Islanders by John Barlow

This novel reminded me of a modern day Lord of the Flies. Not with the plot, just with the concept of the children being the main characters. I’m sure there are many novels like this, but I feel like this could replace that book in school curriculums.

It does have lessons that you can take away from it, such as you need teamwork to succeed, and also to never give up.

This novel is a sort of spin on a post-apocalyptic. There was a major war on the mainland including biological warfare. Some of the survivors were able to escape to an island unknown to the ruler of the mainland.

When a boat washes up on shore of the island carrying a messenger from the mainland telling Ben Brewer that his father is still alive, he and a gang of children set off to uncover the true story of what happened.

Will they be able to find Ben’s dad? Or will they get killed along the way?

You just have to read it and find out!

5/5 Stars. I spent all day reading this book and didn’t get bored once! It is full of adventure and get crazy at the end!

To learn more click here!

Read ahead for spoilers

Patriot's Blood by Richard Holcroft

This book embodies basically everything that interests me in a book. You have Mob references, conspiracy theories, detective work, and a lot of suspense.

It is based around a Lawyer, Marchetti. He is asked by a client of his to investigate a case for him in case of his death.

Once Marchetti begins to do the detective work, he puts everyone around him in danger. But worse than that, it is unknown danger. He cannot figure out where the threat is coming from and who is behind all of it.

It started off with the bombing of an important building and most of the facts were covered up or completely ignored by the government and the FBI. Marchetti’s client was one of the few who had witnessed the bombing and had seen who may had been involved.

The other witnesses began disappearing – staged suicides.

This novel is very well written! It kept me on the edge of my seat for the whole ride. Especially when it really began heating up at the end.

The end was packed full of action, so much that it had my heart beating quickly!

5/5 Stars. It was such an exciting read! I loved it!

Read ahead for spoilers

Tortured Minds by Sue Mydliak

This collection of short stories was very. . . odd I guess would be the best word for it.

It it’s a collection that contains short horror stories. Which, in theory, should be very interesting. But,  for the most part, I was completely lost while trying to read them.

Though, there were definitely some that were better than others, and they seemed to get better as it went on.

The stories are not connected to one another, they are all independent. I feel as if the stories would have been a lot more powerful if, instead of being written in story format, they were written as poems. Some of them actually had the feel of a poem, but they were written as a story.

It is something you could pick up around Halloween and enjoy, but it wasn’t my favorite.

2.5/5 stars. I was lost most of the time. But I actually enjoyed a few of them. 

To Learn More, Click Here

Wet and Ready by Cherise St. Claire (Review Under Read More)

BOGOF The Supermarket Cat by Adrian Marshall

This cute little children's book is about a cat that gets a job outside of a supermarket. 

It would be a great book to sit down and read with your child. 

I love cats, so the book being written in the perspective of the cat was something I enjoyed. 

It is very short, so your children will not lose interest. 

5/5 loved the cute story, and the cat as the main character was an added bonus!

Click here for more information!

The Girl by Bryan Hall

If any of you recall when I reviewed the story “The Vagrant”

I said this:

 “If it were a bit longer, there could have been some more backstory for the main character as well as some more action in it.”

Well, I said that before I knew that it was a part of a series. The series is The Southern Hauntings Saga.

That being said, this story was a lot better than the first. Crate comes back for the second story and is called upon to use his spirit-seeing powers to find a missing girl.

Whether he is able to or not, he sets out to try.

This story was a lot less rushed than the first. Actually, I didn’t feel as if it was rushed at all. It was a bit longer which could be the cause of that. It was a great read for my train ride.

One thing I really liked about this story and Bryan Hall’s writing in general is how you can feel the mood in the reading. He is able to set a very dark mood without making it obvious.

5/5 stars for this one. I really enjoyed it, it is a great read if you are commuting, or if you have time to sit around one afternoon and read it. I suggest setting aside enough time to get it done in one sitting, because once you start, you won’t want to put it down!

Click here to purchase!

Read ahead for spoilers!

The Last Bad Job by Colin Dodds

There aren’t many other ways to describe this book than that it is interesting.

This novel basically involved everything in its storyline: religion, cults, drugs, sex, alcohol, and the apocalypse.

It is an apocalyptic thriller based on the teachings on a cult leader “Dizzy” and the reporter put on the assignment from hell.

From how it starts, you will never guess the ending. I like books like that, though. Very unpredictable they keep you engaged.

 It takes you through Dizzy’s cult and teachings.  Then the reporter gets in some trouble and has to hide out in California. As if the beginning wasn’t strange enough, this is when everything begins to get VERY weird.

The part where he is hiding out felt a bit like a Rob Zombie movie to me. Take that however you please, but The Devil’s Rejects is one of my favorite movies, so that isn’t a bad thing to me.

Then it takes a turn toward an even WEIRDER story line. This is where we find out how life will be post apocalypse.

This book takes you on many different turns. Right when you get used to one part of the story line, BAM it switches over to a different place/story. It was a very interesting read. I’m not usually one for apocalyptic books, so for my first read, this one was rather good!

3.5/5 Stars. It isn’t for everyone, but it gives a different twist on the story of the apocalypse, and I think those who enjoy the genre will really appreciate this read!

The release date for novel is November 13, 2012!
To find out more, here are links to the book:
http://www.amazon.com/The-Last-Bad-Job-ebook/dp/B009OPW154/ref=tmm_kin_title_0?ie=UTF8&qid=1350007206&sr=8-2

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-last-bad-job-colin-dodds/1112889677?ean=9781479301461

https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/234441

A Great Foundation - Please Read

Taking another break from posting a review to tell you about this great charity that I was just made aware of. 

the Danny Did Foundation
http://www.dannydid.org/

It promotes awareness for epilepsy and you can donate as well. I'm not going to tell you to donate, because not everyone has the extra money to do so, and that is understandable. 

But, if you could just take a few minutes of your time to look through the website and maybe share it with people you know. 

Thank you for reading, everyone!
-Courtney

The Pride of Lyons by Donald Peters

This book will take you on a crazy ride! A ride that will keep you on the edge of your seat!

Horse racing, mystery, blackmail, male prostitutes, and murder all tied into one thrilling novel.

Sometimes what you are trying to find is right in front of your face.

This is a story about a gay private investigator, Quince, sent out to discover the story behind mysterious blackmail photos. What he ends up finding out is not what he expects at all.

I like how this story takes you through the solving process; it doesn’t leave you in the dark like some other mystery/suspense novels. It is almost encouraging you to guess along with Quince. Only at the end is some information withheld from the reader in order to frame the twist at the end – which was a thrilling one.

This book had almost the same sort of feeling as a James Patterson novel which really drew me in. The chapters are short, and the characters are all well rounded. Quince is the type of character you could make a series out of. He is intelligent and sarcastic, and his story line never runs dull. I would love to read another book with him as the main character.

Overall, 5/5 stars. I couldn’t put it down, and the ending was great. I never saw it coming!

To hear more from Donald, here is a link to his Facebook page! https://www.facebook.com/donaldedward.peters?fref=ts

Hello!

I have finally stepped up in the world and made a twitter for this blog! Im hoping it will give you all an easy way to stay in touch with me and to hear what comes to my mind. 
So if you have a twitter, go ahead and follow me @CBaumanReviews

Enjoy!