Two more reviews of Beneath Angel's Wings

Ulysses Diets and Michel Bowler both posted their reviews of Beneath Angel's Wings on Goodreads and Amazon. I'm so thankful for their insights and kind words! I'm very glad they both enjoyed the book, too :)

Reviews of Prime and Morning Rising by Samantha Boyette

I'm really excited tonight to post nor one but two reviews of YA books. Why two?  It's a bit of a story.

Last month Samantha Boyette requested a copy of Beneath Angel's Wings for review.  There was one copy left from the five I had offered up on Goodreads, so I happily sent it her way. Samantha then posted a very kind and enthusiastic review on her blog, Amazon and Goodreads - you'll find the link in my last post.

I contacted her to say thank you and, being a YA author herself, she asked if I would like to read and review one of her books. I was somewhat hesitant, because once someone gives you a glowing review, it can be awkward to be honest if it turns out you didn't like their book as much as they liked yours. Still, I checked out the synopses of Samantha's books and they all sounded appealing, especially her latest release - Prime - which features zombies!  Now, I have not always been a zombie fan, but in the last five years or so I have really learned to love this genre, in movies, tv and books, so I was eager to read Samantha's YA zombie story.

I was not disappointed.  I loved Prime and was eager to post a review. My only regret about Prime was that it had no LGBTQ content.  (Though the fan-fiction author in me desperately wants to write an LGBTQ follow-up for two of the characters, and I think Samantha left the door open for something like it, but that's not part of the story so it can't be part of the review.) However, I noticed that Samantha wrote another series of stories that do feature a relationship between two girls, so to keep the reviews here within the LGBTQ team, I bought a copy of the first book in the series - Morning Rising - and decided to review it as well. Happily, Morning Rising was every bit as good as Prime. I would highly recommend both of these books to YA readers. Read the reviews below for details.



Prime is a zombie apocalypse tale told from the points of view of two siblings - thirteen-year old Simon and his twenty-something sister, Alice - who were in two different locations when the viral contagion spread. Over the course of the story, the siblings eventually discover that they are both among the survivors, and they strive to reunite.  I won't bother with a story synopsis because I don't want to spoil it for other readers.  What I will say is that Samantha Boyette is an excellent writer and storyteller. The back-story of the virus is perfect; the characters (both good, bad, younger and older) are well drawn; and the plot is exciting and fearless. No one is sacred. Characters die, including ones we are rooting for to survive. Survivors are not always nice to each other, and the author shows us the worst of humanity as well as the best. This was a truly gripping read with a satisfying ending. Definitely a five star read!



Morning Rising is fantasy that takes place both in our human world and in a parallel universe which is made up of three separate kingdoms: Daylands, Nightlands and Inbetween. Kara, the main character, starts out believing she is just an average teenage girl in love with another girl, Dylan, who she thinks she met by coincidence. She soon discovers that she and Dylan are not human and that they have been in each other's lives from a very early age, and have been fated to be together through a powerful bond of love which, in fact, makes Kara Dylan's protector. Through Kara's flashbacks we see how the relationship between the two girls developed in the human world, where they had no recollections of their earlier lives. Through her view of current events we see what happens as Kara attempts to rescue Dylan from the ruler of Inbetween, who seeks to harness Dylan's powers to conquer the other two kingdoms. Again, I don't want to reveal too much about the plot, but much like prime, I found the story gripping and felt compelled to read on to see what happened next. I really liked the relationship between the girls, especially since neither was portrayed as perfect, and Dylan in particular made some truly questionable choices. I also loved Baron and other allies who take great personal risks in order to hep Kara in her quest. This is the first story in a series, and I'm very much looking forward to reading the next installment. Another five star read. :)

Another great review for Beneath Angel's Wings

Click here to read Samantha Boyette's five star review of Beneath Angel's Wings. I love that she started out with pretty low expectations and that the boys and their story made her care enough to actually leave work early in order to finish reading :). Thank you so much, Samantha, for your kind words!

Book Review: Here's to You, Zeb Pike by Johanna Parkhurst

Here's to You, Zeb Pike is an excellent book. The title was intriguing and beckoned me in, but it was Dusty's voice and his story that kept me glued to my kindle form start to finish.

The basic points of the plot are revealed in the book blurb. Dusty Porter and his little brother and sister have been, in essence, abandoned by their parents, leaving Dusty to take care of himself and his siblings. Considering Dusty had to teach himself how to do everything, including laundry and budgeting whatever money his parents leave behind on their irregular "visits" with the kids, Dusty is actually doing a remarkably good job. Still, both he and his siblings are losing key parts of their childhood and have to be mature beyond their years.

Dusty doesn't like the situation, but he's determined to do whatever he needs to do to keep all three siblings together. Unfortunately, his sister's appendicitis reveals the scheme to the authorities, and the only family available to tke the kids without splitting them up are an aunt and uncle they never knew existed who live in Vermont. Dusty resents having to leave Colorado Springs and his friends behind, and that's just the start of the storm of change that sweeps Dusty into uncharted territory.

 The book works because Dusty, who narrates much of the story in first person, is very genuine. His confusion, frustration and resentment are perfectly described, as are his feelings for the older brother of his new classmate, who may or may not be gay. While Dusty's more mature than most boys his age, he's still a kid and he reacts as a kid would, including angst-driven episodes of acting out.

My one minor quibble with the book is the inclusion of some big coincidences in the plot that require a bit of suspension of disbelief, but the pace of the action and Dusty's commentary make that pretty easy. The author is so good that I didn't even mind what is normally my pet peeve in books, which is a change in voice. In this instance, the author cleverly used third person flashbacks to show the reader things that Dusty himself could not, a device I found very effective.

I would very enthusiastically recommend this book both to the young adults who are the intended audience and to older readers who enjoy the genre. It was definitely a five star read for me and a nice way to start off 2014.

Beneath Angel's Wings reviewed on My Fiction Nook

Hi Everyone and Happy New Year! I don't know about you, but the holidays were a very busy time and they sure went by fast. I can't believe it's 2014 already, and that January is more than a third over. I find the older I get the faster time flies, whether I'm having fun or not.

Having said that, I do have a lot of reasons to smile. I have a new position at work that is very demanding, but also a great new challenge and I'm fortunate to have joined a very friendly new team of colleagues who have all been uniformly very welcoming. I only hope I can scale that learning curve quickly and be able to contribute as much and as well as my predecessor. The only downside is that, at least at first, I will likely have less time to write, but I hope that will change as I get up to speed.

I'm also happy to let you know that Beneath Angel's Wings was reviewed by Sandra at "My Fiction Nook." I was truly humbled and honored to read that she feels:

Realistic voices, realistic struggles and realistic outcomes make this a wonderful book for any young adult and might even be considered required High School reading.

Wow, right?  I mean, what author wouldn't be thrilled to read that about one of their books? I know I was. A big thanks to Sandra for her kind words.

Click here to read the rest of Sandra's review.

Remember, you can buy Beneath Angel's Wings on Amazon, Smashwords, Barnes and Noble (still trying to figure out why they're not showing the cover - Grr), Kobo, and iTunes.

If you enjoy the book, please spread the word! Thank you!

Liz

Merry Christmas!

Review of Children of the Knight

I recently had the pleasure of reading Michael J. Bowlers YA novel Children of the Knight.  While the book is published through Harmony Ink, which is the YA LGBTQ imprint of Dreamspinner Press, and the book does feature some LGBTQ characters, I think the cast of characters in the novel is so wide and diverse that it has universal YA appeal.

The overall message of the book is one of tolerance and unity. The young heroes of the book learn to look beyond their differences to everything they have in common, and work together to achieve a greater good not just for themselves, but for their neighborhoods as well.

The book also works for adults, who get a different set of messages. What I really loved about this novel was that it made me think and question my own beliefs and behaviors.  It made me want to talk to people and it really made me wish there was a way to change the current system focuses on punishment of children who fall into a life of crime at an early age instead of providing them with an environment where the criminal element is not the most appealing, if not the only, alternative.

I would highly recommend this book and I look forward to reading the next installment.  Here is the review I posted on Goodreads:

Children of the Knight is one of those rare books that has something for everyone. For teens, there is friendship, adventure, a quest, heroes, and a message of unity and tolerance and real valor and strength coming from doing what’s right instead of blindly following someone else’s example for no good reason. For adults, there are messages as well, and a call for a critical evaluation of a system that does little to set kids on the right path but is all too willing to treat them as adults if they stray off the path and commit crimes glorified not just by their immediate environment, but also by the entertainment that is pumped out to them by media conglomerates. It’s actually nothing short of extraordinary that the author has managed to intertwine these messages in such a way that one does not detract from the other.

Children of the Knight at times made me run a whole gamut of emotions. There were moments of true triumph and happiness, but also moments of profound sadness. I loved the way characters were brought to life and allowed to experience all emotions, including uncertainty, jealousy, shame, anger, happiness, and love. This urban fantasy is filled with memorable characters, starting, of course, with King Arthur and his first knight, Lance, but then continuing with Chris, Esteban, Jack, Mark, Reyna and others. All of them, and especially Lance, made an impression on me and I’m not likely to forget them anytime soon. The world portrayed in this book is no utopia, but it is a fabulous glimpse into what our world might look like if we all appreciated the kind of thorough diversity that the author portrays in his book.

The thing I loved best about the book is that it really made me think. It stayed with me long after I finished reading it, and prompted me to analyze and re-analyze my feelings about the authors’ message. In the end, while I don’t necessarily agree with all of the author’s premises, I absolutely respect the position and I appreciate the introspection it prompted.

I give the book five stars and my enthusiastic recommendation because for me it was truly unique. I actually think this book should be mandatory reading for adults, especially adults in affluent neighborhoods, because it’s far too easy for some of us to think of urban problems as something that only impacts other people, whom we don’t and wouldn’t want to know. The truth is that urban problems are all of our problem, and allocating resources to help the younger generations break the cycle of poverty and crime that is present much too often in urban neighborhoods will end up impacting us all positively.

It’s only fair to mention that the book is not perfect. The author’s writing style is complex, and it may be a little too difficult for younger kids to follow. There are also many subplots and characters to keep track of, and a lot of details are included that could probably have been edited out to create a more tightly focused story. I would have appreciated more of an explanation for why Arthur was there and how he got there, and I would have also appreciated less of the old English spoken by the king. I also thought that sometimes attitude that the adults in the story had towards the kids were disturbingly cavalier. Now, it’s true that some of this can be explained by Arthur simply not being aware of all the dangers that can befall a young, depressed teenager out on the streets, but it seemed to me that even by the end of the book he still had not learned all that he might have. And last but not least - the ending. All I can say without spoiling the book is that I wish it had been written differently, although I appreciate and respect the author’s vision for these characters. These faults, however, are very minor and subjective to me, and did not take away from the powerful impact of the book on me as a reader.

Children of the Knight was provided to me by the author free of charge in exchange for an honest review, but I will definitely purchase the next book in the series when it is released and would highly recommend this book to all readers.

To learn more about Michael J. Bowler and Children of the Knight or his other novels go to: http://www.michaeljbowler.com/