eBook Reviews R'us

Juliane Koepcke – When I Fell From The Sky

Edward — Thu, 03 May 2012 15:55:57 +0000

When Juliane flew over Peru with her mother the plane encountered a wild thunderstorm and the plane exploded. Juliane, still attached to her seat was flung out and plummeted 10, 000 feet into the Peruvian jungle. Freaky, indeed. She followed the #1 rule of survival which is follow the water courses. There isn’t much here on her actual survival except for maggots in her wounds and that she was in shock for some of the 10 day ordeal that she spent floating down a river. Most of the book is about her rescue, the rescue searching for more survivors, and her life between then and 27 years later when a film was made on the event. The story jumps around between going back for the film and her post survival after being found and her family life after. It is an interesting story with facts about the Amazon and how the journalists dialed in much of her story when she was found. Didn’t really care for her relationship changing areas in regards to her father. I’d give this about 3 stars.

Firefighter mystery and juvenile eBook Sale – 25% and more off

Edward — Sun, 15 Apr 2012 17:08:46 +0000

I’ve decided to try and increase sales of my eBooks by reducing their prices. My firefighter mystery/suspense novels are $4.99 and my juvenile/chapter eBooks are $2.99. I also have a juvenile for .99 cents until June. Why? Well, everyone’s downloading the Hunger Games @ $5.00 so I have to compete and undercut Suzanne Collins. Sorry to do this dear, but here I come.
Kindle Smashwords

Scott Wallace – The Unconquered

Edward — Sun, 15 Apr 2012 16:56:04 +0000

American Scott Wallace, a Nat’l Geographic writer, accompanies an expedition trying to find one of the last primitive tribes in the deep Amazon, a dangerous one, the Arrow People. FUNAI the Brazilian native affairs dept. doesn’t contact them anymore and give them pots and stuff as they are too susceptible to disease just like in the old Pizarro days. They just try to find out where they are and demarcate their range. It’s good on several levels: Brazil’s attitudes to natives, history, wildlife, gold dredging, geography, and what it takes to mount such an exploration. Actually, it’s little different than how explorers tromped around the jungle a 100 years ago. Cellphones don’t work and the only modern convenience is a GPS. Good stuff if you like explorer stuff and real modern day adventure

Too much spam from my Dr. Seuss review

Edward — Tue, 10 Apr 2012 23:55:22 +0000

I deleted the original review. I'm hoping it was the title that attracted all the spam. Dr. Seuss's first book was rejected twenty-four times. "too different from other juveniles". Sales of his children's books have soared to 100 million. So, I figured I'd take a swing at The Cat In The Hat as I do write juvenile/middle grade fiction, I have a grand daughter who appears to be a promising reader, and I wanted to see what all the fuss is about. This book was written in 1957 and still has relevance today and probably will forever. To kids it's a fun romp with a rhyming cadence starring the crazy cat and Two Things who barge in unannounced. The cat and the Two Things wreck stuff in the house while trying to get two kids to have some fun. Well, they don't have fun and get quite concerned. That's all you're going to get from me as I won't issue a spoiler alert.

Getting It Published: A Guide for Scholars and Anyone Else Serious about Serious Books

Will — Sun, 08 Apr 2012 03:37:10 +0000

Getting It Published: A Guide for Scholars and Anyone Else Serious about Serious Books by William Germano

I recently wanted information on the publishing industry, so i picked up this book about getting it published. The book focuses mainly on publishing for scholars and somewhat avoids trade publishing. I grabbed it for mainly information on trade publishing. this book gave a very detailed account on how to publish for scholars and also provided great information on trade publishing.

It talked about the processes, editing, writing, and many other aspects that I had trouble finding elsewhere.

The author goes into great detail and explains the thinking behind the publishers and what you need to take into consideration as well. There is also opinions and advice to help you along.

I highly recommend this book about publishing to anyone who has no experience in the publishing world and needs information on getting it published.

John Lescroart – Damage

Edward — Sun, 25 Mar 2012 17:27:34 +0000

This is a pretty good read with a lot of dynamics going on. Lawyers and cops and victims families work together to put away a rich serial killer. Everyone knows the perp did it but proving it is difficult. As a writer and a reader, I’m recommending this one on my website too.

Brad Meltzer – The Book Of Lies

Edward — Sun, 11 Mar 2012 22:38:33 +0000

I expected more from this author. I didn’t really connect with the story and I don’t know why. The plot should’ve been enough for thriller category but ended up as ‘thriller lite’. Brad Meltzer has a TV show ‘Brad Meltzer Decoded’ where he unravels old secret codes and stuff, like the group who gave the Statue Of Liberty to the U’S. and what it really means. Anyhow, this book fails to unravel the secret of how Cain killed Abel but by looking for it gets into the death of Jerry Seigel, the man who created Superman and died in poverty. Jerry’s dad in was the guy who stole the secret in Eastern Europe and brought it to the U.S. Assassins tracked him down. So now we have a killer unleashed to find the secret, again and the chase is on. A man reunites with his long lost ex-con, customs agents, a renegade priest, a few murders, and the Siegel family who still garner little respect in Cleveland. I really didn’t care about the characters but there was suspense in small doses.

Read an eBook Week – 25% discounts and more

Edward — Sat, 03 Mar 2012 17:03:53 +0000

25% discount on my eBooks: juvenile suspense Ransom and my adult fire fighter thriller Gerry’s War. There are up to 75% discounts for other eBooks. Only at Smashwords.com

discount code is REW 25 for designated books being promoted.

David Baldacci – The Winner

Edward — Thu, 01 Mar 2012 20:41:23 +0000

I liked this book. It’s a thriller with a great, tough, female protagonist and a very clever villian. A few twists and turns keep the story cooking as well as suspense. It’s an older book, 1999, and typewriters are mentioned. Picked it up at a used bookstore in the Dominican Republic. Basically, a brilliant guy fixes the huge U.S. lottery, giving some to a ticket buyers he selects–but with strict rules. If you don’t follow them you die. Worth a read because it’s a good thick book and no filler to stretch things out. I’m hoping the next book I write has all the ingredients as this one does.

Stephen Leather – Cold Kill

Edward — Fri, 24 Feb 2012 23:43:19 +0000

I really liked this page-turner, a borderline thriller with elements of action. It moves fast and is descriptive enough to create good imaging. Terrorists and money launderers are the protagonist’s target. British undercover agent Alen Shephard, is one tough cookie but also has qualms about killing, even those who deserve it. I found the terrorist angle interesting from a British perspective. There’s too much stuff out there with the incompetent CIA (read Legacy of Ashes). I try to write my own mysteries like this with a balance between good dialogue, imaging, and plot. And I love to see terrorists get the sharp end of the stick. Stephen Leather’s character, Alen Shephard, has appeared in a lot of his books from killing terrorists to going undercover in the police dept. I picked a good one, Cold Kill, and I’d recommend it.