A great book review for LOWCOUNTRY BRIBE by C. Hope Clark, reviewed by Sharon Cupp Pennington

Hello, MB4 friends, followers, and fans!

I recently bumped into Sharon Cupp Pennington online, and was impressed by her review-writing skills. Matter of fact, I asked her to review my upcoming release, The Seacrest. She kindly accepted, and after we chatted for a while, I realized that many of my writer friends clamor for good reviewers to take a look at their work. Sharon has graciously allowed us to post an example of her work here on MB4, and also gave me permission to provide her contact info and the genres she likes to read!

I absolutely adored the following review - it's so beautifully written, now I want to go read this mystery series myself! I guess that's the sign of a good reviewer, if they can get readers to go check out the books they loved, we're all happy, right?

Have fun reading, and don't hesitate to contact Sharon, at the email address listed below. ;o)

Aaron Lazar

http://www.lazarbooks.com

 

BOOK REVIEW: LOWCOUNTRY BRIBE by C. Hope Clark

reviewed by Sharon Cupp Pennington

Rules were absolute; that’s the way she was raised. If she followed the rules, she’d be just fine . . .

Uh-uh, honey. Not this time. Not for Carolina Slade, County Manager, United States Department of Agriculture. Slade's professional life has blitzed from the structured normalcy of bailing out farmers with federal loans to head-spinning chaos faster than a filibustering politician can shout “pork barrel spending.” From the splatter of employee Lucas Sherwood’s O-positive blood on his office wall -- an apparent suicide -- to pig farmer Jesse Rawlings with his unabashed bribe to gain possession of an adjacent farm, author C. Hope Clark will have readers fretting over and cheering for her gutsy protagonist in LOWCOUNTRY BRIBE (BOOK ONE: A Carolina Slade Mystery).

Doesn’t sound like enough conflict for you die-hard mystery devotees yet? Turn another page. With the deftness of an all-star hitter, Ms. Clark brings in the bickering, grudge-holding, soon-to-be-ex husband and a couple of gotta love’ em kids inching their way into puberty.

Oh, and let’s not discount Senior Special Agent Wayne Largo, who arrives in his white Impala toting a big Smith and Wesson .357 and even bigger government credentials. Did I say white Impala? Dark hair, broad shoulders, trim waist? A drawl that has Georgia peaches dropping from the trees?

Yep. That’s him. Sigh.

Murder, kidnapping, edge-of-your-seat mayhem and sizzling romance done Southern style, C. Hope Clark’s debut novel packs it all into 272 pages. And then some. This author drops readers straight into the story’s heart with her wonderfully painted visuals of the South Carolina coast, her smart and snappy dialogue, in-depth characterizations, and infinite plot twists and turns. Protagonist Slade loses ground and gains it back again and again in LOWCOUNTRY BRIBE, but she never stops trying -- and she never loses the stranglehold on integrity that’s helped her succeed in a man’s world. In a word, she's likeable. (I guess that’s two words.)

This is a good one, folks. I’d tout LOWCOUNTRY BRIBE as a page-turner, but readers will recognize this after the first chapter. I’m giving Ms. Clark’s effort five sterling stars, and you can bet I’ll be watching eagerly for the second installment in her Carolina Slade mystery series. Maybe a third installment, a fourth?

About the author:  The granddaughter of a Mississippi cotton farmer, C. Hope Clark holds a B.S. in Agriculture with honors from Clemson University and 25 years experience with the U. S. Department of Agriculture. She currently manages FundsforWriters.com, her weekly newsletter that reaches almost 50,000 writers to include university professors, professional journalists and published mystery authors. Ms. Clark is a long-term member of SC Writers Workshop Association, Sisters in Crime and MENSA. To learn more about this talented author and her future endeavors visit www.chopeclark.com.

Reviewed by Sharon Cupp Pennington, author of HOODOO MONEY and MANGROVES AND MONSTERS. Website: http://sharonpenningtonwrites.webs.com/

About the reviewer: Sharon Cupp Pennington's short stories have appeared in numerous online and print venues, with anthology contributions to The Rocking Chair Reader in the Coming Home edition (2004) and Family Gatherings (2005), A Cup of Comfort for Weddings: Something Old, Something New (2007), and Good Old Days Magazine (March, 2007). Her debut novel, Hoodoo Money, and the second installment in The Stolen Nickel Series, Mangroves and Monsters, were released in second editions on September 21, 2013. She resides in Texas with her husband, Wayne, where she is working on her next novel. 

Note from Aaron: Sharon is accepting review requests!! If you are seeking a review and fit into her genres, give her a try! (no guarantees she will accept, of course, but it can't hurt to ask!)

Sharon's Book preferences: I prefer reading contemporary novels - mystery, romantic suspense, suspense, thrillers, adventure. I don't go for mushy romance. I have reviewed one horror novel (not all that horrible) and several historical mysteries but these would not be genres I would seek out. If this helps, my favorite authors are, at the moment, James Rollins and the duo of Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child, and James Patterson - but only his Alex Cross series.

Here's my website address: http://sharonpenningtonwrites.webs.com/

 

   

Book Reviews for Hire?

The news this week is that if one has enough money, one can simply go out and hire a book reviewer to review your work and post the review in a lot of places, thereby giving you, the author, notice.

Ahem. Tap tap. Is this thing on? *glaring at microphone*

"WAKE UP WRITERS!!!!!!!!!!"

Here is the story, if you dare to read it. I find it completely reprehensible that an author would stoop to such poor attempts to garner interest in their work. If your writing is that bad (well, if it was good then you wouldn't have to PAY reviewers to read it, now would you?), then go and do something else. Take up gardening, or crochet.

Fake Reviews

All of the members of Murder by 4 have reviewed fellow author's works and we are very happy and proud to do that as a service. All I have ever gotten out of it was a super thank you. It was good enough for me, Murderers.

*Marketing my work is going slowly, nothing new to report at this time-still have one submission floating in pro markets, and one novel with a publisher for consideration...***strains of the old song, "Waiting is the Hardest Part"****ahh... Tom Petty.

Until next time, hope you bleed all over the page.

Fall is on its way!

Book Review: The Aspen 2-Million Winner-Take-All

When I was contacted by Nicole Langan at Tribute Books to do a review for The Aspen 2-Million Winner-Take-All by John Morris,  I had no idea what the book would bring so far as entertainment is concerned. Well, Murderers, let me tell you, every great once in a while, you get a book written by a storyteller of the old school. You are entertained from cover-to-cover. Although those books are hard to find sometimes, they usually find you when you least expect them. This happened to me with this book. Pure entertainment, and unbelievable craftmanship by an author that I didn't know. From page one, Morris had me hooked and soon I was thrilled to be in possession of The Aspen 2-Million Winner-Take-All.

Is this beginning to sound like a five blood drop review? I hope so because author John Morris deserves his kudos. Yes, Murderers, I gave this read FIVE BLOOD DROPS!!!

The story:
Morgan, the main character, owns a sort of "lived-in" house in Aspen, Colorado, in the elite section called the West End. He was a popular chap, had a little business going for himself, and thought life was going somewhere.

True enough, it was. His rather stand-offish neighbor, Risa, became his worst nightmare when her dog suddenly turns up missing and eventually discovered dead. Poor Morgan wasn't even around when the deed happened, but of course, he was blamed.  Not only blamed, but threatened with a million dollar lawsuit and a promise to run him out of town on a rail, as they say.

He wasn't too worried about the lawsuit and the million bucks, but he was pretty upset about the forced out of town business. He had roots in Aspen. And a man uprooted, is well, like a dead tree.

His best shot at getting Risa over her million dollar temper tantrum was to win a golf tournament. Not just any tournament, mind you, but one that had a 2-million dollar winning pot. Either that or find out what the woman's worst secret was and blackmail her.

Like that would ever happen!

Then again, his best friend and legal advisor, Justin, said, "Make her fall in love with you," and herein we have the lead-in to door number three.

Well, let me tell you, what follows is the best romp of a read I've had in years.  Mr. Morris is funny, but not in a slapstick way. His writing flows so well, you are engrossed in the story and don't even realize how he managed to captivate you. He is a master at getting out of the way of the story and letting it live. The situations in this book are so well-written, I could truly imagine being out in the snow looking at that house of Morgan's.  In fact, I stood side-by-side with this character and felt every ill-timed moment as they happened. Yes, Morris is that good at making you a part of this tale.

Thank you John, for writing a book that took me out of my dreary day and allowed me to watch someone else wiggle through life. I hope to never have the problems that poor Morgan did, but after reading your book, I feel like I went through it all vicariously anyway.

Great book, Murderers. Go out and visit his blog tour stops, and whatever you do- go out and visit Mr. Morris' sites, and for heaven's sake, get this book!

John Morris' Bio:

John Morris lives in Aspen, Colorado, with his loving wife and two wonderful children.  Having worked many of the same cowboy / construction / bartender / ski-patrol jobs as his fictional counterpart Morgan, he can vouch for how easy it is for a good-looking guy to get in trouble there.

John Morris' Facebook:
http://www.facebook.com/pages/John-Morris/392376524117530

The Aspen 2-Million Winner-Take-All Blog Tour Site:
http://the-aspen.blogspot.com/

Tribute Books Blog Tours Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Tribute-Books-Blog-Tours/242431245775186
  

eBook
Price: $6.99
Pages: 281
Release: May 10, 2012

Kindle buy link:
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0082EL6JA?tag=tributebooks-20

Nook buy link:
http://click.linksynergy.com/fs-bin/click?id=dcSBhG3Rj8w&subid=&offerid=239662.1&type=10&tmpid=8432&RD_PARM1=http%253A%252F%252Fwww.barnesandnoble.com%252Fw%252Fthe-aspen-2-million-winner-take-all-john-morris%252F1110764389%253Fean%253D2940014415729

iBookstore buy link:
http://click.linksynergy.com/fs-bin/stat?id=dcSBhG3Rj8w&offerid=146261&type=3&subid=0&tmpid=1826&RD_PARM1=http%253A%252F%252Fitunes.apple.com%252Fus%252Fbook%252Faspen-2-million-winner-take%252Fid526795549%253Fmt%253D11%2526uo%253D4%2526partnerId%253D30

Also available through Kobo, Sony, ebooks.com and http://search.overdrive.com/classic/retail/

Know thine characters

OK, so I am up really late on a Monday night (I can do that these days and not miss a beat) - and I have this desire to blog about writing characters. There are quite a few things that I could say about that, but some of the highlights will do for this post today.

Here they are: Make your characters different from one another and make them stand out for who they are. No one likes vanilla people on paper. Know their history. Where did they come from? What sorts of things do they detest? Give them a horrible past and tell us every juicy detail by their actions.

No, don't just TELL us, show us how they are affected by it. Share something happy about them with us, and make us smile. Make us laugh, and we will read your book to the very end. Make everything about their past matter, and throw in secrets. Readers LOVE secrets!

When your characters talk, make them all sound different. I know this is a little like making them different from above, but it is still not the exact same thing. We all talk differently. Accents, speech patterns all differ and make us individuals. Do that for the paper people too.

And, I guess that is all for now. I am thinking way too hard for after midnight, but that's how I roll. I just need to roll myself over to the laptop and do more edits on my latest WIP and then everything in my writing life would be on track.

Hope your Thursday flies by (we all know what comes after Thursday and isn't that super!) and if you have time today, go sit alone in a coffeeshop or a cafe and listen to the people who fill our world.

They all make wonderful book characters with their different loves and hates, with their horrible pasts, and their happy stories. If we could create from the world around us, what a magnificient lot of pages we could make!

 

Wise old owl

Book Review for THE DAVID EMBRACE by Warren Adler, review by Aaron Lazar

I love Warren Adler's books - I've read and totally enjoyed some of the "Fiona" series, recently read and delighted in FLANAGANS DOLLS, and have four books waiting in the wings to read.

This book - while engrossing and beautifully written in many sections - was quite different from the other books I've read. There were sections of inner dialog that might possibly have benefited by being punctuated with some action or live dialog, which we all know Mr. Adler does with great proficiency and class, but aside from this mild criticism, the book is well worth the read.

That said, there were plenty of masterful elements in THE DAVID EMBRACE. The panoramic lush scenery was totally captivating; the sense of place - superb.

You can read a super plot synopsis on Amazon, but here's a quick look:

Product Description

In this fast-paced erotic thriller, John Champion, a professional hitman and Angela Ford, the wife of the man who orders the hit, engage in a passionate, overpowering and memorable love affair. Played out against the exotic locales of Florence, the Riviera, the French Alps and Manhattan, the two lovers endure impossible odds as their relationship deepens and matures. Figuring importantly in the story is Michelangelo's David, a majestic artistic masterpiece that stands in all its naked glory in the Galleria dell' Accademia in Florence and the epiphany experienced by Angela in its presence. In viewing this magnificent masterpiece Angela discovers the core of her female identity, one of the few illustrations of this phenomenon ever found in a novel which deals with the deeper implications of sexuality and how it can shed light on the eternal mystery of love and attraction between men and women.

Aunt Emma, Angela Ford's aunt, was one of the most delightful, passionate, and endearing characters I've ever grown to love, reminiscent of the "fountain lady" in UNDER THE TUSCAN SUN (I can't remember her name, but if you've seen the movie, you know who I mean!). Emma is full of life, unafraid to love, open to the world of pleasure, and the one who motivates Angela Ford to spread her wings and embrace love.

But most powerful of all were the erotic scenes painted with a tender yet fiery brush by this master. Mr. Adler has the ability to bring one into the carnal centers of each character - male or female - and truly engulf the reader with their passion. Yet he does so with class and artistry - no crass or vulgar descriptions are found in this writing.

The character arcs of John Champion and Angela Ford grabbed me by the heartstrings and had me cheering all the way. The metamorphoses of both John and Angela were equally compelling, believable, and uplifting.

In addition, Mr. Adler brought to life Michelangelo's famous "David," a marble man who figuratively invades the mind and soul of Angela Ford in a cosmic and complete fashion, embodied by the humanity of John Champion and oddly enough linked to a long ago memory of her father.

THE DAVID EMBRACE is an interesting amalgam, and a fascinating read.

***

Aaron Paul Lazar writes to soothe his soul. The author of LeGarde Mysteries, Moore Mysteries, and Tall Pines Mysteries enjoys the Genesee Valley countryside in upstate New York, where his characters embrace life, play with their dogs and grandkids, grow sumptuous gardens, and chase bad guys. Visit his website at www.legardemysteries.com and watch for his upcoming Twilight Times Books releases, TERROR COMES KNOCKING (2011), FOR KEEPS (2012), FOR THE BIRDS(2011), ESSENTIALLY YOURS (2012), DON’T LET THE WIND CATCH YOU (2012), and the author’s preferred edition of DOUBLE FORTÉ (2012).

Reviews or peyews?

I have found a site where an author and reviewer go at it through the comments pretty strongly. It makes me wonder how often we get reviews that we think are really stinky and unfair.

I also have to ask how many do we get that are peyews but are truly justified, even if we cannot face up to the bald truth?

Reviewers take a lot of time to read your work, and although they are only one person's opinion, reviews are an important part of being a writer. It is not really a professional bit of behavior to diss them about their point of view (when posted) when you get that not-so-positive one.

A few things to remember about book reviews are :
1. They are a reader's perspective of the story, and not always parallel to our love of the book/story.
2. They are oftentimes posted in public places and can lift or lower your rankings based on whether it is good or bad.
3. They are also something that you will end up doing for someone if you are a writer.

Have to say that the weather has finally turned out nice here and I give IT a five star review! Hope your week flies by!