Book reviews, etc
About a month or so ago, I was asked if I would take the time to read and review a novel soon to be released by Red Letter Press called "Merrimen's Second Chance." I did and my blurb was selected for use in the book. The author, Wilmot Irvin, wrote me a very kind note of appreciation and sent me a copy of the book, as well. I'm honored that my comments were included and appreciate the publicity for Carmella's Quest. Here's what I said:
"Merrimen is a well-written novel that explores such timely subjects as morality, power, and ethics. The plot involves professional rise and fall, racial issues, women who stand by their fallible husbands, men who strive for career success, and court room drama so popular in today's fiction and television. Its a hard book to put down, a thought-provoking read, and another quality edition to the diverse collection of writing published by Red Letter Press."
So, since I write blurbs about books now, apparently, I've recently read a couple worth mentioning. The first one is Shelf Life: Romance, Mystery, Drama, and Other Page-Turning Adventures from a Year in a Bookstore by Suzanne Strempek Shea. This is the author's memoir about the year she spent working at a friend's book store while recovering from breast cancer. She's written several novels, and in addition to talking about the various goings on with employees and customers at the store, she talks about book promotion and tours for her own writings. The book was a pretty light read and I enjoyed it both as an author and as someone who loves books. Its not tremendously exciting so not a "page turner" in the usual sense, but I found it enjoyable and entertaining. I read this book on cassette through National Library Service for the Blind.
The other was Behind the Stories: Christian Novelists Reveal the Heart in the Art of Their Writing by Diane Eble. I don't read much Christian fiction anymore, but was interested in these authors' stories of how they became interested in writing, influences, finding inspiration, and tips on being a successful writer. I learned about important events in their lives, as well, and that was really interesting. I was familiar with a few of those profiled, had heard of others, and completely unfamiliar with many of them. Christian fiction has become a booming genre in the past few years since I was into it in high school. My faith does influence my writing and my thoughts on why and how I write so it was relevant to me from that perspective. It was an easy read, as each brief author profile read like a human interest article with quotes and biographical information, etc. Enjoyable, inspiring, and an easy read. I downloaded this book from bookshare.org.
Two cool websites I've also been enjoying recently are
www.ClassicReader.com
where you can read tons of older fiction through this website, a chapter at a time. I read Jane eyre for the first time, as well as becoming more familiar with novels by the Bronte sisters. Fun site.
I am signed up for several email book clubs through
www.EmailBookClub.com
Every business day of the week, subscribers receive excerpts from a book in the body of an email message. Each day contains maybe about five minutes worth of reading. By Friday, you have the first 17 to 23 pages or so of the book. Categories include mystery, religious, fiction, nonfiction, horror, teen, business, and several others. Of course, the nonfiction category includes memoirs (my favorite), but other types of nonfiction are included, as well. Its fun and an easy way to be exposed to lots of books. Very neat.