In the Books featuring Wizard War (The Wizard Halls Chronicles Book 3) by Sheryl Steines

Good morning and welcome to this week’s edition of In the Books, featuring Wizard War (The Wizard Halls Chronicles Book 3) by Sheryl Steines.

About the Book: Eight months ago, Annie Pearce, closed the murder investigation of Princess Amelie of Amborix and put her killer in prison. So receiving a newspaper article with a picture of the princess alive and well, walking the streets of Paris, left Annie shocked and confused.

Who sent the picture?

With the threat of exposure hanging over her, Annie and her wizard guard partner, Spencer Ray chase the wily, young, vampire across Europe attempting to stop her murderous streak. When finding the vampire seems nearly impossible, Annie seeks out an old nemesis, Sturtagaard the vampire, to help them kill the demon princess.

But all is not as it seems. As Annie traipses across the jurisdiction of other wizard guard units, who blame her for the situation, tensions rise. A vulnerable Annie, must push aside her self-doubt and focus her energy on stopping the vampire. If she’s not careful, all her plans can lead to a wizard war, one that only she can stop.

My Review: The first two books in this series were fun and at times intense adventures into the world Sheryl Steines created, and this one didn’t disappoint. The story was engaging and fast moving, making it extremely hard to put the book down. The characters, locations, and events were well-described and fleshed out, making the world as real as the one we live in.

The characters were just as well written, led by the main character, Annie. While intelligent, witty, and good at her job, Annie is often her own worst enemy. I can sympathize with her as I do the second guessing game, too, and it became her biggest obstacle in the story as it made her passive and the derision and grief she received from others tore into her a lot worse than it should have.

With that being said, I do have to say I felt bad for Princess Amelia as the story unfolded. She proved to be a deeper, yet more sensitive character than I expected, and most of that stemmed from other means aside from her. It’s difficult to explain, but I don’t want to say anymore as it may spoil the story. You’ll just have to read it for yourself to understand what I mean.

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The Poetry Corner featuring Vic Tomlinson

Good morning and welcome to this week’s Poetry Corner, featuring Vic Tomlinson! 🙂

 

Those in Uniform by Vic Tomlinson

 

We salute the women

and men in uniform

who protect our nation.

They aren’t paid very well

for all that they do.

Yet, they are one of the

true heroes in our society.

They sacrifice their lives at war

to protect us and preserve our freedom.

They rescue us

from natural disasters

that occur in our nation.

They leave behind

families and loved ones

in order to serve our country.

They do so much

to keep us

safe and strong.

At least, we should pull together

to support them,

regardless of our political affiliations

or beliefs.

Awesome poem, Vic! Our veterans deserve all the respect and appreciation in the world. Thank you for sharing. 🙂

Keep up with Vic by following him on:

Twitter

If you would like to share your poetry here, or know anyone that would like to be featured, please email me at cpbialois@gmail.com

As always, any poetry shared remains the property of the poet. I only share it with the poet’s permission.

 

The Poetry Corner featuring Vic Tomlinson

Good morning and welcome to this week’s edition of the Poetry Corner, featuring Vic Tomlinson! 🙂

Halloween by Vic Tomlinson

She liked the ghosts, goblins,

and witches of Halloween.

She had decorated her house

with orange lights, inside and out.

She had purchased the pumpkins

and would carve them with her kids

for display on the front porch.

The kids had chosen their costumes

to trick or treat on their block

and attend a party at their church.

They had purchased their candy

to give to kids who came to their house.

The big night came

and it was a good time.

They dressed up and enjoyed others

that were also decked out.

This is our time of year when it’s okay

to be someone or something else.

Awesome poem, Vic! Halloween is one of my favorite holidays. Thank you for sharing. 🙂

Keep up with Vic by following him on:

Twitter

If you would like to share your poetry here, or know anyone that would like to be featured, please email me at cpbialois@gmail.com

As always, any poetry shared remains the property of the poet. I only share it with the poet’s permission.

In the Books featuring Illusion by Laura Deluca.

Good morning and welcome to this week’s In the Books, featuring Illusion (Dark Musicals: The Second Act Book 1) by Laura Deluca.

About the Book: Rebecca Hope-Patko and her husband, Lord Justyn, are living their dream. After a successful stint on Broadway, the super couple are heading Down Under for a special showing of Phantom Returns, where their son Erik will join them for his professional debut.

As soon as their plane touches down, they discover that a serial killer is stalking Melbourne. At the theater, a strange series of accidents leaves Rebecca fearing for the safety of her family. Rebecca struggles to unravel the mystery while coping with insecurities about her career which cause tension between her and Justyn.

It’s clear a very real Phantom is lurking among them, but Rebecca is no kid anymore. She’s tired of the villain getting the upper hand. This time, Rebecca is setting the trap. This opera diva will put her life and her marriage on the line to shatter the illusions surrounding Queen’s Theater and stop the serial killer before they can strike again.

My Review: Over the years, I’ve become a fan of Laura Deluca, and this is her biggest book I’ve read yet, but the added size only added to the story.

The story flowed well and was hard to put down, but an added benefit was the style it was written in. I enjoy the occasional musical, and throughout the story, the cast would break into the choruses or solos they performed in the current play just like in any musical. Having the story closely follow the arc of the Phantom Returns was an extra bonus that really shows the author’s enjoyment of the play.

The characters were highly engaging from top to bottom, though I have to admit I really had to feel for Rebecca’s luck. It’s bad enough tragedy seems to follow her, but her decision making brings about most of her problems. Through her eyes, we’re shown what her decisions or circumstances do to others, which helped raising the rest of the cast into likability.

Using the play as the backdrop, at its heart, this is a great, old fashioned detective story that really was reminiscent of Sur Grafton’s Kinsey Millhone series and Jessica Fletcher on Murder, She Wrote.

I can’t wait to see what’s next in this series.

A New Tale of Horror…

Pick up a new tale of horror coming October 30 to a kindle near you.

The cuts continue in The Slasher Experience II.

Survival often comes down to those who are willing to do what is necessary to win.

It’s a simple concept, but one most never have to experience.

Few survived the Slasher House Massacre, and as their ordeal closes, another opens for those remaining.

The police think they have everything under control. They think everyone is accounted for, but when some of their own disappear, new horrors are discovered, and the nearby town of Tarken’s Glen are drawn into their own survival experience.

Thank you to R.J. Keith for the awesome cover work. I don’t know what I’d do without you. 🙂

The Poetry Corner featuring Jamie White

Good moring and welcome to this week’s edition of the Poetry Corner, featuring Jamie White! 🙂

Insight by Jamie White

The truth sets you free, but it comes at a price.

Not everything is neat, black and white.

Reality tests your comfortable norm, making you feel so broken and torn.

Seeing that everything can be both wrong and right, is when you’ve finally gained true sight.

Awesome poem! Thanks for sharing Jamie! 🙂

If you want to learn more about today’s guest, contact Jamie at:

Website

If you would like to share your poetry here, or know anyone that would like to be featured, please email me at cpbialois@gmail.com.

As always, any poetry shared remains the property of the poet. I only share it with the poet’s permission.

In the Books featuringAlfonso and the Prickly Visitor (A Royal Tortoise Tale: A Fun Animal Children’s Book about Family and Friends 2) by Susan Moffat.

Good morning and welcome to this week’s In the Books, featuring Alfonso and the Prickly Visitor (A Royal Tortoise Tale: A Fun Animal Children’s Book about Family and Friends 2) by Susan Moffat.

About the Book: Alfonso and the Prickly Visitor: A Royal Tortoise Tale Book 2 – is a beautiful fully illustrated children’s book by Susan Moffat.

The second story about a very special tortoise who lives in the Land of Garden, far away from his royal home. Meet Alfonso the tortoise: the Prince who left home to make new friends.

Alfonso is enjoying life in the Land of Garden when he discovers a prickly visitor. Who is the visitor and how can Alfonso help him?

Alfonso also gets another surprise visitor.

Find out how Alfonso helps his friends and continues to make things right with his parents, the King and Queen of the animal kingdom.

Join Alfonso the tortoise, Jeremy the bird and the rest of the gang in the second book in the Royal Tortoise Tale series. A series of books that will reveal the secret world of the animal kingdom.

My Review: I’m a huge fan of reading children’s books. They take me back to when I was a kid and help me recapture some of that innocence that gets lost as we grow older.

The writing is tight and fast paced, as would be expected of the genre. The characters are simple, yet complex as they learn their way through the world and balance what they want with what’s expected of them.

This was as fun and entertaining as they get. It flies by and I know I would’ve really enjoyed it as a child. What’s better than escaping into a land of animals and their friends?