My four star review of THE FAITH of ASHISH.

India is not a country I have ever wanted to visit. Even more so, when you see and hear what goes on there in the news...the treatment of woman!
However, the cover of the book and the blurb attracted me.

This is the story of Virat, Latha and their sweet little son, Ashish. They are untouchables and are forced to live a life of poverty and degradation. One day little Ashish is thirsty and drinks from a certain well. Doing so, means he has polluted the water. He receives a sever beating from the high cast men of the village.
In desperation, his father Virat seeks help from a rich landowner, Mammen Samuel...unaware that doing so, will plunge his family into slavery, with no way of escape!

From the very beginning, I found myself drawn into this often sad, and in some ways shocking story of mans inhumanity to man. While at the same time, I learned a lot about Indian customs...the cast system, and the hierarchy of Indian life.

THE FAITH of ASHISH, is not a particularly easy read, but I found it honest, in parts gripping and with good character portrayal.
A little extra editing would not have gone amiss, nevertheless this is a good story...a story with a message.

 

 

http://www.amazon.com/The-Faith-Ashish-Blessings-India/dp/1426709080/ref=cm_cr_pr_product_top?ie=UTF8

Frozen Footprints. My review.

I love the cover and title of Frozen Footprints. So applicable to the story. It was the cover that attracted me in the first place. And I was certainly not disappointed.
What a great story! I would have given it ten stars if I could.
It's so refreshing to read an enthralling, gritty thriller, that is free of expletives! and overt sex.
This was a book I couldn't put down.
I really liked Charlene Perigard, the plucky heroin. With all that she's goes through, she stays true to her faith. As I devoured each page, there were times when I thought, Oh no, this must be it!
Kidnapped by an evil man and suffering cruel torture and deprivation, how can Charlene and her brother Max survive?
I loved the stories honesty. There were times, understandably, when Charlene doubted her faith...struggled to hold on. SO WOULD I. Nevertheless, she did.

Each character in the story was so well written.
I disliked their grandfather, intensely. What a horrible man! Between him and the awful kidnapper, I really felt for Charlene and Max.

This is a great book, I can't recommend it highly enough.

 

http://www.amazon.com/Frozen-Footprints-Therese-Heckenkamp/dp/0984236570/ref=pd_rhf_se_p_img_3?ie=UTF8&refRID=0CHZFM3VR4GC4A4CCQ5B

My review of Elvis the Frog.

This is a short, sweet little story for children.
Not having read many small children's books, I had to keep reminding myself, that repetition is helpful to children.
This little story, is a great way of teaching young ones to show respect and kindness to animals.

I love the attractive cover, and as a book for children, it's well written.

I can imagine myself reading it to my little grandson, when he's old enough.

http://www.amazon.com/Elvis-frog-Part-Michael-Donaldson-ebook/dp/B00VKST3LS/ref=pd_rhf_se_p_img_3?ie=UTF8&refRID=0BJQ7X87161J64SX5RVB

I gave Darkest Light 4 stars.

This is a weird and wonderful story!
Michael, bored and frustrated with his job, wakes up one morning and finds himself in a strange land...at times a frightening place, where he encounters strange and sometimes dangerous creatures.
He comes across a funny little creature he calls Lido. I really liked her, for it turns out she's female.
He also encounters a young woman, who shares this strange journey with him. He even comes across his father; as I say it's all rather weird and yet somehow strangely fascinating.
The story is highly imaginative, descriptive and well written.
On the whole, I liked Michael. He came across as a really nice guy. However, I have to say my favourite character was little Lido.

This is a good story and I'm glad I had the opportunity to read it.

 

 http://www.amazon.co.uk/Darkest-Light-Alex-Taylor-ebook/dp/B00SDK3UG0/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1432914346&sr=1-1&keywords=darkest+light

At last RAT RUN has a cover.

I'm delighted with the cover for my latest children's book, RAT RUN.
I'm hoping to publish in a month or two.

Rat Run, a snippet.

This is a short snippet from my latest children's book, RAT RUN. With one of the black and white illustrations I've drawn for it.
I'm hoping to publish in the summer.

It was too dark to see much, but his ears twitched to a strange sound coming from his right. Straining to see, Timere blinked. He could just make out a large rock, with a strange pattern on it. Creeping closer, he cringed, the hair rose on the back of his neck. Huffing with fear, his eye widened in disbelief…sticking out of the rock, were thick scaly legs with long claws.

To make matters worse, the rock moved. Using its strange legs, it turned towards him; a large scaly head with small beady eyes emerged from inside the rock and stared at him.

 

With a frightened squeak, Timere flattened his body to the ground. Narrowing his eyes, his long tail twitched, as he bravely prepared to defend himself. Holding his breath, he hoped the strange creature couldn’t see him. However, his hope was dashed, as the stone spoke.

An Excellent Review for GATHER STORM.

a solid fantasy novel, April 4, 2015

By 

Rebecca Fyfe

This review is from: Gathering Storm (Through a Glass) (Volume 2) (Paperback)

I really enjoyed reading the second book in the Through a Glass series by Y.I. Lee. It is in a genre I normally enjoy and this book did not disappoint. The story had some nice new touches and felt much stronger overall than the first book. The first book was good, but this one was even better. If there is a third book in this story-line, I'm sure it will improve yet again as this author seems to be gaining in her ability to weave a compelling story with each story she writes.

The book's appearance:
I think the cover is perfectly suited to the story-line. And the interior formatting is well-done.

The editing/proofreading:
There were some grammatical mistakes, which, as an editor, I couldn't help but notice, however, there weren't enough of them to pull me, as a reader, out of the story, and thus not enough to affect my rating of the book. Most readers probably won't even notice them.

The story:
I had trouble really sinking into the story in the beginning. As with the first story in the series, I did not find myself as pulled into the scenes of Irene in the "real" world before she enters into Stagman's world and felt that it was taking too long. Not being as emotionally invested in Irene's ex or her agent/friend's lives, I didn't feel the need to read as much about them. (And her agent annoyed me with how much she kept pushing the love-interest.)

I love the interactions between Irene and Stagman, although I thought he was often a bit too overbearing and controlling. I was relieved to see that, although Irene stayed true to her character in that she was rather meek in personality, there were times where she came out of her submissiveness a bit in this story and asserted herself more. It was like watching her grow as a person between one book and the next. I like that the action started to come much more quickly as the story went along.

There were moments when emotions were pulled from me as I read the story and, by the time I finished the novel, I was sorry to come to the end.

http://www.amazon.com/Gathering-Storm-Through-Glass-Book-ebook/dp/B00Q1RUV8W/ref=pd_rhf_se_p_img_2