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.

September question: If you could choose any author, living or dead, to be your Beta reader who would it be and why?

Another great question.  First let me say, I’m very happy with my Beta readers😊 That said if I were to choose any author it would be Suzanne Collins.  She brings an immediacy to her writing that draws the reader in and pares down her wordage till every word counts. Her stories are lean, mean and hard hitting. Well maybe not mean😊 but definitely lean and hard hitting.

AND…

 

August/September reviews in no particular order.

 

INTO DARKNESS by Rob Horner

This is the continuing saga of the Richard girls and their fight against evil. The sisters possess the uncanny ability to see and recognize demons. Demons that are out to destroy them. They can also see the white light  surrounding the angels that have come to protect them. Each day is a challenge, but especially when the youngest is facing a life and death surgery that will put the entire family at their most vulnerable. Will good triumph or does evil win out?

Order here

 

A WHITE CAT FOR CHRISTMAS: Life and Love in Alaska by Cherime MacFarlane

The author had me at rescue

A white kitten. A hunky hero. And a feisty heroine.

A kitten rescue is intertwined with a crispy-fresh Christmas romance. This feel good short is one of a series set in scenic Alaska. It’s a stand alone HEA.  Grab your hot tea, coffee or wine, put up your feet and enjoy.

Order here

ROMANCE REKINDLED: A Far Haven Tale by Diane Burton

This was the first book I've read by this author and I found it totally charming.  The story was well written. The characters developed and the world--in this case town--building spot on. It was a warm, feel good read that I just slid right into. I have been reading mysteries, thrillers and sci-fi and  found this to be a lovely change.  The story pulled me in and made me feel I had been picked up and set back down in the middle of the story. Kudos to the author on a job well done and a story well told.

Order here

 

VAN DYNE’S ZUVEMBIES by C. W. Hawes

Paranormal meets horror.

Pierce Mostyn is part of a deep undercover government investigative team that investigates monsters that most of the human populace don’t even know exist. The cunning creator of most of the horrors they track: Valdis Damien Van Dyne.  This time he’s created a black brew that turns young women into zombie-like killers.  It’s a race against the clock for Mostyn to learn the secret and shut down the plant before the brew is released into the water of large cities and creates an apocalypse.

I was curious about the brew and would like to learn more about how it was made and what in it turns the young women, though this is the first book of this series I’ve read so this may have been touched on in one of the previous stories or may be touched on in another.

Order here

 

Trad:

THE GUARDIANS by John Grisham

This story is about a small handful of attorneys who do nothing but pro bono work for those who are in prison for crimes they didn’t commit, most on death row. The story centers around Cullen Post who is not only an attorney for the innocent but also an Episcopal minister. It’s an easy, well-written read.  Here’s my favorite paragraph:

“What are you getting at, Frankie?” I snap. “I’ve already confessed. I had a long night, too much to drink, too much to eat, a rather nasty cigar, and I slept on the porch like a dead man until a really big cat pounced on my chest at three in the morning and scared the hell out of me. How was I to know it was his rocker? Neither of us could go back to sleep. So, Yes, I have some cobwebs. My eyes are leaking. I’m covered with cat hair. And I feel like death warmed over. There.”