Wednesday, July 1, 2020

IWSG Wednesday


The first Wednesday of every month is officially IWSG day. Members post about their doubts and fears, discuss struggles and triumphs, and offer words of encouragement to others who are struggling.

Thanks, as always, to Alex Cavanaugh, founder and Ninja Captain extraordinaire and our awesome co-hosts.

The IWSG monthly question can be found under the IWSG Sign-up tab on the Insecure Writer's Support Group Blog.  Remember it’s optional.

July 1 question-There have been many industry changes in the last decade, so what are some changes you would like to see happen in the next decade?

On a very contained level, I would like to see Kindle Countdown offered in Australia. Hopefully, in the near future.

 

AND…June’s reviews in no particular order.

 

THEONITE: PLANET ADYN by  M. L. Wang

To fit in, a young girl must hide her abilities from everyone. She thinks she’s alone in the universe till a new boy moves into her neighborhood.

The characters are well-developed as is the world building and the storyline is  strong. A recommended read, I enjoyed this story enough to get the second—and last—in the series.  Amazon

 

TIMELESS ECHOES by Balroop Singh

I find this author's work moving. This is the second book of her poetry I've read and I enjoyed it every bit as much as the first. Her writing takes the reader from joy to despair and back again. It reminds us to find the delight of being as well as to enjoy the wonders of nature. My favorite poem is YEARNINGS.  I highly recommend this author and this read.  Amazon.

 

LIFE’S RICH TAPESTRY: WOVEN IN WORDS by Sally Cronin

I enjoyed everything about this delightful collection, from poetry to micro-fiction to shorts. I especially enjoyed the author's ability to create a story with a beginning, middle and end  in ninety-nine words.  The subject matter is eclectic and a joy to read. Highly recommended. Amazon

 

TRIO IN DEATH-SHARP MINOR by C.W. Hawes

Some books I have problems getting into. This wasn't one of them. In this series, the author has crafted a sophisticated, cigar-smoking female PI and her sidekick brother. The duo never disappoints.  Their characters are flushed out, unique and likeable.  The relationships the two develop are heart-warming. The story well-crafted. Hawes can take the mundane and make it interesting. I found myself fascinated with what was on the menu at each meal. The plot moves along nicely and the story flows.  I very much enjoyed the read and highly recommend it. Amazon.

 

LEFTOVERS by Joe Congel

Joe Congel is one of my favorite PI mystery authors. He has an easy style that draws me in from page one.  These shorts are no exception. The topics intrigue. Whether it's falling from an airplane or a protagonist that's a hitman. If you haven't tried Congel, you're in for a treat. And what better way to try a new author than a book of short stories. Highly recommended. Amazon.


90 comments:

Valerie-Jael said...

Sounds like lots of good, new books. Only books I couldn't survive! Hugs, Valerie

Sonia Dogra said...

Hi Sandra. Thank you for co-hosting and for the book reviews. I see at least two that would interest me a d I'm bookmarking them.

Elephant's Child said...

Love your tempting reviews - and your kindness in thinking of us in Australia.

Hilary Melton-Butcher said...

Hi Sandra - thanks for highlighting these books for us ... and there will be changes - not at all sure what. Take care - Hilary

nashvillecats2 said...

Good books here Sandra with much time to read them.
Have a good day.

Yvonne.

Ronel Janse van Vuuren said...

Looks like you had a lot of fun reading!

Thanks for co-hosting today :-)

Ronel visiting for IWSG day A Decade of Writing

Patsy said...

It does seem odd that Amazon don't offer things such as countdown deals in every country in which they operate. Unless local laws prevent it, you'd think they'd do exactly the same everywhere, wouldn't you?

Cathrina Constantine said...

Good reviews!

Thanks for co-hosting!

Alex J. Cavanaugh said...

That's quite an interesting selection of books.
Thanks for co-hosting today!

L. Diane Wolfe said...

No Kindle Countdown in Australia? I wonder why?

A Lady Lawyer said...

Hi Sandra, thanks for co-hosting! That’s a lot of books for a month! A couple of them have intrigued me, so I’ll definitely look into them. Thanks for the suggestions.
www.nooranandchawla.com

Nancy Gideon said...

Ooooo! Thanks for sharing your book list and for co-hosting this month, Sandra!

Pat Hatt said...

That is weird that they don't have kindle countdown in Australia. Hopefully they rectify that.

Sandra Cox said...

We've got to have our books, don't we, Val.
Hugs received and returned.

Sandra Cox said...

Entirely my pleasure, Sonia. Glad you see something you like:)

R's Rue said...

Great list.

Chrys Fey said...

Amazon should offer every service, etc. that they release to every country. It's silly that they don't.

Debra Renée Byrd said...

Thanks for co-hosting!

Computer Tutor said...

Great list of books, Sandra. I'll have to check out Joe Congel.

Diane Burton said...

Thanks for cohosting this month. Good idea about Kindle Countdown. I assumed Amazon offered all benefits worldwide. Duh. Never assume. I saw your earlier post about the grands. Wasn't it awful not to see them? After almost 4 months we finally saw ours. I really missed them. Have a good month.

Pat Garcia said...

Hi,
A Kindle countdown sounds engaging. I hope you get in Australia.
Thank you so much for co_hosting.
Shalom aleichem,
Pat G @ EverythingMustChange

Judy Ann Davis said...

Wow. I didn't know Australia didn't have Kindle Countdown. Enjoyed your blog.

Balroop Singh said...

Thank you for a lovely review of my poetry Sandra, much appreciated.

D.L. Finn said...

Great reviews, Sandra. I loved Timeless and Life's Rich Tapestry! I'm going to have to check out Leftovers:)

Bleubeard and Elizabeth said...

What amazing reviews, Sandra. You always are so supportive of others. I LOVE the Taylor quote, too and I'm not being wishy washy polite, either.

Fundy Blue said...

Thanks for co-hosting today, and thanks for the reviews of the books, Sandra! Have fun today!

Sandra Cox said...

You and wishy-washy are an oxymoron, dear Elizabeth:)

Sandra Cox said...

Always thinking of you, bud:)

Sandra Cox said...

Yes, it's kind of a headscratcher.
Stay safe. Stay healthy.

Sandra Cox said...

There're always changes aren't there:)
Take care;) Stay safe. Stay healthy.

Sandra Cox said...

Yes, all good reads, Yvonne:) And yes on the time to read:)

Sandra Cox said...

Entirely my pleasure. Lots of great authors and books out there.
Take special care.

S.E. White Books said...

Australia should definitely get Kindle Countdown. Hopefully they'll get on that soon. Thanks for co-hosting today, and for the book reviews!

Sandra Cox said...

You'd sure think so. I trust that eventually they'll be doing just that. Thanks for stopping by, Patsy.

Sandra Cox said...

Thanks and my pleasure:)
Glad you stopped by;)

Natalie Aguirre said...

Thanks for co-hosting. And I enjoyed your reviews. Joe Congels' book sounds interesting.

Sandra Cox said...

All kinds of variety with Indies:)
My pleasure, Alex:)

Christine said...

Thanks for these reviews!

Sandra Cox said...

I don't know. Seems like it would be a natural fit, doesn't it?

Sandra Cox said...

My pleasure:)
Thanks for checking on the books. I'm sure the authors will be thrilled:)

Liza said...

Thank you for the recommendations, and that last quote is a keeper!

Olga Godim said...

An interesting collection of books. Thanks for your reviews.

Doreen McGettigan said...

I love the quote and enjoyed reading the reviews. Thank you for hosting this month!

-blessed b9, Catalyst4Christ said...

'I AM the Way' (Upstairs).
Follow us to Seventh-Heaven.
God bless you.

Toi Thomas said...

Thanks for co-hosting this month.
I hope you are able to get Kindle Countdown too.
Thanks for the reviews. Love the cover of THEONITE.

Tamara Narayan said...

Oh dear. I don't even know what the Kindle Countdown is. Must go fix that.

Thanks for co-hosting!

Sandra Cox said...

They are great aren't they, Denise. As is JUST HER POETRY:)
I enjoy Joe's writing. You just kind of settle back and slide into it:)

Sandra Cox said...

My pleasure, Nancy. Thanks so much for stopping by.

Sandra Cox said...

Thanks:) And thanks for stopping by, Joylene.

Anonymous said...

Nice review of books! Sorry you don't have Kindle Countdown. Now I'm going with the rest of the Clueless Crew to find out what that is! :-).. Thanks for co-hosting today.

Sandra Cox said...

It surprises me.

Sandra Cox said...

My pleasure. Thanks for stopping by, Debra:)

Sandra Cox said...

Let me know what you think. I'm one of his fans:)

Sandra Cox said...

And one of yours:)

Jeanie said...

I don't read Kindle. It does make me wonder what might happen next.

Arlee Bird said...

I've yet to obtain a Kindle reader, but I've read books on my laptop and my desktop. I find it to be a hassle reading like that, but a Kindle would be nice. It would be nice if I read all the real paper books that I have in my house--that would keep me occupied for a long time.

Arlee Bird
Tossing It Out

Deniz Bevan said...

Thanks for the book recommendations!

Annalisa Crawford said...

I find it so peculiar that Amazon have such different make-up in different countries. Surely, for a global company, the offering would be universal?

Sandra Cox said...

It was tough not seeing them, wasn't it. Sounds like you were away from yours as long as we were from ours.
You have a good month too. Thanks for stopping by, Diane.

Sandra Cox said...

It would be a wonderful thing:)
Thanks for stopping by, Pat.

Sandra Cox said...

My pleasure. Thanks so much for stopping by, Fundy.

Sandra Cox said...

They may have their own countdown. I don't know about that piece of it. But you can't coordinate one from the US. Sigh.
Thanks, Judy. And thanks for stopping by.

Sandra Cox said...

And they may have it, just not in conjunction with the US. Unfortunately.
Thanks for stopping by:)

Sandra Cox said...

And I appreciate your poetry:)

Sandra Cox said...

I'm glad you enjoyed the reviews. Joe's book is definitely interesting:) Thanks for stopping by, Natalie.

Sandra Cox said...

My pleasure, Deniz. Thanks for stopping by! :)

Sandra Cox said...

My pleasure:)

Sandra Cox said...

It is indeed:)
Thanks for stopping by, Liza.

Sandra Cox said...

My pleasure. Thanks for stopping by, Olga.

Beth Camp said...

What a wonderful array of reading to choose from -- all from one month! Thank you for contributing to my to-be-read pile. I'd hope that Kindle Count-down would work in Australia too, but more than hopes are needed. May the coming month bring you many more good books.

Samantha Bryant said...

Some great reads! I'll have to check some of these out. @samanthabwriter from
Balancing Act

Sandra Cox said...

My pleasure. Thanks for stopping by, Doreen.

Chemist Ken said...

It would be great if Australia got everything the U.S. version of Amazon got. It would make things a lot simpler for writers and readers.

Thanks for co-hosting IWSG this month!

Sandra Cox said...

Hi C. D.,
They may have. I'm not sure. They just don't have them in conjunction with US Kindle Countdowns.
Thanks so much for stopping by.

Birgit said...

I am surprised Australia is not on this..hopefully soon. A great collection of diverse books. Congrats to everyone!

Sandra Cox said...

I'm surprised about that too.

Sandra Cox said...

Thanks, Toi. I can do the Kindle Countdown in the US, I just can't link it with Australia.
That is a great cover isn't it?
Thanks for stopping by.

Sandra Cox said...

Hi Tamara,
It's just the sales they run.
You are most welcome. Thanks for stopping by.

Sandra Cox said...

Thanks, Lee. I get the countdown in the US, I just can't sync with Australia like I can the UK.
My pleasure on co-hosting. Thanks for stopping by:)

Sandra Cox said...

I do both, Kindle and paper.

Sandra Cox said...

I love my Kindle:) Sounds like you've got plenty of reading material:) Thanks for stopping by, Arlee.

Sandra Cox said...

Glad to help your TBR pile, Beth:) I'm hoping one of these days they will sync up countdowns with US and UK. So glad you stopped by.

Sandra Cox said...

Excellent. The authors will love it.
Thanks for stopping by, Samantha.

Sandra Cox said...

It would indeed.
Thanks so much for stopping by.

Sandra Cox said...

Something for everyone:)
Have a great weekend, Birgit.

Michelle Wallace said...

Thanks for posting all these book reviews.
The Sally Cronin book sounds tempting.
Thank you for co-hosting the IWSG this month!

Liesbet said...

Wow, you've been reading a lot of books. And, you enjoyed all of them, which is quite unique. Thank you for these reviews. I recognize some of the author names as fellow bloggers. :-) Have a wonderful summer of many more books!

Susan B.Rouchard said...

Thanks Sandra for these exciting reviews, lots to read over the summer ... my piles are now toppling over ...
Wishing you an inspiring month of writing.

Sally Cronin said...

Thanks so much Sandra.. I am delighted you enjoyed the book.. sorry about the delay in getting back to you.. I don't tend to check my Twitter messages.. Enjoy your weekend. Sally

Adrienne Reiter said...

Good morning. Tempting reviews. I think the majority of us are spending more and more time isolating and exploring different, fin and new authors. Thank you for co-hosting this month. Happy IWSG!