Tag Archives: Book Club

337- A #Book that #Challenges #Perceptions-#NewRelease #Mystery #Thriller

28 Saturday Nov 2020

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Hello readers,

Today I’m bringing to you an exclusive interview with Samuel Darte, lead character of M Jonathan Lee’s upcoming release ‘337’. When Sam was just a boy, his mother disappeared without a trace leaving him and his younger brother, Tom, at home with their father. This forced family relationships to breaking point to fracture. The disappearance of Sandra Darte changed his life forever.

Hi Sam, thank you for taking the time to speak with me. Please make yourself comfy!

Thank you.

So we’ve read all about what happened to your mum and the events after, but how would you describe your experience of it all when you were just a young boy?

Well, I guess like you said, I was quite young when it all started and there are bits that don’t remember all that well. When she first disappeared, I just remember being scared and confused, I just couldn’t fathom how she could leave us. I think that’s why I pursued it for so long – none of the conclusions answered all my questions. It was a weird feeling of betrayal too, when Tom and I read that note addressed to Dad it just said “I’ve left you. Look after the boys”… glossing over the fact that she was leaving us too. Then with everything that came out afterwards, some things made sense and other things just didn’t fit, it was so confusing.

I can only imagine how overwhelming it was for you. If you could go back and change anything, is there anything you regret doing, or not doing, during that period of your life?

It was a tough time for all of us and I’ve definitely done things I’m not proud of. But my biggest regret is not talking to Gramma sooner and trying to make things right. It’s shameful that she had to be on her deathbed for me to be brave enough to go and talk to her, but at least I did go in the end. Better late than never. But yeah, I wish I’d been kinder to her, understood more.

You were just a boy, it can’t have been easy. Now you’re older, how do you think the events of your youth changed you?

Well I’d never heard voices before it all, I can tell you that much. [He chuckles grimly] I think it’d be impossible to pinpoint something it didn’t change. I’ve lived with it for so long now that what happened… it’s part of me. I guess after going through so much, I felt justified in closing myself off from stuff, relationships and all that. But I don’t know what I’d have turned out like if it hadn’t happened so who knows, just got to work with what I’ve got and make the best of it.

Thank you for sharing your story with us, Sam. It’s been a pleasure chatting with you today. I can’t wait to read more about your story when 337 is released on 30th November!

My Review: 5-Stars!- One added simply for ingenuity!

What’s unique about 337 is the simple fact that you can read the book from both directions.  Yes, you can start at the beginning or you can start at the end.  The cover is cleverly designed to be the same, with the exception of color, no matter which way you hold the book.  It’s an intriguing device to get you to think ‘outside the box’, to consider what you wouldn’t usually consider the norm as the norm.  The characters step out from the crisp pages like person you meet on your travels through the day.  Some stay, some disappear, but you are left with an indelible memory of them.

Emotive and poignant, the gentle story picks up its pace, weaving imagery like a painter transposing a landscape.  I became aware of a heaviness within the main character, Sam, and quickly understood how sad he was, how the confusion he faced as a child permeated his entire life.

A powerful story about perceptions and learning how to look beyond, 337 is a quiet thriller…. if that’s possible.  A mystery memoir…so to speak.  It’s not what you anticipate when you dive in and suddenly, just when you think you’ve got things sorted, the ending happens.

Beautifully written and ingeniously devised, 337 is a book you need to experience.

Yes, its Available to pre-order on Amazon now!

Author Bio and Handles: @mjonathanlee @hideawayfall

M Jonathan Lee is a nationally shortlisted author and mental health campaigner. His first novel The Radio was nationally shortlisted in the Novel Prize 2012. Since that time he has gone on to publish five further novels with ‘337’ being his sixth novel. Jonathan is a tireless campaigner for mental health awareness and writes his own column regularly for the Huffington Post. He has recently written for the Big Issue and spoken at length about his own personal struggle in the British national press on the BBC and Radio Talk Europe.

Endlessly fascinated by the human condition and what leads people to do the things they do to one another, Jonathan is obsessed with writing stories with twists where nothing is exactly how it first appears.

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~Morgan~

Nobody Eats Parsley – and Other Things I Learned from my Family with David Oakley

06 Friday Nov 2020

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Nobody Eats Parsley. Sit down, grab a beer and let me tell you some stories about my family. They’re so ridiculous you may think they’re fiction. Like the time I went to a drive-in X-rated movie without realizing my parents were in the next car. Or how I let my kid throw a rock through the living room window. There’s the time I bought a camouflage thong in a bait shop, and the time I ruined a kid’s birthday party. And the other time I ruined a kid’s birthday party. There’s no way I could have just made these stories up. I can’t guarantee that they will make you laugh, but I can guarantee that I didn’t make them up.

DAVID OAKLEY has been telling brand stories at BooneOakley for years. He has won many prestigious honors, including the Kaopectate Award in the eighth grade for having diarrhea of the mouth. His first book, Why Is Your Name Upside Down?, is full of stories from his life in advertising. Despite this, he was recently inducted into the North Carolina Advertising Hall of Fame. He lives with his wife Claire and their dog Walter in Charlotte, where they raised Sydney and Lucas. He loves his family very much and hopes they still love him after reading Nobody Eats Parsley.

Hi David! Let’s dive right in, huh? What do you love most about Writing?

I’ve got an ego, and sure, I enjoy the attention that authors get. (Like being asked to be on Morgan’s blog! I’m very excited about this, by the way.) But when it comes down to it, I write because of the way it makes me feel. And because of the way it makes you feel when you read it. I like surprising people and making them chuckle. It thrills me, it excites me, it invigorates me. Writing, and making people laugh, gives me meaning and purpose in life.

How did you get your start writing?

Storytelling is such a big deal in the South. I grew up listening to my grandma tell stories of growing up as a tobacco sharecropper during the Great Depression. I was fascinated at how much humor there was during such hard times. She always made me laugh and I really like laughing. So, I decided that that was what I wanted to do. The only difference is that I write my stories down. And her stories were better. LOL

Is there an Author you consider your inspiration?

I read my first David Sedaris book in 2007, and he instantly became my favorite author. His story “Big Boy” about an unfortunate incident in a bathroom at a dinner party made me howl with laughter. Not only because it was so absurdly ridiculous, but because it was so relatable to me. I thought to myself, stuff like that happens to me a lot.

What Inspired you to write your book?

Laughter inspires me. When something happens in everyday life that makes me really laugh or someone around me laugh, I write about what made them laugh. At lot of funny things, (at least they’re funny to me) have happened in my life. I found myself telling these stories and laughing about them with my friends over dinner or beers, and one day I decided that I’d better write them down before I forgot them.

That’s probably every authors nightmare – having a great idea and then forgetting to write it down! Do you have a preferred POV that you write from and why?

My stories are about stuff that happens to me and my family, so I write from my POV. I see things through the eyes of a father, a husband and a son, who probably has smoked one too many joints in his life.

Do your characters dictate what or how your write in any way?

I’ve written two books now, and the characters in them are real life people that I hang out with every day. The first book is about my life in advertising, my work family. And my new book is about life with my real family. So, they do dictate how I write. Because they say funny things. Like my daughter Sydney, who told a friend that my new book, “might not be the best book my dad has ever written, but it’s definitely in the Top 2.”

Although it’s often hard to select just one, do you have a favourite or least favourite character?

My Aunt Hallie, without a doubt, is my favorite character in Nobody Eats Parsley. She’s an 83-year-old church going, sweet tea drinking Southerner who can strike up a conversation with a signpost. She’s sweet, humble, kind and the best natural born trash-talker in the history of North Carolina. Imagine if Aunt Bea from The Andy Griffith Show and Eddie Haskell from Leave it to Beaver had a love child. That would be my Aunt Hallie.

What’s your number one tip for an aspiring Author?

The first thing for an aspiring writer is to keep writing. Just keep writing. Then after you have written for about 10 years, suddenly you’re not an aspiring writer anymore. You’re a writer.

Is there a book you consider a must-read- why?

No, I don’t consider Nobody Eats Parsley a must-read. That’s because I just recorded an audiobook. So, I consider it a must-listen. LOL (Even though I can’t stand the sound of my own voice.)

Do you have a Mantra- a Quote you try to live by?

“To give anything less than your best is to sacrifice the gift.” This is a quote from Steve Prefontaine, a runner from the 1970’s.


<p><a href=”https://vimeo.com/468177255″>Nobody Eats Parsley</a> from <a href=”https://vimeo.com/user11098752″>Kara McCoy</a> on <a href=”https://vimeo.com”>Vimeo</a&gt;.</p>

I want to thank David for taking time out of his busy schedule to stop by and talk about his book. Please look for David on his social media network:

Author Website

Twitter: @oakleydavid

Instagram @oakleydavid16

Facebook

Nobody Eats Parsley on Amazon

David is giving away 5 Signed Copies of Nobody Eats Parsley!
Contact him using the form below and he’ll send you one
While Supplies Last!

Penthara- A World Governed by Elements and Season – #Spectacular #EpicFantasy #BookReview

15 Saturday Aug 2020

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ENTER THE WORLD OF PENTHARA … a world governed by five elements and their five seasons …

The human kingdom of Barredom has been at war with the qindrid territories of Aggedon ever since the Qindrid Curse gripped the land. What were once humans are now grey-skinned, ageless, sleepless abominations, enhanced by the shadow element of their descendancy.

When the entire border army of Aggedon vanishes overnight, the obsessive General of Barredom orders the Westwalker, the infamous hunter of hunters, to investigate the disappearance. But the actions of men may test the resolve of the outsider who was long ago forced under the cursed transformation himself.

The new cycle of Kingfall proves worthy of its name when the savage elvan king of the Glace Isles is slain during an ambush. His elite war party, along with his three legendary axes, are deposited in the dungeons of the Frostdale Deeps, the domain of the Royal Inquisitor Honorah Bayn. Her task is to extract information from the enigmatic prisoners, but her desire is to exact revenge, and her lust for suffering is set to thwart the distracting aspirations of her unwitting son and daughter.

The unusual fortune of Barredom delivers one other gift when the leader of the Aggedonian qindrid surrenders herself into the custody of the elusive king of Barredom. It’s up to the renounced prince of Barredom, Ondrew Roth, and his motley group of spurned knights to escort her on a clandestine mission beneath enemy territory, through the underground tomb of an elvan race thought long defeated.

Prepare for a dark tale where all are the many hues of grey, and where any might not be as they seem

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My 5-Star Review!

There are fantasy writers; there are Epic Fantasy writers, and then there’s the stellar few, like Tolkien and Steven Erikson, who build an entire universe in spectacular detail just to share a side story that has little or nothing whatsoever to do with the main story, but you cannot imagine reading the story and not knowing the side story because of the skill with which it’s relayed.   Mr. Eversand’s spectacular tale is right up there in the stratosphere of extraordinary story telling alongside such masters.
Character development in this sweeping saga is remarkable and the dialog between characters scores off the charts as well.  Smiles and Norah quip and banter with the best of ’em, leading me to re-read again and again just for the sheer enjoyment of it.  There are heroes to love and villains to despise, and some very intriguing sorts that you love to despise and despise that you love!
But this story has much more than amazing characters and dialog worthy of Henry Cavil or Robert Downey Jr., oh yes!  Page one sends you careening into the tale through riveting action scenes that allow you to finally draw breath around Chapter Five!  I Could Not Put This Book Down!  There are 449 pages and each one is a sumptuous delight; a nerve-wracking edge-of-your-seat thrill; and a delicious temptation that keeps you turning pages, faster and faster and faster!
Now, don’t let me spoil it for you, but be prepared.  Prepared to be awed, swept up and away, and unable to extricate yourself from the mastery of fantasy Mr. Eversand flawlessly displays chapter after intoxicating chapter.  But draw breath.  Step back and admire…and give yourself plenty of time to devour the last 1/4 of the book because I assure you the story will latch on and not let go.
If you want a true fantasy epic, something you can not only sink your teeth into, but utterly immerse yourself in and become entirely entangled, Kingfall is waiting for you.
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Author Bio
Ezekiel Eversand was born in Southeast Texas. He has spent most of his adult life in operations management for high-volume nightlife venues throughout his home region of Texas and Louisiana, and eventually in Las Vegas, Nevada, where he now resides. He is a travel enthusiast and absolutely loves anywhere that has a beach. He lives with his French bulldog, Hero. Creating unique worlds, characters, and stories has been his true passion behind the scenes since he was a child.
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~Morgan~

The Other Magic – A Reverse Interview into an #AwardWinning #Fantasy

24 Friday Jul 2020

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Winner – Pinnacle Book Achievement Award.

Runner-up – Independent Publisher Book Awards.

Finalist – Foreward INDIES Book of the Year Awards.

Finalist – National Indie Excellence Awards.

Darkness stirs in a world that is ill-equipped to confront it.

A prophesied king is born, but not all will benefit from his foretold conquests. In a realm where only clerics are permitted to practice magic, Kibure, a mere slave, draws the attention of much more than just his master after wielding an unknown force in a moment of desperation. In a twist of fate, Sindri, the priestess hired to strip Kibure of his power, defies the law, revealing designs of her own. But trust is in short supply in a land ripe with deceit. This wayward pair will have to work together if they hope to evade capture at the hands of the Empire’s most potent wielders.

Halfway around the known world, Aynward’s knack for discovering trouble drives him deep into conspiracies within which he does not belong. Too arrogant to accept counsel, he will have to learn the hard way that some actions have consequences that cannot be undone…

This epic fantasy series will be especially enjoyed by fans of Brandon Sanderson, Robert Jordan, Michael J. Sullivan, Patrick Rothfuss, and Michael Wisehart. .

In a unique Reverse Interview, Author Derrick Smythe interviewed on of his readers for more insights into the book:

What sparked your interest in this story that made you want to read it? First, it has a great cover, and that drew me in right away. Then I read the blurb for the book and knew I wanted to give it a try.
Who is your favorite/least favorite character and why? My favorite is Aynward and my least favorite is Grobennar. Anyward because he is the most fun and Grobennar because he’s such a jerk. He is fun to dislike, though, so I guess he’s not all bad.
If the story was made into a movie, can you see any specific actors portraying certain roles? No, I’m awful at that.
What surprised you about the story that you didn’t expect. There were more points of view than I expected, although it was not an unpleasant surprise. Quite the opposite, I thought it added additional complexity to the story. The fact that the author did a fantastic job of making these characters very distinctive and believable meant each new point of view brought an additional set of characters to life for me to discover and get to know.
What are you hoping to see happen as the story moves forward? All of the characters from the different points of view coming together and interacting. I know it’s going to happen and I can hardly wait.
Which scene has lingered with you the most? Why? I don’t want to give anything away but there is a scene near the end where Aynward loses some things that were more valuable to him than he realized and as he processes the losses he grows. It was moving and memorable.
Did you disagree with any of the characters’ decisions and why? Of course! Aynward makes tons of bad decisions and the things that happen to him because of it don’t seem to stop him the next time. It is a part of his charm.
If you could ask the author anything about the book, what would it be? When does the next book, the Other Way, come out? I read the sneak peek at the end of book one and I am ready for more.
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The Other Magic audiobook was recently release by Podium Audio, and is performed by Audie Award-winning narrator Greg Patmore. “Greg did such an amazing job. Listening to his voices for each of characters has given me new insight into the very characters I created. I’m finding myself hearing his version of each now as I continue working through the second book in the series. It’s absolutely incredible!” – Derrick Smythe
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Derrick Smythe has been fascinated with all things elvish, dwarfish, and magical since his days of running through the woods with sharpened sticks in defense of whatever fortification he and his brothers had built that summer. After consuming nearly every fantasy book he could find, he was driven to begin work on one of his own. When he isn’t dreaming up new stories, he can be spotted hiking the Adirondack Mountains or traveling the world. He currently resides near his hometown in Upstate New York with his enchanting wife, ethereal daughters, and his faithful-if-neurotic Australian Shepherd, Magnus.
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Find Derrick:

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~Morgan~

Word Mongery and Musings – #BookReviewBlog Launch

10 Friday Jul 2020

Posted by in About Me (since you Insist)

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I’d like to introduce you to the newest member of my (Blogging) family….Word Mongery and Musings…a new blog focusing solely on Books, Reviews, Author Interviews…Reverse Views….Editorials about Books…Characters, Plots, Favorite Scenes and schemes….ok, you get the idea, right?

Book blogs, review rendezvous, spotlight sprees, hype headquarters, and chutzpah hullabaloos.  What do they all have in common?

Writers! Word mongers and musers. Oh, and the essential other half of the equation: Readers!

Creation is a two-fold phenomenon. A Yin and Yang, action-reaction, cause and effect, inception and conclusion relationship. Writers create worlds, characters, and circumstances with which readers can connect. Readers search for writers whose creations hold a resonance that seems to speak directly to them. It’s almost a symbiotic relationship where one cannot exist without the other. Or at least, one cannot truly be fulfilled without the other.

The reader reads what the writer writes, then writes about what they’ve read so other readers may also read what was written. That’s where the aforementioned book blogs, review rendezvous, spotlight sprees, hype headquarters and chutzpah hullabaloos come into play. Because as sure as the reader will read what the writer wrote, there are other writers who will write about what was written so readers know what to read.

Are you dizzy yet? So am I.

This is the bewildering boondocks into which each writer wanders when they put the proverbial pen to paper. This is the maelstrom that spins around us in a confusing concoction of words, phrases, jargon, lexical madness and magic that leaves all of us more than a little muddled.

This is the realm into which Word Mongery and Musings will wander, leaving a trail for others to follow. A trail of writings for readers and readers for writers.

Please stop by and say Hi 🙂   OH and don’t worry, there’s plenty of poetry in this brain to keep BnV readers happy 🙂

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~Morgan~

A Reverse ‘View – A View into Mercy – #BookReviews Backwards

06 Monday Jul 2020

Posted by in The Mercy Series

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So here it is…the very first (Possibly ever!) Reverse Book Review where the reader reviews the book and then is interviewed by ME….and YOU! Yes, thats right, you can ask any questions you like about the book(s) and Chad will be happy to answer them.  So lets get right to it, shall we?

Chad R Slabach Jr
Misericorde (Mercy Series Book One)
5.0 out of 5 stars Outstanding!

Reviewed in the United States on April 30, 2020…..Cynthia A Morgan wrote the Dark Fey trilogy and I loved that…this is a very different sort of book. For one, it’s slower paced and the work of a very talented author who has time (there are 3 more books to come in the series) to let the story unfold, to allow the reader to know and understand the characters, times, environments. She is patient and assured – 2 words I would hesitate to use to describe most anything culturally. We are raised on soundbites and fed headlines, but this book/series is, especially the more I think about it, so difficult to adequately distill into a short synopsis. It’s spiritual and human. It’s violent and tender. It’s desperate and deeply hopeful. I can’t wait to see where she takes us from here.

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Who is your favorite/least favorite character and why?
My least favorite is easy: Sauvage. In a space that is forgetting any resemblance of gentleness or care, his absolute lack of humanity is repulsive.
My favorite has been Chevalier or Levesque for the same reason. As I raged at their apathy and unwillingness to DO SOMETHING, I knew why they didn’t (or couldn’t.) They did for the same reason we stand idly by while the least of us are utterly taken advantage of and great violence is inflicted. Morgan couldn’t have known the specific political/social landscape when she wrote it, but this story is perfect for us, now. I guess it’s perfect for any time, because we are too often Chevalier or Levesque and not enough Tzadkiel and Lourdes. (As it turns out, why I love them is that they DID finally DO SOMETHING and I am proud of them, and it gives me hope for us, for me.)

What surprised you about the story that you didn’t expect
In my reviews I talk about your patience. It’s shocking to me that this story is given such beautiful space to breathe and be exactly what it is. It feels much less like a contrived product driven by bells and whistles and more like a living breathing organism. Then when the bells and whistles do come, they are genuine and unforced and we discover that we actually care deeply for these characters. It’s like we’re watching lives unfold and not just an event.

What are you hoping to see happen as the story moves forward?
Of course, I hope they find their way home and that they can heal from the tremendous amount of pain they’ve suffered. I don’t know if I can hope for anything other than Death to ride, it sounds like that is written so it shall be done. I just hope they all find peace. I love a happy ending (whether there can be a complete one with Death is doubtful.)

Which scene has lingered with you the most? Why?
The 2nd rape/abuse scene at the campsite was horrible and not something I will soon leave behind. It was much more impactful than the 1st (though the act itself is so vile) because I had grown to love them. I read it through tears, with an upset stomach. The visceral reaction I had was surprising…actually, I was absolutely sure the abuse wouldn’t happen. Absolutely sure! And then it did, written so descriptively it was REAL, and I barely kept from throwing up in horror. I still can’t move on.

Does the story remind you of any other books/movies?
There’s nothing like this.

Did you disagree with any of the characters decisions and why?
I think the disagreement was in the complete breakdown in human kindness and civility, like “how can they do that???” But I know, I know. It’s a mirror of what we can become and an invitation to become something more of what we were created to be.

Did you get any message / positive inspiration from the story?
The invitation I mentioned previously, and the quote, “May we show our thankfulness through kindness and appreciate our blessings through generosity,” has become the subject in a series I am teaching in our faith community and has been quoted often in my life. We should all aim so high.

If you could ask the author anything about the book, what would it be?
How does it end???? And How COULD you DO THAT to HER???????????

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Clandestine (Mercy Series Book Two
5.0 out of 5 stars Stunning!!!
Reviewed in the United States on June 25, 2020 

 

Chad Slabach is a friend I’ve known for twenty+ years.  If you are a long time follower of my blog, he was the inspiration for The Burning Question series.  He is the leader of a non-denominational faith community based in south-central PA as well an as avid music fan and writer.  You can find Chad on his WordPress Blog The Bridge Faith Community. 

I’d like to Thank Chad immensely, not only for his enthusiastic support, but for taking time out of his busy schedule to read and review The Mercy Series AND to provide his insights in this Reverse View 🙂

~Morgan~

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Amazing Original Artwork by the following Exceptionally Talented Artists:
Telyuka

Lee Jun at DeviantArt.com

Yoon Sanghyuk

Jelena Pjevic

aenaluck on Deviant Art