There are a couple of things I need to say before I can get to the actual review of this book. First, I don’t usually review books that consist of nothing but poetry. There’s a reason for this. Poetry is so personal, so subjective, that it’s really hard to review it properly. Either you feel something when you read it or you don’t, and what you feel might not be anything at all like what the author felt or would want you to feel. If you review it as objectively as possible, you can review meter, rhyme, style, and type of poem, and yet, so many who write poetry don’t even bother with those things any more. That’s not really a good thing either. A quick perusal of Poetry Soup and you can see the poetic types: Iambic pentameter, acrostic, epigram, epic, alliteration, cinquain, monoku, and so many more.

So I didn’t know what to expect when I received this book for review, a book that contained nothing but poetry in it. I cringe when I see it, because I know that a book of poetry is usually sealed up with all sorts of very personal emotions from the poet, and I’m supposed to review it somewhat clinically, and how are you supposed to take someone’s feelings and critique them?

So keep in mind as I review this book, I’m being somewhat technical and objective, when poetry is more an experience, a subjectiveness that requires the person to be transported to a place of emotion. Fiction transports us to another place; poetry transports us to an emotional place. But to review poetry, one must detach from that and be objective. I hate doing that, but here goes:

POEMS THAT MIGHT OR MIGHT NOT CHANGE YOUR LIFE: THE COVER

The book cover is simplistic. I wasn’t sure what to expect inside, because the cover, quite frankly, disappoints. It’s solid white, with black font. It looks like something created in a Word Document, not an eye-catching cover that reveals the importance of the emotional connection inside. It’s drab and disappointing. It looks absolutely horrible online, because of the solid white cover, against a white background on most websites, causes the cover to blend in and essentially disappear against the website. A border around the cover image online would make a huge improvement.

The title case is wrong, which doesn’t really help entice someone to want to pick up the book. The title case reads: Poems that Might or might not Change your Life. Might is capitalized first but not the second time. Personal pronouns (Your) are always capitalized in titles. When the publisher and/or author can’t even bother to get the title right, it doesn’t bode well for the rest of the book. This is so crucial. The cover and the title are what people see before they ever look at anything else.

POEMS THAT MIGHT OR MIGHT NOT CHANGE YOUR LIFE: FORMATTING

So what about the interior? The formatting looks like it was set for a much smaller book than the actual book size. The page numbers are at about 3/4 of the way down the page, not at the bottom where page numbers belong. The thank yous and acknowledgement pages have the font in tiny columns on an entirely blank white page. It looks like the margins and settings for the pages were for a smaller book than what was printed. It really doesn’t look professional on the interior formatting at all. There is no header for author and title either.

POEMS THAT MIGHT OR MIGHT NOT CHANGE YOUR LIFE: THE POETRY

Now, the important part: are the poems any good? Yes, quite a few of them are good. Even so, they are dated. I mean, literally dated. There is the title and then next to it is the date. I don’t understand why the author or the publisher decided to do this. It makes no difference to the reader when the poem was written and merely serves to date the poem, which takes away from it the sense of timelessness that poetry should have. If the poem is going to be dated, why not include with it a little memoir explanation of the poem and what was happening at the time it was written? Otherwise, there is no reason for the date. The author might have had a fantastic memoir poetry book that way, allowing the reader a little insight into the history of the poem, the meaning behind it. I, for one, would have really enjoyed that.

A huge percentage of the poems are untitled. Instead of just leaving the title off, the poet and/or the publisher has chosen to put ‘Untitled’ as the title. If you’re going to present a professionally prepared book of poetry, I personally think one should take the time to title the poems.

One poem, on page 81, is nothing more than one line:

Work (part one) 6/9/03

Nobody wants to be here.

While I can agree with the sentiment, this is NOT a poem. There is no meter. There is no style that it meets that I can tell. I counted syllables. I counted words. I can’t match it to any known poetry style, so it basically means this is nothing but a written sentiment, but it’s not a poem. I, who started my writing career as a poet myself (my first published book was a book of poetry and personal essays), was asked once to write an article for a small poetry ezine entitled “How to Write a Good Poem”, and in that article, I quoted Oscar Wilde as having said, “All bad poetry springs from genuine feeling.” I am not saying this book is full of bad poetry–because it’s not, some of it is quite interesting and moving–but a sentiment of one line that is nothing but genuine feeling about a subject does not a poem make.

When I read these poems, I can feel the poet’s emotions. What I like better in poetry is for the poet to make me feel my own emotions, instead of leading me to feeling what he is feeling.

POEMS THAT MIGHT OR MIGHT NOT CHANGE YOUR LIFE: EDITING

Many people might not realize that even poems should be edited. Unless a word use is important to the meaning of the poem, such as slang or dialogue used in an inappropriate manner on purpose, the words used in a poem should be the proper ones for the meaning and they should be spelled properly. Sentence structure should still be properly used, with commas where they belong for either pause, emphasis or correct grammatical structure, and there are many instances of missing commas in this book. There were a couple of instances where the wrong word was used. There’s a line in one poem, “I use to write poetry” when what was meant was “I used to write poetry”. These things are important, and a good editor should review poetry for little things like this to help present the poet in the best light.

POEMS THAT MIGHT OR MIGHT NOT CHANGE YOUR LIFE: OVERALL EVALUATION

Here is an emotive poetry book that some will enjoy. It could have been more professionally presented, but the poems are something many can relate to. This is not stiff, boring poetry. It is living poetry about things people in today’s world can understand and connect with. While the poet pays little attention to meter, style or rhyme, the emotive aspect of the poetry is clear, and for many readers, will carry the experience. If you’re a poetry lover, this book will likely please you and move you. If you don’t love poetry, there might still be something here that makes you nod your head in agreement or understanding. It’s people’s poetry, life poetry, and overall, I enjoyed reading it, even if I couldn’t connect with it myself and in many instances didn’t consider what I was reading to be poetry.

I hope the poet considers some of my earlier comments, so that any future volumes of poetry by this poet are presented in a more professional light, so that the poetry gets a chance to be showcased perfectly, like it deserves, so it can reach a further audience it deserves. If you like reading poetry, I do recommend this book. If poetry isn’t your cup of tea, this one probably won’t move you enough to be worth the purchase. The price is reasonable for a small-press published book. However, though it is listed on Amazon.com, it doesn’t currently appear that it is sold or fulfilled through Amazon.com.

Charlie Clouse’s website: http://www.hounddogbooks.com/about.html

Stop by and say hello to the author and check out his offerings.

Author Interview with Jennifer Walker

After seeing the cover for Force of Habit, by Cash Peters, I was expecting something of an action-adventure comedy. After all, with a masculine-looking nun on the cover with a habit and a black eye and crooked smile, what else could I have thought?

The author has called this book a thriller, and I have to respectfully disagree with him. I love a good thriller, but this book really isn’t a thriller. If I had to classify the genre, I’d say it’s more an action-adventure mystery. While there are some humorous moments, witty places, the book itself really wasn’t as funny as I had expected it to be.

Force of Habit starts with action and it ends with unresolved questions. That bothers me a bit, as a book, even if part of a series or an ongoing character series, should really stand alone. This one does tell a complete story, I just don’t feel it tied up all the loose ends well and tried too hard to make this a ‘beginning’ of something instead of a stand-alone book. Read the rest of this entry »

This is one of the hardest reviews I’ve yet to write, because I don’t know how to rate this book. On the one hand, if we go by the story, entertainment and how much it pulled me in, it would get one score and then if we went by editing and style, it would get an entirely different score.

So let’s start with the problems: In the prologue, we are introduced to the book in a first person narrative. The voice of that first person in the prologue is most definitely male, because his son calls him ‘father’. But then chapter one starts, and we switch characters but are still in first person, with a character named “Max”. It took me several chapters to realize, because I don’t read the summaries before I read books, that Max was really a woman, Maxine. That made me have to start over again and re-read things from that new perspective.

Next, the first sentence of chapter one has a grammatical error in it. That really turned me off to the book and had I not been reading it for a review, had I picked it up in a bookstore or had scanned through it on Amazon.com, I would likely have put it back and not bought it. That same grammatical error, particularly pertaining to dialogue tagging, was done incorrectly all throughout the book.

This book needs a good copy edit, no doubt about it, and on that score, I have to really say that the book can’t get more than three stars for editing.

But if I had judged the book by that alone, I would have missed a fantastic book. Read the rest of this entry »

Hey, readers! Sorry it’s been a while since the last review, but my new Kindle Fire’s power cord broke. One of the prongs just broke right off. I don’t want anyone to take that as a review of the Kindle. You can read my Kindle review here if you really want to know what I think about the Kindle Fire. The cord got stuck under the recliner, where the power surge plug is, and I plopped down a lot harder in the chair than I should have and it popped the power cord to the side, and ripped that metal prong right out of it. So my Kindle was completely out of charge when that happened, so I haven’t had any notes (Yes, I make notes on the Kindle while I read, neat feature!) to write reviews from or to read. The new power cord has come, the Kindle Fire is now fully charged, and I’ll be back to posting reviews you can trust tomorrow morning, with S. Gail Seymour’s book, MOROAICA. Looking forward to it.

In the meantime, I want you to check out this project and philanthropic endeavor:

There’s a group called “Gone Reading” who have created an online store where they sell literary-related items with all the proceeds going to their project. The website says, “Gone Reading International donates 100% of after-tax profits to fund new reading libraries and other literacy projects in the developing world.”

It’s a wonderful endeavor to expand reading and the love of reading to those less fortunate who otherwise might not be exposed to it. But it’s more than that, because reading and knowing how to read is the beginning of being able to communicate with the rest of the world, which is a chance for kids to get out of poverty, to take jobs they otherwise couldn’t do, and to help grow and improve educationally. Reading is crucial for these developments to happen, and this project helps make that happen.

On the more frivolous but nonetheless important side, imagine growing up without your favorite book or your ability to read. Imagine not having your imagination run away with you as you become the character in an action adventure book for kids. Imagine not being transported away to a fairytale land of fantasy for a moment, to escape the humdrum of life. Think of how much kids who don’t have access or money to buy books at bookstores. Think of kids who don’t have access to a library or even if they did have access, might not be able to enter it for one reason or another. Think of a life without your favorite childhood stories read to you by your parents, big brother or sister or babysitter.

This is your chance to make a difference…

Check out Gone Reading at this link and get yourself a t-shirt for a good cause, if you feel so compelled.

See you tomorrow with a new review!

Love and stuff,
Michy

This is book two in a series of epic fantasy novels, incorporating some of the best fantasy elements of humans, elves, dragons and other mythical and mystical beings. Fortunately, one doesn’t have to read book one of the series in order to understand and enjoy book two, but I do think it would likely help. I picked this up for review and haven’t read book one yet, but I do feel I’m missing a little bit by not knowing all the characters and back story well. However, it’s absolutely not necessary for the enjoyment of the story.

The author, however, does a good job of filling us in. The first part of the book recaps where the universe and characters have been. It’s a bit expositional, so it’s best not to judge the entire novel by the first few chapters, because it does pick up pace even more later.

That said, the first chapters are a bit tough to follow in that it bounces around a little in time. In one chapter, we’re told a character died, then in the next chapter, we go back a little in time and see how that character died, without any indication that we’ve shifted gears except for a chapter change. Each chapter tells the story of one of the characters, mostly in an omniscient point of view, but focusing on that particular character, so it does work, even if it’s a tad awkward in the beginning.

Plot of Legends of Marithia: Darkness Rising, by Peter Koevari

As with many epic fantasy novels, this one has a prophecy. We begin early in the book to see that the wheels of motion have started spinning on the fulfillment of this prophecy, when a child is born from a mix of a sorceress and a vampire, a mating that is illegal and punishable by death (vampires can peacefully co-exist, but there is a ‘racism’ issue with the people and the vampires in this story). The child has to witness the cruel murder of her parents and she strikes a deal with the ruler of the underworld and thus the prophecy is set in motion.

A caste system with a king and a jealous prince who wants his father’s crown exists in this universe, and a rival in love with the princess is cast to bring about conclusion of the prophecy. This results in the prince seeking to destroy him before he can succumb to or fulfill his fate. The once peaceful Marithia erupts in war.

The castle lies in runs. The knight from the prophecy is in cahoots with and spellbound by the dragons (and I have to say, I loved the dragons in this book!), and Shindar, the demon of the underworld, has been waiting for centuries to exact his revenge (which is another good story I would have liked to read more about so I’m hoping it’s in part one of this series!)

I won’t say anything more about the plot, as to not give away any spoilers, but basically, the rest goes about seeing how the prophecy plays out and trying to set right what once went wrong.

Characterization in Legends of Marithia: Darkness Rising, by Peter Koevari

I had a hard time connecting with some of the characters. I could view them from a distance, but it was difficult for me to get inside of them and feel something for them. In part, this is because of the writing style. It’s very expositional.

The dialogue is a bit stilted. There are instances where the characters talk too much, in a manner not consistent with normal dialogue from real people. It felt as though sometimes the author was trying to tell the story through the dialogue, instead of just letting the characters talk to each other as a means to get to know them. Also, paragraph breaks in dialogue would have made some of the longer speeches easier to read.

Writing Style in Legends of Marithia: Darkness Rising, by Peter Koevari

I like the writing style in general. It’s super fast-paced. You won’t find a single page where things aren’t moving along quickly. I found that, unlike a lot of books I’ve been reading recently, I didn’t feel a desire to skim and skip ahead to get to some action. Unfortunately, because it was mostly expositional (a lot of telling and not enough showing), I didn’t get as deeply involved in the story as I would have liked. The author tells us a lot of things, but I would have preferred him to show it to us as it played out.

There are minor grammatical errors throughout, mostly missing commas and minor copy editing issues. For an indie published (self-published) book, the writing and editing were better than most I’ve read, and the minor errors I came across didn’t jolt me out of the enjoyment of the book.

Overall Opinion of Legends of Marithia: Darkness Rising, by Peter Koevari

Overall, I very much enjoyed this book. I like a good fantasy novel now and then, and this one kept my interest. I found I want to get to know the characters better and it was easy enough to slip into the universe and live in it while reading. The pacing is good, keeping my interest. The writing is good, though it has a little room for improvement, as does the editing. Overall, it’s a quality read and one I would recommend to anyone who enjoys fantasy.

There is a lot going on in this book, so you do have to keep up with it, but if you like dragons, elves, unicorns, gods and goddesses, demons, and magic, this book has some good elements of all those things. It’s entertaining and long enough to be worth the money for that entertainment.

Now, I’m doing things backwards, but I already purchased the first book in the series and will be reviewing it as soon as I finish it, because I want to know more about Marithia and the people in it.

Pick up a copy if fantasy is your thing. I don’t think you’ll be disappointed! You can also stop by the author’s website to learn more about his writing and the books.

Author Short Bio: Rev. Dr. Deborah Simpson

As a clear channeler and automatic writer, Rev. Dr. Deborah Simpson is the author of several inspirational and spiritual books including her bestselling metaphysical book, The Constellation of Omens, incorporating world predictions and signs of the end times. An ordained minister and spiritualist, Dr. Simpson has made appearances on various radio shows such as Paranormal Palace Radio, The Mortal Vampire, The Mix Talk and PairaNormal providing live, on-air psychic readings. As host of D’s Roundtable Radio Show she has given her callers psychic advice on the air and discussed paranormal phenomena.

Dr. Simpson has been described as the poet of our generation. With a critically acclaimed, unique writing style, her verse has been scrupulously compared to our celebrated greats of yore. If you relish the works of Keats, Shelley, Poe, Dickinson, e.e. Cummings and Hemingway, Rev. Deborah’s work is sure to captivate your literary senses. Her metaphysical works have been compared to such world famous psychics as Edgar Cayce and Nostradamus.

It’s rare today to find an author who does nothing but write for a living. Do you have a ‘real’ job other than writing, and if so, what is it? What are some other jobs you’ve had in your life? 

Deborah Simpson:  Excellent question and you couldn’t be more right. Aside from being a writer, I am also an ordained minister and spiritualist so I do work in the paranormal field as well as aiding persons on a daily basis. And, aside from that, I am a full-time paralegal. Most do not know that I spent 13 years of my life bartending part-time and I’ve worked many odds-and-ends jobs such as being a cashier in food stores, retail stores and I have even had my hand in working in a major fast food chain.

Have you always wanted to be a writer? 

Deborah Simpson:  I never actually thought about being a writer, although I’ve been writing since the age of 9 on a daily basis to satisfy my passion for writing. Being a published author was an avenue that I was talked into doing by others who had read my work.

What compels you to be a writer? 

Deborah Simpson:  Without sounding cliché, what compels me to write is what compels living creatures to breathe.

Are you currently working on any writing projects our readers should watch for release soon?

Deborah Simpson:  Yes. I am currently working on another metaphysical novel, Divination alongside a self-help book entitled Hardboiled Egg.

How did you feel the day you held the copy of your first book in your hands? 

Deborah Simpson:  It was a nostalgic experience. It was a huge personal accomplishment and at the same time, one of the most humbling experiences I have experienced.

What inspires you and motivates you to write the very most? 

Deborah Simpson:  When I receive a comment from a reader telling me how my work has changed their life, I believe that is all the motivation I will ever need.

What one thing are you the most proud of in your life? 

Deborah Simpson:  Without a doubt, my beautiful son.

Hey, let’s get morbid. When they write your obituary, what do you hope they will say about your book/s and writing? What do you hope they will say about you? 

Deborah Simpson:  Cute question. Quite honestly, although I haven’t thought about it, off the cuff I would say the only thing I hope for is that my writing had enough of an impact to be talked of at all. What do I hope they will say about me? For those that knew me to say they loved me.

Thinking about your writing career, is there anything you’d go back and do differently now that you have been published? 

Deborah Simpson:  Honestly? I wouldn’t change a thing. It was and is who I am. If I could do anything differently, I would have been sacrificing too much.

What is your main goal or purpose you would like to see accomplished by or with your writing? 

Deborah Simpson:  I have but one goal: May my words today fall unexpectedly graciously upon the ears, within the minds and throughout the hearts of them, so that but one may be touched by needed hope or faith or strength that before was misplaced in their life; and may the seeds these words plant today grow into vines that they may continue their crusade upon the ears, within the minds and throughout the hearts of them, so that but one more may be touched.

How has having a book or being published in a book changed your life? 

Deborah Simpson:  I am now responsible for every single word I have ever uttered in print. It has changed my life drastically.

It’s said that the editing process of publishing a novel with a publisher is can be grueling and often more difficult than actually writing the story. Do you think this is true for you? How did you feel about editing your masterpiece?

Deborah Simpson:  Out of all of the editing projects on my books, I think the most grueling was with The Constellation of Omens. Three months of editing. I believe I was reciting the book in my sleep. It is much more difficult than writing. I would agree 1000%.

Now that you are a published author, does it feel differently than you had imagined? 

Deborah Simpson:  Oh yes. On the one hand, it’s a huge personal accomplishment just as I imagined, however on the other hand, it brings so much more responsibility than I ever could have thought.

For more information on books and services, please visit Rev. Dr. Deborah Simpson’s website at www.deborahsimpson.org or her Amazon.com Author Page.

Short Author Bio for Rhetta Akamatsu

I am an online journalist and author with a wide range of interests. My books cover the paranormal, a lesser-known part of Irish history, and blues music, and I also have smaller books about children’s crafts and Christmas traditions! Online I write about Atlanta blues music, Atlanta steampunk, and Atlanta Historic Places and I write about business and technology news for Gather.com. I live in Metro Atlanta in Marietta, GA, the subject of my book, Haunted Marietta, with my husband and my cat, near my grown children and 4, soon to be five, grandchildren.

~~~Author Interview with Rhetta Akamatsu~~~

Donald Jacques was born in 1957, as an air force brat. He has lived in ten states over the years enjoying 8 kids, 6 grand kids. Don spent fifteen years as a computer programmer, worked as a teacher, a pro dance instructor, security guard, and commercial handyman. The HandyMan is his third book.

It’s rare today to find an author who does nothing but write for a living. Do you have a ‘real’ job other than writing, and if so, what is it? What are some other jobs you’ve had in your life?

Donald Jacques: I currently work as a commercial handyman. I repair, or perform preventive maintenance on plumbing fixtures, lighting, and wall repairs. In the past, I spent 15 years as a computer programmer, 10 years instruction in classrooms and corporate training, even did a few years as a ballroom dance instructor.

What compelled you to write your first book? Read the rest of this entry »

The first chapter of this book starts out strong, pulling me in to a story that this woman, Victoria, has to tell, her story. A story of a child born prematurely and not expected to live, who then defied all odds and survived, only to grow up and lead a disappointing life, devoid of any accomplishments, dreams, or anything that sets her apart from anyone else in small-town America. She married out of perceived necessity a man she didn’t truly love and who obviously doesn’t truly love her. Their relationship is comfortable in a sense, if not strained.

Then one day, she meets a man, an artist, who leads a very different existence than most of the folks she’s known her whole life. Victoria finds herself not only drawn to this man in a strange sort of way, but she also finds herself questioning her own life, her choices and her existence. He awakens old dreams in her of dancing and owning her own dance studio, things she gave up along the way to become a dutiful wife, and she never thought she’d entertain those ideas again. Read the rest of this entry »