he’s dreamed of.

That was before the basement door opened on its own. Before the strange door appeared in the basement and Imogen was taken from him by the monster.

Now everyone in town is blaming him for her disappearance, but no one is listening to his story. Where did the door come from? What was that creature? And most of all, can he find his sister before it’s too late, or will he bury his memories of her along with his parents? – Goodreads

*Book received in exchange of honest review*

The Reaper is an interesting novella to review. On one hand, there are a few elements here that aren’t exactly unique and yet, the execution and pacing of the story definitely gives it a boost because its length gives it a story that keeps moving forward, leaving enough space for mystery and resolution without ever feeling like it takes a break. Its definitely one of the more gripping stories. The story and set up itself is fairly predictable. I’m not someone who gets too bothered by horror tropes as long as its well-executed. Its where this novella works as its a gripping story from beginning to the end.

There is a bit of a lore in the making as it uses a few elements of beliefs like the Boogeyman, children as well as taking the door to another realm as a basis. At the same time, its much more than just believing a child’s side of the story but its set up as a recount of a situation which makes it start from the end. In some cases, those set-ups actually don’t work well especially for horror tales because they take away the threat to the protagonist. Reaper still manages to keep things moving at one direction and where it works really well is the twist of the end that gives substance to the ending as it leads into another rather unexpected situation.

Its not easy to talk about a novella without giving away spoilers so I’m going to keep this fairly short. There is quite a bit to like about Reaper. Seeing as I’ve been rather picky with horror stories since I’m a tad desensitized from the amount of horror movies that I watch in general, however, this one was definitely a page-turner. It had some creepy moments and the story does take a nice twist of events. Overall, its a fun one even if the set up feels familiar, the second half definitely makes up for it.

Score: 4.5 out of 5

Blog Tour: Forgotten Magic (Magic Underground Anthology #3) [Excerpt/Giveaway]

Welcome to the blog tour for the final installment from the Magic Underground trilogy, Forgotten Magic! Read on for an exclusive excerpt and a chance to win a paperback copy of the book!

Forgotten Magic (Magic Underground #3)

Publication Date: May 2020
Genre: Anthology/Fantasy/Magic
Publisher: Magical Mayhem Press

SYNOPSIS

For the last time, these heroes, witches, wizards, vikings and more will put it all on the line. No quest is too dangerous. No monster be it a dragon or something cuddlier with teeth is off-limits in the epic conclusion to the Magic Underground Trilogy. Stay tuned for details.

Add to Goodreads

EXCERPT

Excerpt: The Ones Who Choose by C. S. Johnson

Before I’d left to return home, Ai started talking to me about the Bloodmagic.

After I’d rescued him from the tower, I had taken him down to the caves. I’d settled him in one as best as I could, and then faced the cave entrance, keeping a lookout for Aiden. I was more concerned for Aidan at first; I didn’t know if he was coming or not. There was a good chance that when Ai was taken, the Community Elders would find a way to keep everyone in the tower until they had answers. As much as we were both in this together, I didn’t know what to expect now that we’d accomplished something this big.

But as Ai kept talking to me, and considering his talk of condemnation, I began to ask Ai questions. It didn’t take us long to talk about Bloodmagic.

“Bloodmagic is their word for the sacrifice,” Ai said.

“What?” My head snapped to look at him, as if to make sure he wasn’t trying to fool me. Instantly, I regretted my action, seeing his mangled body and the sad condition it was in. That was part of the reason I’d offered to stand watch in the caves, keeping my focus on the entrance. While I did not want the Community Elders to find us, and although I was watching for Aidan, I did not want to look at Ai too much. He made me feel uncomfortable.

Ai slumped beside me, looking out toward the cave entrance. The last of the sunlight was gone, and the temperature dropped. Ai did not seem to notice, even if he was nearly naked, with only a thin cloth around his loins.

“They call humanity’s curse ‘Bloodmagic,’” Ai said. “That is their name for it. I don’t think they like to think about it much.”

“If this is why you’ve been hurt, they probably don’t like to think of it,” I said. I glanced at him quickly, before reverting my eyes back to the cave entrance. “This is terrible.”

“It is,” Ai agreed. “But it is like I told you before. All of my suffering is your suffering.”

“That’s not right.”

He shook his head. “It doesn’t matter. I have been alive for nearly a century, thanks to the Bloodmagic, and this is just the way things are. That is why I would prefer that you return me to my tower room.”

“What?” I gasped at the remark. “No. Why would you want that?”

“The Community won’t survive long, Skyla,” Ai said. “Without the Bloodmagic Covenant, the full effects of suffering will return to your friends and family swiftly and mercilessly. They will suffer, and in their suffering, they will make others suffer more. They might even begin to enjoy hurting others if we don’t hurry.”

“But you will suffer if you return,” I said. “And I will make you suffer, too. I don’t want that. Can’t something else be done about the Bloodmagic?”

“There is nothing that can be done about human nature,” Ai said quietly. “We are prone to self-destruction, and we live in a world where pain and suffering are constants. All the countries and nations of the world have wrestled with this question, and in the end, all of the pain still exists. Many tried to fix the problem and only made it worse.

“So they decided to try something else. And it works.” He reached up and touched the shard on his forehead, the one what was darkening along with the sky. “If I am not returned, the suffering will only increase, and you will see people at their very worst. Every evil, selfish, and ignorant thought will manifest into danger and disaster. I’ve been able to hold off their degeneracy for a long time, and without me, they will exponentially become violent and careless.”

“Surely we still have some more time to stop them.” I put my hands together, trying to think of something else. “Maybe it is a matter of education. The adults here are smart. They’ll be able learn how to deal with the pains our Community has.”

Ai shook his head. “You don’t understand,” he said with a sad sigh. “But you will, once you see it. You must promise me you will not forget me when you do, or you could be at risk, too.”

From that moment, we lapsed into silence, and I was grateful.

I shivered as we sat there, but I didn’t think it was because of the chill in the air.

Purchase Link: Amazon

AUTHOR LIST

Melinda Kucsera
Joynell Schultz
Lee French
H.B. Lyne
Raven Oak
L.C. Ireland
Alesha Escobar
Tiffany Shand
C.S. Johnson
Anela Deen
Erik Kort
Devorah Fox
Stephen Wallace
Gwendolyn Woodschild
Leah W. Van Dinther
Barbara Letson
C.K. Rieke
William C. Cronk
Majanka Verstraete
Toasha Jiordano
H.M. Jones
Krista Ames
A.R. Johnston

GIVEAWAY

Print copy of the book
Enter Giveaway HERE

BLOG TOUR SCHEDULE

June 1st

Reads & Reels (Spotlight) http://readsandreels.com
Tranquil Dreams (Spotlight) https://klling.wordpress.com/
Lunarian Press (Review) https://www.lunarianpress.com/

June 2nd

C. Vonzale Lewis (Spotlight) https://cvonzalelewis.com/index.php/blog/
Crystal’s Book World (Spotlight) http://crystalsbookworld.wordpress.com
Jennifer Mitchel, Bibliolater (Spotlight) https://www.jennifermitchellbooks.com
The Magic of Wor(l)ds (Spotlight) http://themagicofworlds.wordpress.com

June 3rd

Dark Whimsical Art (Spotlight) https://www.darkwhimsicalart.com/blogs/news
Sophril Reads (Spotlight) http://sophrilreads.wordpress.com
Jessica Belmont (Review) https://jessicabelmont.wordpress.com/
The Faerie Review (Spotlight) http://www.thefaeriereview.com

June 4th

Breakeven Books (Spotlight) https://breakevenbooks.com
Carrie’s Book Reviews (Spotlight) https://carriesbookreviews.com/
Indies Reviews (Spotlight) http://indieproreview.blogspot.com/
Just 4 My Books (Spotlight) http://www.just4mybooks.wordpress.com
Misty’s Book Space (Spotlight) http://mistysbookspace.wordpress.com
The Cozy Pages (Spotlight) http://thecozypages.wordpress.com/
Books Teacup & Reviews (Spotlight) https://booksteacupnreviews.wordpress.com/

June 5th

Dash Fan Book Reviews (Spotlight) https://dashfan81.blogspot.com/
Banshee Irish Horror Blog (Spotlight) www.bansheeirishhorrorblog.com
Lecari’s Live Journal (Review) http://www.lecari.co.uk

Blog Tour Organized By:

R&R Book Tours

Murder in Montague Falls by Russ Colchamiro, Sawney Hatton & Patrick Thomas

MURDER IN MONTAGUE FALLS
By: Russ Colchamiro, Sawney Hatton & Patrick Thomas

*Book received in exchange for honest review*

Murder in Montague Falls are three stories set in the same place relating to different characters and also giving them a different element of noir-inspired stories whether its about Satanism or witnessing a murder to bring involved in a murder. All the stories are executed fairly well and have their own little levels of twist. As with most batch of separate stories put together, it each has their pros and cons and some work better than others. It seems natural to review each of the stories separately as they are individual stories.

The first story, Red Ink by Russ Colchamiro, and the only author in the three that I’ve previously read a novel of, is through and through a story, somewhat in the veins of movies like Disturbia where a paperboy witnesses a murder and suspects who does it but ends up being denied and tries to take actions into his own hands to find out the truth. Its the best of the three stories which is great as it starts off the book in a very good pace. The story itself and the main character has a good level of depth and the murder and investigation all are pretty clever with how everything unfolds. It borders a little on whether the murderer he suspects is actually it while also have two sides of the spectrums in play with the paperboy as well as the detective on the case also have parts with his suspicions.

The second story is The Devil’s Delinquents which is very well-written as well. It drags a little longer than it should at some points, however, the trio here are written very well. The whole Satanism concept mixed with the endgame of the entire story is one that I rarely read so it feels like a breath of fresh air to break through the norm. At the same time, what is excellent here is mostly in the descriptions whether its the more blood and gory bits or even in how the group dresses or what they do are all described in such detail that its easy to visualize the scenes as they happen which brings immersion. Its not an easy thing to do and yet, Sawney Hatton does a great job at it.

The third story is A Many Splendid Thing which is probably the weaker of the three stories. It touches onto something of a flipped side of an erotic thriller kind of deal while also having some fairly familiar and obvious outcomes of the story itself. Its predictability takes away from it while the characters are designed to be rather unpleasant to read about making it hard to root for the main character. At the same time, what does work in this one is the final twist, while still easy to figure out, still manages to use the little details to piece together something that works out especially as the ending page or two definitely speaks a rather raw level of truth as a result of what the character went through that seems a given but yet a lot of stories of this variety never say it straight forward like that which has a certain level of satisfaction to read.

Blog Tour: Murder in Montague Falls (Spotlight)

Murder in Montague Falls
by: Russ Colchamiro, Sawney Hatton & Patrick Thomas

SYNOPSIS

WHITE HOT THRILLS! PITCH BLACK DEEDS!

3 TALES OF TEENS TACKLING THEIR DARKEST RITES OF PASSAGE

Acclaimed storytellers Russ Colchamiro, Sawney Hatton, and Patrick Thomas each present an original novella brimming with enough danger, intrigue, and murder to get readers’ blood pounding and hearts racing.

In Colchamiro’s RED INK, a paperboy with an overactive imagination witnesses a brutal killing on his route—or has he taken his fantasy spy games a step too far?

In Hatton’s THE DEVIL’S DELINQUENTS, a trio of teenage misfits in pursuit of success, power, and revenge practice amateurish occult rituals… with deadly consequences.

In Thomas’s A MANY SPLENDID THING, a sultry high school teacher enrolls one of her students to get rid of her husband. But will the young man really graduate to murder?

Add to Goodreads

EXCERPT

Red Ink:

An infrared scope cut through the suburban tree line.

Perched on a high-angle branch in the neighbor’s spruce tree, Isaac could see her through the living room window, six houses away.

The M21 semi-automatic sniper rifle with fiberglass stock and 20-round box magazine was snug against his shoulder.

One bullet. One body.

Though camouflaged within a thicket of evergreen leaves, he had a clean shot.

“Come on,” he whispered, his eye against the scope. “Give me the signal.”

In perfect synchronicity, Isaac’s earpiece crackled. “Target confirmed. Kill shot approved.”

The Devil’s Delinquents:

Natalie exits her room with the ritual kit, locking the door behind her.

Her father, swathed in a cornucopia-pattern quilt, sits in his wheelchair in the den, positioned near enough the window so that he can be in the daylight. Maybe he enjoys it, but one cannot tell for certain since his face registers no enjoyment, nor any other emotion.

Natalie kneels down before him, flips up the quilt, and undoes the bottom three buttons of his shirt, exposing his stomach. Between her fingertips, she wields the double-edged blade for a safety razor. She carefully nicks the skin above his father’s belly button. She looks up at him, detects no reaction.

She makes intersecting six-inch-long slices into his stomach, then carves a large circle around the lines, working around the seeping blood. Upon finishing, she evaluates her work and nods.

“I’m going to bring you back, daddy,” Natalie says to him, kissing his knuckles. “I promise.”

A Many Splendid Thing:

Rosa went from smiling to bawling in less time than it took to blink. I pulled her in and held her against my bare chest. She pounded my ribs with her closed fists.

“Why won’t you understand! There is no other way! If we don’t kill him soon, you’ll come to school one day and find that he killed me. How are you going to feel then? Especially if he figures out that you’re my lover! You would follow me to the Pearly Gates.”

“Rosa, this talk of killing is crazy.”

She pushed herself back and slapped me hard across the face. “You think I’m crazy?”

ABOUT THE AUTHORS

RUSS COLCHAMIRO is the author of the rollicking space adventure, Crossline, the zany sci-fi backpacking series Finders Keepers, Genius de Milo, and Astropalooza, editor of the sci-fi mystery anthology, Love, Murder & Mayhem, and contributing author for his newest project, Murder in Montague Falls, a noir novella collection, all with Crazy 8 Press.

Russ has contributed to several other anthologies including Tales of the Crimson Keep, Pangaea, They Keep Killing Glenn, Altered States of the Union, Thrilling Adventure Yarns, Brave New Girls vols. 3&4, Camelot 13, TV Gods 2, and Footprints in the Stars.

He is now finalizing the first in an ongoing SFF mystery series featuring his hard-boiled private eye Angela Hardwicke and has several other SFF, crime fiction, and children’s book projects in the works.

Russ lives in New Jersey with his wife, their twin ninjas, and their crazy dog, Simon.

For more on Russ’s works, visit www.russcolchamiro.com, and follow him on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram @AuthorDudeRuss.

SAWNEY HATTON is an author, editor, and screenwriter who has long loved playing in the dark. His published works include the Dark Comedy novel Dead Size, the YA Noir novella Uglyville, and the Dark Fiction short story collection Everyone Is a Moon. He also edited the Sci-Fi Horror anthology What Has Two Heads, Ten Eyes, and Terrifying Table Manners?

Other incarnations of Sawney have produced marketing videos, attended chili cook-offs, and played the banjo and sousaphone (not at the same time). As of this writing, he is still very much alive.

For more semi-unseemly insights into Sawney, visit his website at www.SawneyHatton.com or find him on Twitter and Facebook.

PATRICK THOMAS is the award-winning author of the beloved Murphy’s Lore series and the darkly hilarious Dear Cthulhu advice empire.

His 40+ books include Fairy with a Gun, By Darkness Cursed, Lore & Dysorder, Dead to Rites, Startenders, As the Gears Turn, Cthulhu Explains It All, and Exile and Entrance. His is the co-author of the Mystic Investigators series, The Santa Heist, and the Jack Gardner mysteries.

Patrick is the co-editor of Camelot 13 (with John French), New Blood (with Diane Raetz), and Hear Them Roar (with CJ Henderson), co-created The Wildsidhe Chronicles YA series and is the creator of the Agents of the Abyss series.

He has had more than 150 short stories published in magazines and anthologies, with his work for YA and children including the Ughabooz books, the Undead Kid Diaries, the Joy Reaper books, and the Babe B. Bear Mysteries as Patrick T. Fibbs.

Visit him online at www.patthomas.net and www.patricktfibbs.com

Blog Tour Schedule
October 28th

Reads & Reels (Review) http://readsandreels.com
Viviana MacKade (Guest Post) https://viviana-mackade.blog/
Jessica Belmont (Review) https://jessicabelmont.wordpress.com/
Reviews and Promos by Nyx (Spotlight) https://nyxblogs.wordpress.com/

October 29th

Book Dragons Not Worms (Review) https://bookdragonsnotworms.blogspot.com/?m=1 Cup of Books (Review) https://cupofbooksblog.wordpress.com/
The Magic of Wor(l)ds (Spotlight) http://themagicofworlds.wordpress.com

October 30th

B is for Book Review (Spotlight) https://bforbookreview.wordpress.com
Breakeven Books (Spotlight) https://breakevenbooks.com
Bibliolater (Spotlight) https://www.jennifermitchellbooks.com

October 31st

I Smell Sheep (Guest Post) http://www.ismellsheep.com/
J Bronder Book Reviews (Review) https://jbronderbookreviews.com/
My Bookish Bliss (Review) http://www.mybookishbliss.com
Splash into Books (Spotlight) http://splashesintobooks.wordpress.com

November 1st

Musings of a Final Girl (Review) https://musingsofafinalgirl.wordpress.com/
The Reading Chemist (Spotlight) https://thereadingchemist.com/
Kelly Lacey (Spotlight) https://lovebooksgroup.com/
Entertainingly Nerdy (Spotlight) https://www.entertaininglynerdy.com
Read and Rated (Spotlight) https://readandrated.com/
I Love Books and Stuff (Spotlight) https://ilovebooksandstuffblog.wordpress.com
Banshee Irish Horror Blog (Spotlight) www.bansheeirishhorrorblog.com

Blog organized by: 

R&R Book Tours

What’s Up 2019 – Week 39

The last week of September signals the end of Q3 of 2019. Man, time flew by this year. Its already getting chilly outside and my autumn jacket is out. This week has been busy and fun and a whole lot of starting to prepare for upcoming things mentioned earlier on the September adventures post HERE.

READING

Currently reading: Sketch by Didi Oviatt

Back to a slow reading week as I’ve been a tad tired this week because of work rushes and other things going on. I’m still reading Sketch and probably more than a quarter done at this point. I should finish it up soon. Its actually quite good and has me guessing on what will happen next.

PLAYING

Mobile Games for the September round-up over at Game Warp has been my main focus. While I’m about to start up the next long form game very soon as things get settled again. I have a big plan to replay some games that I had wanted to review but never did last year that were on the phone and played for mobile. Its a franchise so might be just a franchise recap or like a few games per roundup. I’m still deciding. Nothing to much to talk about this time around for gaming but definitely have several games to get back to and wrap-up or get started.

WATCHING

• Anna and the Apocalypse (2017, Review)
• The Babadook (2014, Review)
• Blue My Mind (2017)
• The Purge: Anarchy (2014)

Its been a very questionable list of movies that I’ve chosen to go into blind for the Halloween horror marathon. Just look at the four films this week, right? One is full of zombies and is a horror comedy but is a Christmas movie, the second is pure psychological horror, the next is a transformation horror but more of a drama and coming of age and the last is more in line with horror. Either way, my double feature plans are slightly falling apart right now because of certain changes and hopefully will get back on track. However, the first one is out to kick off the marathon and also has my fave movie of this week, Anna and the Apocalypse that I have gone on to rewatch the movie multiple times during the week because I love the soundtrack so much.

BINGING

• A Discovery of Witches (Season 1, 2018)

Currently binging: When I Grow Up, Dream Space 2, Relation Ship

Its been definitely a tame week in terms of TV, which seems to be uncommon of late. With the Shudder subscription, we’re taking some time to spend more time on there right now. The first thing that caught our eye was to check out A Discovery of Witches. I have my husband might have some slight regrets on watching it but as for myself, I have some thoughts on it but overall, I’m looking forward to Season 2, whenever it gets released.

That’s it for this What’s Up for Week 39 as we wrap up Q3 of 2019!
Its been a crazy ride this year and What’s Up has given me a really good perspective of whats been going on and such!

What have you been reading/watching/playing/binging?

Blog Tour: The Princess and the Peacock (Bird of Fae #1) by C.S. Johnson [Review/Giveaway]

The Princess and the Peacock
(Birds of Fae #1)

By: C.S. Johnson

Publication Date: January 25, 2019

Genre: Fantasy/Fairy Tale Retelling

SYNOPSIS

The first time I fell in love with Princess Mele was when I saw her smile, and I fell in love with her the second time the moment I heard her sing.

Two memories burn within Kaipo’s heart — the death of his mother, which left him alone to die, and the arrival of Princess Mele, which gave him a new reason to live. Together with his adopted brother, Kaipo seeks out Jaya, the Fae Queen who lives on the Forbidden Mountain, in order to gain the beauty he requires to win Mele’s heart. But Jaya has other plans for the scarred outcast who climbs up her mountain …

The Princess and the Peacock is the first in Birds of Fae, a fantasy fairy tale novella series from C. S. Johnson.

Add to Goodreads

PURCHASE LINKS: Amazon

REVIEW

I don’t know whether to call this novella a fairy tale retelling that mixes together elements of Aladdin with Beauty and the Beast together while changing up certain details as well. For the most part, the story here works and its especially well structured to fit the novella length. C.S. Johnson gives the characters and plot development enough depth to make it good while still having the proper pacing to make it intriguing to read. In the end, this is somewhat a story about our Peacock here, Kaipo who learns to embrace inner beauty and not view so heavily and value himself for more than his appearances. There are values of traditions, morals, loyalty, friendship, brotherhood. The positive messages portrayed here all come together nicely at the end. The characters are numerous and yet seem to serve their own purpose in the story which is always good to have.

The only issue with the story itself is the feeling that there was never much of climactic point. Things seemed to be fairly flat and predictable as the plot points would be fairly contrived and lacked a bit of natural progression. What I mean to say is that things happen, such as in the beginning, the brother and the peacock end up encountering a prince who then takes them and happens to also be going to the palace and offers them as a gift for the hand of the princess. There is also an effort to slowly reveal what makes Kaipo so in love with the princess and we soon find out. There is a whole revelation but probably because this is a fairy tale retelling of sorts, it still has a lot of similarities to other stories that makes it lack the more impactful sort of story. Its not saying that its not still pretty good because it is well-written and packs in a lot of next technical bits from character to understanding the world where its set.

Goodreads rating: 3/5 (if there was half points, this would be 3.5/5)

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

C. S. Johnson is the award-winning, genre-hopping author of several novels, including young adult sci-fi and fantasy adventures such as the Starlight Chronicles, the Once Upon a Princess saga, and the Divine Space Pirates trilogy. With a gift for sarcasm and an apologetic heart, she currently lives in Atlanta with her family. Find out more at http://www.csjohnson.me

Website
Twitter
Facebook
Instagram
Pinterest

GIVEAWAY

Print copy of The Princess and the Peacock

Rafflecopter Link

Blog Tour organized by:

Christmas 2018: A Kiss For Christmas by Melody Grace

A Kiss For Christmas: A Holiday Collection
by: Melody Grace

In Holiday Kisses… Writer Dash needs peace and quiet to finish his new script, but he wasn’t betting on inn-keeper Ellie and the local Starbright festival to give him a jolt of holiday inspiration.

In Unexpectedly Yours… Sophie has been dreaming of a magical winter holiday in New York City. Can a chance encounter with musician Austin bring her festive dreams to life?

In Unwrapped… When a unlikely couple gets snowed in on the way to the wedding, a flirty game of truth-or-dare sends temperatures soaring. – Goodreads

A Kiss For Christmas are three novellas set during the holidays and bring two unlikely people together in whichever scenario describe above. Technically, that is alright. It is usually how these sort of contemporary fictions work and they can be really predictable. Which don’t get me wrong, these three are very predictable. My deal is that I’ve never seen anything more formulaic in my life. When something falls into formula too much: disagreement or conflict or some sort of mismatch feeling in the beginning, a hidden physical attraction to each other, a situation that brings them together, some fun sexy bed time, a misunderstanding and then happily ever after. I’m serious, each of these three are structured that way just wrapped up in their different world of one of the series that Melody Grace has created. For people who like this sort of thing, I’m sure it works absolutely. For myself, too much structure and formula really does feel insulting to my intelligence and in turn it gets boring.

I’m not going to look at each of these one by one because there really isn’t’ that much difference to it. The only difference is that the level of hotness of each is supposed to increase from one to the next. I don’t argue that Melody Grace has a knack for writing out these fairly drawn out sexy moments. It is one of the better structured ones. I just have grown out of stories like this where you have two incredibly beautiful people who get attracted to each other physically and then spend time together for like one night and feel they are soulmates then after one night of sexy fun, they believe they are meant to be forever. I’m a romantic but even that seems a tad too much to take in.

However, looking past the romance which is about 85% of this novel, it does deliver on a lot of holiday moments. The first story Holiday Kisses sets itself in a town that probably seems to be inspired by Stars Hollow from Gilmore Girls and the Starbright Festival and all the little Christmas gestures here are rather sweet. The second Unexpectedly Yours is set in New York and brings in a lot of the Serendipity inspired activities: snow, ice skating, etc. The last one Unwrapped takes a snowed in situation at the airport at a hotel so it has the least Christmas elements here.

Thank goodness I got this one for free. That is all that I have to say. I would be even more frustrated with A Kiss For Christmas if it wasn’t. But I’m cheap and only grab free stuff on wherever I got this one from which I can’t remember. I’m not the audience for something like this It is the official last book of this contemporary romance that I am reading for a good while (at least a year if not more). Next year will be something moving in another direction and might not even have any straight romance stuff and nothing with sex scenes probably. I can’t know those things in advance so I’m done with this genre for a while.

Blog Tour: The Finest Supermarket of Kabul by Ele Pawelski [Review & Giveaway]

The Finest Supermarket in Kabul
by: Ele Pawelski

Publication Date: October 30, 2017
Genre: Novella/Terrorism/Inspired by True Events

Synopsis

Kabul, Afghanistan January 28, 2011.

Merza, a freshly minted Parliamentarian receives ominous threats after he wins his seat. Alec, an American journalist, flies from Kandahar without his editor’s permission to chronicle daily life in the capital. Elyssa, a Canadian human rights lawyer in Kabul to train female magistrates, is distracted by unwanted attention from a male justice. On this grey, wintry Friday, all three are embroiled in a dramatic and savage bombing. Inspired by true events and places, The Finest Supermarket in Kabul follows Merza, Alec and Elyssa as their idealistic and visionary hopes for Afghanistan are deeply challenged in the aftermath.

Goodreads

Purchase Links

Quattro Books
Amazon US
Amazon CA
Amazon UK
Barnes & Noble
Indigo

Review

The Finest Supermarket in Kabul is best described as three intertwined stories. What works really well is choosing these characters because one of them is a Parliamentarian, giving the readers an inside scoop of Kabul and the political struggles there. At the same time, having the outside eyes be the opposite side of an American journalist which also gives us the outside perspective while the final one acts somewhat more of a middle ground. They live there for longer duration and know the lay of the land but is still an expat. Their stories definitely are carefully intertwined as the bombing occurs as each person is at a different location and they all react differently but in their timelines still manage to brush past one of the characters in the process. It gives a continuity and fluidity to a thought with taking the time to add that detail.

The stories itself are engaging and intriguing especially as there is a different perspective so the landscape of the lead-up to the actual bombing event also is well-paced. Perhaps, because of this, it has the tightly knit story (or stories) making it a page turner as there isn’t time to add fluff in the middle, and that is fine because the stories being told doesn’t really need it. The story itself is as direct as its characters. At the same time, what makes it a great read is the descriptive nature used it, highlighting the innocent and the unknown and the helplessness for all those involved and the uncertainty of whether they are as well. On another hand, the three stories intertwine here and emphasize a further point that everyone has a different point of view and will be caught up in a different way whether it is physically being there, witnessing its aftermath or even from the sidelines. There’s a lot of thought in the details in The Finest Supermarket in Kabul and that makes all the elements put together a worthwhile one to check out.

Goodreads: 4 out of 5

About the Author

Ele Pawelski has lived in Afghanistan, South Sudan, Bosnia, Kenya, Uzbekistan and Kosovo. She has climbed in the Himalayas, walked the Camino and hiked in Newfoundland. Now living in urban Toronto with her husband, she’s always planning for her next travel adventure. Her stories have appeared in magazines, journals and newspapers. The Finest Supermarket in Kabul is her first novella.

Quattro Books
Twitter: @Eleinthecity

Giveaway

3 print copies of The Finest Supermarket in Kabul and 5 $20 Amazon GCs (North America Only)

Rafflecopter

Blog Tour organized by:

Blog Tour: Go Home, Afton (Afton Morrison #1) by Brent Jones

Go Home, Afton
by: Brent Jones

Genre: Thriller
Series: Afton Morrison, Book 1
Release Date: June 25, 2018

Blurb

We all wear masks, and Afton Morrison is no exception.

A small-town librarian with a dark side, Afton, twenty-six, has suppressed violent impulses her entire adult life. Impulses that demand she commit murder.

Blending her urges with reason, Afton stalks a known sexual predator, intending to kill him. But her plan, inspired by true crime and hatched with meticulous care, is interrupted by a mysterious figure from her past. A dangerous man that lurks in the shadows, watching, threatening to turn the huntress into the hunted.

Go Home, Afton is the first of four parts in a new serial thriller by author Brent Jones. Packed with grit and action, The Afton Morrison Series delves into a world of moral ambiguity, delivering audiences an unlikely heroine in the form of a disturbed vigilante murderess.

Add to Goodreads

Review

Go Home, Afton is the first novella of a series written by Brent Jones. As with most stories structured to be in multiple books, there is a certain continuity and character building as well as environment building required. Perhaps the part I can’t get past with this decision is really why structure it as a novella instead of just an entire book? However, those are the author’s decisions but personally, as with most novels like this, it falls into a trap of being the setup phase. We get a lot of setup with really not a lot going on. I’m not saying nothing goes on because the redeeming quality which is the center of this story is the character of Afton Morrison and her development. She is a complex character to say the least with different sides of her that we learn about and she sits in a gray area of right and wrong both for Afton and the situation she encounters or at least gets involved in.

Its a novella and a thriller so its a fairly quick read. As a thriller, it did have some nice descriptions to help with the imagery. Some creepy characters which makes us wonder on what is real and what is just a part of the imagination. As we learn more about Afton, we get to feel the tension as her situation gets more complicated. It builds well-structured thriller moments. The writing style here is refined as well to easily feel immersed into the story. The ideas presented in the structure have a lot to love especially as there are some psychologically thrilling moments (and I’m a sucker for psychological thrillers).

Overall, Go Home Afton as a first part in a series has its good and bad. Good is the detail and the ideas and the sum of its parts coming together to make this a fun read. It gives it the time to really draw out Afton to have many layers to discover in her character. However, the downside of this is that there is the whole issue of certain parts being drawn out and the pacing not being as tight-knit as it should be to keep it a page-turner. First parts with deep characters usually need the first part for set-up and part of me felt like nothing incredibly substantial or surprising happened so while it had some thrilling and tense moments, it still fell short.

On a side note, I’m hoping this means that book 2 can get the ball rolling right away and the thrills and pacing will be a lot better.

Goodreads rating: 3 out of 5

Now Available

Amazon | B & N | iBooks | Kobo | Smashwords

About the Author

From bad checks to bathroom graffiti, Brent Jones has always been drawn to writing. He won a national creative writing competition at the age of fourteen, although he can’t recall what the story was about. Seventeen years later, he gave up his career to pursue creative writing full-time.

Jones writes from his home in Fort Erie, Canada. He’s happily married, a bearded cyclist, a mediocre guitarist, and the proud owner of two dogs with a God complex.

Twitter
Facebook
Instagram
Goodreads
Website

Blog Tour Organized by:

Screams You Hear by James Morris

*Book received in exchange for honest review*

Screams You Hear
by James Morris

For sixteen-year-old Ruthie Stroud, life on tiny Hemlock Island in the Pacific Northwest is an endless sea of boring green, in a place where everybody knows everybody’s business and nothing ever happens. Then her world is ripped apart when her parents divorce and a new man enters her mother’s life. But worse is yet to come.

When she drifts ashore on the mainland, hideously burned, Ruthie has a harrowing tale to tell. It begins with the murder of a family. It ends with her being the sole survivor of a cataclysm that sweeps her little island. As a detective attempts to unravel Ruthie’s story of murder and madness, only one horrifying conclusion can be drawn: whatever was isolated on remote Hemlock Island may now have come to the mainland. Is Ruthie safe? Is anyone? – Goodreads

Screams You Hear is something of a deceptive experience. Its starts off perfectly harmless, not the premise per se but rather that it reminded me of a few ideas from this and that from movies and books but as the story progresses, it manages to make its small group of teens very personable while intermittently putting in the now as we see the main character, Ruthie talks about a bit of how she feels now after all the events she has been through to the officer listening to her. Perhaps the only downfall was not being able to create the uniqueness in the beginning to keep me quite as captured as I was once the story really got rolling however, it might also be deliberate to let our guards down so the shocking turnouts as the story progressed would be more unpredictable.

James Morris creates some incredible characters here, much like watching a horror film with the normal group of teens from the nerds to the jocks. There will be characters that you want to cheer for and others that you don’t as much.  However, what makes for some great thrills is the setting on a quarantined island and the detailed descriptions of each scenario which truly can build the tense and creeping atmosphere while building up the picture of the horrifying situations with our own imagination. There is a fine line between being overly descriptive and the right amount of description situation for whichever genre and story that is being told. The author here definitely has found a nice balance.

Being that this one is a thriller, its hard to dive very deeply into the story itself in fear of ruining the twists that this book has to offer. However, in terms of the premise itself, it had quite a few nice traits to it. For one, it had something of a survival element which gave the young characters room to grow. It allowed us to look deeper into the survivor’s outlook after the quarantine. It had some zombie movie elements, which gave me flashbacks of stories like Train to Busan, where they saw the town go to hell and had to use their own observations to slowly piece together what these new-formed enemies were capable of and how they could strategize to escape. As the characters looked over the shoulders, we were also scared for their lives especially since we knew that our main character is the only one who pretty much makes it out and wonders how the others had their demise.

Thrillers are hard to put together. However, James Morris does a great job here. Overall, Screams You Hear has a lot of great elements. The beginning starts off a little familiar and it does seem like the book has some scattered parts that do remind me of other horror films I’ve seen, however, his skillful writing particularly in the descriptions and pacing does help build atmosphere and the characters while giving us just enough to picture each dangerous scene one after another. Nothing is more powerful than our imagination and he does a great job and making sure that our minds are racing with every decision and plot twist that Screams You Hear throws at us. Consider me thrilled! Highly recommend!

Book received by: