Her Book Self

To describe A Discovery of Witches by Deborah Harkness in just two words seems a monumental task, but if I had to pick a pair to encompass this work it would be pleasantly surprising. I had high expectations for the book based on reviews and recommendations from friends, yet this captivating story surpassed them all.

The tale begins and is anchored by Oxford's Bodleian Library. I'm a sucker for books with an academic twist and Discovery of Witches had me hooked from the very start when young researcher Diana Bishop calls up a secret alchemical text from the stacks as part of her work. Diana is descended from the Bishops of Salem Witch Trial infamy, but despite her lineage she wants nothing to do with spells and sorcery. She is shocked and distraught to find that her summoning of the bewitched book has extreme supernatural consequences and sets her in the crossfire of the agendas of witches, demons, and vampires alike.

Diana finds an unlikely ally in scientist and centuries-old vampire Matthew Clairmont. More than just a supernatural protector, Matthew is a character drawn with a sophistication and intelligence congruent with his ancient birth yet still possessing the predatory instincts expected of his vampire status. With his lineage and history as intriguing and powerful as Diana's the two make a formidable team but their enemies are equally strong and undeniably ruthless.

The story that unfolds throughout the book is smart and unique. With settings that range from libraries and yoga studios to castles and genetics laboratories, I never knew quite what to expect next and the unpredictability was delightful. Blending in equal parts action, mystery, science, research, and romance, Harkness displays an exceptional gift for writing in her debut novel. Despite the book's length, I didn't want it to end, and, like many readers, I am eager to continue the story in this summer's sequel Shadow of Night.

Vampires, werewolves, and steampunk scientists all return in Blameless, the third entry of Gail Carriger's Parasol Protectorate series (Soulless, Changeless).  After adventures in London and Scotland, book three finds heroine Alexia traveling to Italy in search of some answers to past and present mysteries - including why a group of vampires have targeted her for death.  Returning to her father's homeland brings up plenty of questions for the Tarabotti heiress but she also must face dangers and horrors - including the Italians' preference for coffee over tea!

Blameless features all the great characters that fans have come to love throughout the series and members of the supporting cast are even developed and built upon, making them all the more delightful to read about.  The plot picks up directly where Changeless left off and unfolds at a great pace.  Although each book in the series does contain its own adventure there is enough of a continuous plot thread that readers will want to start at the beginning of the series and work through the books sequentially.  Carriger does a great job of blending the Victorian romance with the steampunk and supernatural elements and her witty dialog adds hilarity to a climactic and suspenseful mystery.  This series is overall plenty of fun and I eagerly look forward to Alexia's next adventures.

Any Parasol Protectorate fans out there want to weigh in on this series?  Which book is your favorite?  Any supernatural or steampunk fans on the fence about checking out Carriger's work?

I know I don't normally post reviews on this blog of books I didn't care for, but many people have asked my opinion about the immensely popular Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, so I thought I would do my best to explain my feelings about it.  Let me also encourage anyone who loved this book to openly disagree with me.  I would love to read comments about why others were enamored with the book and engage in some dialog about this one.  

It took me a while to get around to reading The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo and I really, really wanted to like this book. Multiple friends and positive reviews set me up with high expectations for it, but unfortunately it never lived up to those hopes for me - and even setting my preconceived notions aside, in many ways the book fell flat for me.

The story was decent following journalist Mikael Blomkvist whose career spirals downward after he is found guilty of libel. Promised a job and a hefty paycheck, Blomkvist follows the reclusive Henrik Vanger out to his island and accepts the task of searching out the truth behind the disappearance of Henrik's neice forty years earlier. Under the cover story of writing a biography of Henrik and his family, Blomkvist is introduced to the various eccentric characters that comprise the Vanger family. Accompanying him on his sleuthing expedition is a young hacker and talented research assistant named Lisbeth Salander. Lisbeth is the titular Girl with the Dragon Tattoo and in many ways she steals the show from Blomkvist as the much more intriguing character of the two of them.

I'll admit that the mystery portion of the book was really well done - I liked the puzzles and codes and suspicious characters - but Stieg Larsson takes an exorbitantly long time to get there. The first third (or maybe even half) of the book is devoted to Blomkvist's back story of his libel suit and a very disturbing walk through Salander's past. Knowing that the two characters would eventually intersect was probably the only thing that kept me reading the first portion of the book which alternated between boring details of financial lawsuits and cringe-inducing scenes of sexual assault.

Salander's character is perhaps one of the aspects of this book that seems to garner the most praise, but ultimately she never won me over. Though I found myself feeling sympathy and sadness toward her, some of her actions and unrelenting distrust for authority just frustrated me. Also, I found her relationship with Blomkvist overly contrived and their attachment seemed borne more out of plot convenience than of any real connection in their characters.

Many people have told me that Larsson's Millenium Trilogy only improves as the books go on, but many of these same people raved to me how good Dragon Tattoo was. Filled with a bit too much depravity and with a lack of likeable characters for my taste, I'm not certain that I want to continue the series and overall I'm left a bit baffled at the overwhelming popularity of this book. 

So there you have it.  Not my cup of tea, and hopefully I did an adequate job explaining why.  Did I miss something?  Was this really an excellent book that I'm just gaining an extremely wrong impression of?  Is the second book really immensely better?  Please don't hesitate to share your thoughts!

For those that enjoyed Jasper Fforde's The Eyre Affair (my review here), the sequel Lost in a Good Book delivers more of the same: more action, more quirky characters, more wordplay, and of course, more Thursday Next.

Though Fforde never quite crosses the line into somber, this entry in the series takes a slightly more dark and serious tone. Super criminal Acheron Hades is assumed to be out of the picture, but when Thursday is in the cross-hairs of death by coincidence a few too many times, she begins to suspect that only Hades could be behind the attacks. Meanwhile, the Goliath corporation is still after the Next family's book jumping technology, but Thursday soon learns of a whole world of literary travelers and takes on an apprenticeship to Miss Havisham in the world of Jurisfiction - the written word's version of her own job as a LiteraTec.

Crossing genres artfully as few other authors can, Fforde again dabbles with time travel, history, humor, and horror without hesitating to borrow heavily from the classic canon of Shakespeare, Dickens, Lewis Carroll, and even Franz Kafka. With their unprecedented level of quirkiness, the Thursday Next series is not for every reader, but for those that are hooked, Lost in a Good Book provides another delightful adventure that is as enjoyable on a reread as it was the first time around.

I love cupcakes.  It's not that I'm overly trendy, I actually love just about any dessert, but there's something pretty and petite, simplistic and easy-to eat about cupcakes.  The picture at left is a Cookies and Cream Cupcake I made last year for some coworkers (using this recipe) and I figured talking a bit about my culinary passions would make a nice tie in to a book review of Meg Donohue's debut novel How to Eat a Cupcake! 

Annie and Julia were born into opposite stations in life - Annie to an Ecuadorian immigrant and Julia to a rich prep-school family - but as nanny to Julia, Annie's mother raised them both and as children they were practically sisters. High school antics drove them apart and after Annie's mother died, the two girls went their separate ways: Annie to pursue independent culinary dreams and Julia to business school.

As grown woman, the two cross paths again and though Annie is reluctant to place any trust in her old friend, Julia's wealth and business savvy hold the keys to making Annie's dream of owning her own cupcake shop a reality. Entering into a an uneasy partnership, the two find that their past of hurt, betrayals, and buried secrets soon surfaces. Annie and Julia must decide if they can overcome their differences amidst a new barrage of business challenges and threats to their shop and possibly even find their childhood friendship rekindled along the way.

Meg Donohue cooks up a winning recipe of friendship, and family, blended with puzzling mysteries in this heartwarming novel. The title How to Eat a Cupcake refers to the different styles each character has of consuming pastries perfectly and though Annie and Julia are as different as chocolate mocha and vanilla bean, each is a delightful heroine in the novel. Reminiscent of the works of Sarah Addison Allen, this was a book that brings descriptions to life in tastes and smells along with sights and sounds, and if there's anything bad I have to say about this novel it's that it will certainly leave readers hungry for a home-baked treat!

Are you a cupcake fan?  Is there a home-baked dessert you prefer?  (I'm thinking of trying out these tasty looking sweets for Valentine's Day!)  If you're not much of a culinary creator, do you like reading books about people who are?

An advance review copy of this book was provided by LibraryThing's Early Reviewers program.  This review represents my honest and unbiased opinions about this work.  How To Eat a Cupcake by Meg Donohue will be released on March 13, 2012.

There are two types of readers that will approach Carol O'Connell's newest book The Chalk Girl: those who know Kathy Mallory and those who are meeting her for the first time.

As a part of the former category, I was thrilled to discover novel number ten in O'Connell's Mallory series featuring the brilliant, beautiful, sociopath who is the law but doesn't quite object to bending it. The mystery presented in The Chalk Girl finds Mallory placed in desk duty after her unexplained absence but pulled into active service with a case of a serial killer stringing up victims from trees in Central Park. The only witness to the crimes is a young girl named Coco starving for human contact. Coco instantly latches on to the cold-hearted Mallory causing many - especially psychologist Charles Butler - to wonder if Mallory has a soft spot for a kindred spirit or if she's just using the girl's trusting nature as a means to solve her case.

Complexly layered with a storyline spanning past and present, O'Connell once again keeps the reader guessing throughout the entire story. Though I was a longtime Mallory fan when I picked this book up, the beauty of this series is that each entry can be enjoyed as a solid novel on its own. Granted, the back stories and character development of Mallory, her partner Riker, Charles Butler, and the rest of the well-drawn cast are painted over time throughout the series so that constant fans will have the benefit of closer ties to the key players, but that is not to say that newcomers to the books will enjoy this one any less.

Twas the week before Christmas and all through my blog
I gave up on posting to sleep like a log.
I fought seasonal colds and needed my rest
'Tween volunteer projects, nap-time seemed best.
Followers were quiet, comment fields lay bare,
And I hoped that a new review soon would be there.
With book piles aplenty, library holds galore,
I should have found many a book to adore.
But alas the days passed and I turned so few pages
To read through a novel was taking me ages!
"Come new year! Come Spring! Then I'll finish more books!"
Yet this bold declaration drew skeptical looks.
Without book consumption, of what would I post?
For what is a blog with a stricken mute host?
Her Book Self lay silent awaiting my time
And all I could manage was this silly rhyme
Explaining my absence with wishes for more
Posting and writing as in blog days of yore. 
Plus a bonus review of a holiday tale
I picked up for free at a library sale!
(For those who want Christmas over and done,
Pick this one up next year, it really was fun!)
Now on to reviewing a mystery delight,
Happy reading to all and to all a book light!

I know I'm overdue on posting this review, as the Christmas season is quickly fading to eggnog hangover memories and regretful bill paying of impulse induced gift purchases, but just before the holidays I finished a Christmas themed book that I really did enjoy.  Six Geese A-Slaying by Donna Andrews is the tenth in a series of (now fourteen) cozy mysteries featuring amateur sleuth Meg Langslow. This entry finds Meg reluctantly planning the town holiday parade - with a twelve days of Christmas theme - and amidst the chaos of drummers drumming, pipers piping, boy scouts camping, and reporters nagging, someone went and murdered Santa. 

I don't normally read series books out of order, but as I was in the mood for a cute and engaging book, I couldn't resist the holiday flair of this one.  I assume that the earlier books in the series provided more character development for Meg, her family, and the eccentric and varied cast of townspeople around her, but even without the background of their relationships, there was plenty of charm to entice me into loving the heroine and her team.  The mystery was well paced too with a good amount of red herrings and multiple motives to keep me guessing the murderer's identity throughout the story.  Six Geese A-Slaying was a really fun holiday mystery and I'm interested in checking out more from author Donna Andrews in the future. 

Wishing you all a slightly belated "Happy Holidays from Her Book Self" and here's to another fabulous year of great books and great blogs in 2012!

Sometimes it's the books I love the most that I have the hardest time writing reviews for.  There are certain titles that I just feel rather defensive or possessive about - the books which when others admit to not liking them, I almost feel a bit offended.  Does anyone else have works that they get this emotional about?  For me, one such book is The Eyre Affair by Jasper Fforde.

The bare bones of the plot is a mystery centered around a detective named Thursday Next who lives in an alternate version of England in the 1980's in which the Crimean War is still raging, time travel and dodo cloning are routine occurrences and literature is taken exceptionally seriously. In fact Thursday is no ordinary detective as she works for a low-in-the-pecking-order division of Special Ops - Literary Detection.  When the original manuscript of Dickens' Martin Chuzzlewit is stolen all of England is on alert.  And when the super villain targets not just the pages but the characters of Jane Eyre, Thursday must step in - into the story itself - to save Bronte's beloved classic. 

Now the story alone is enough reason for me to enjoy this one, but Fforde's writing is also peppered with wordplay, literary gags, and all sorts of humor for bibliophiles.  Yet, even saying that I know there are still plenty of readers that just never warmed to this book.  And I think I understand why.  The Eyre Affair is the ultimate example of a cross-genre book.  It's satire, mystery, science fiction, and humor.  Numerous classics are referenced, at least one chapter reads like a horror novel; there's a large plot involving time travel that might make your brain hurt if you over analyze it; not to mention a love story; and a good deal of political commentary criticizing war, corporations, and their all too intertwined relationship.  Many negative reviews I've read for the novel point out this mish-mash of details as distracting or unfocused, but to me it just demonstrates Fforde's suave pen at juggling so many seemingly disconnected genres and entwining them all into a clever and cohesive book. 

I first read this book after picking it up at a used bookstore in 2003 or 2004, but I recently reread it and enjoyed it just as much the second time around.  I look to Fforde's novels when I need a happy read, a book I can rely on to make me smile.  Along with picking up more of the jokes and classic references that I had forgotten or missed the first time, I liked this book even more now that I'm closer in age to the protagonist.  It was a fun book when I was ten years Thursday's junior but now that there's only a handful of years between us I can relate to her even more. 

What are your thoughts on The Eyre Affair?  Are you a fan or are you one of the people that failed to be impressed by it?  (You can be honest, I can take it!)  Do you ever have books that you're overly fond of or defensive about people liking?

Last year, I posted my review of White Night - book nine in Jim Butcher's The Dresden Files - but I didn't realize until I was writing up my review for Small Favor that it's been almost a year between books in this series for me.  Maybe because I read another Butcher book earlier this year, it didn't seem like I had been away from Dresden for quite so long, but like any reunion with an old friend, once I started reading it felt like Harry and I had never been apart.  

An early winter in the Midwest is usually nothing to question, but when snows roll in mid-autumn, Harry Dresden - the only wizard listed in the Chicago phone book - knows to suspect something sinister. Mab, Queen of the Winter Fae, calls on Harry for one of the favors he owes her and though he'd like to pick and choose which assignments to accept from her, the last place he wants to be is on the Winter Queen's bad side. Add in unexplainable magical forces, a host of fallen angels, and a missing mobster and Small Favor is another excellent entry in Jim Butcher's Dresden Files.

Some fans argue that the inflation nature of the saga - baddies who keep getting bigger, stronger, and more numerous - has turned Harry Dresden into more of a superhero than an everyman protagonist, but I disagree. For one, Harry was never an everyman but his talents also never blossomed unrealistically. If anything, he's a hero who knows his limits and occasionally does manage to get his butt kicked a little. Second, along with increasing foes, Harry has stronger allies as the book series progresses. The supporting characters are often as endearing - and hilarious - as Harry himself and more often than not Harry is a team player rather than a lone ranger. Finally, despite his wizarding skills, Harry at heart is still a character to relate to. He is caring, smart, and funny and the series is as much about him growing as a person as it is about his magic.

I love that these books can thoroughly distract me from life. Filled with humor, action, adventure, and characters that I've come to genuinely care about, I know I can rely on Butcher when I find myself in that strange between book limbo phase when nothing I pick up to read strikes my fancy. Ten books strong the series refuses to run out of steam and I continue to look forward to the next entry.

I know I've lamented my lack of travel experience on this blog before but I've also stated that I love books for their passport nature.  It's exciting to me to visit new places and travel the world without going farther than my local library and one of my recent journeys took me on a trip across the Atlantic to a locale I've long dreamed of visiting in real life. 

Cole Baker is a spunky American graduate with a passion for her family's past.  In studying her ancestry she discovers a link to a Scottish clan with a strange history.  Unable to sate her curiosity where myth and legends cross with reality she hops a plane overseas determined to find her family's roots. 

Rowan MacLaoch is the modern day laird of the clan linked to the bizarre story of ancient star-crossed lovers that Cole uncovers.  Curses should be a thing of fairy tales but Rowan's people have a hard time shaking the superstitions they have lived with for centuries.  Cole finds herself drawn to the secretive Scotsman but as a veteran of the RAF, Rowan lives with scars and shadows of his own past even on top of the legends of his clan. 

The Legend of Lady MacLaoch was a delightful journey through the past and present castles and highlands of Scotland.  From the sights and sounds of lush gardens to the intricate tastes of Scottish whiskeys, author Becky Banks paints masterful scenery that leaps from the page in stunning details.  Cole is a heroine to cheer for with equal parts smarts and sass and Rowan walks a delicious line between brooding heartthrob and renaissance man.  From start to finish, the book was hard to put down and it seamlessly blends action, mystery, and romance with just a dash of magical realism.  Not since Diana Gabaldon's Outlander has a book left me with such a desire to see Scotland for myself, but The Legend of Lady MacLaoch is certainly cheaper than plane tickets and makes for an excellent literary journey.

I'm pleased to be part of author Becky Banks' Legendary Blog Tour promoting this book.  Check out my previous post for my interview with Becky Banks and a chance to win a paperback copy of The Legend of Lady MacLaoch (leave a comment on this review for an extra entry into the giveaway!)

And of course I'm still trying to pinpoint what it is about Scotland that has me so enamored.  The kilts?  The accents?  The highlands?  The whiskey?  Maybe it's all of the above.  Feel free to chime in with your own thoughts about the book (or Scotland) below!

In my last post I was raving about the latest Kindeal - $0.99 for the eBook of Revenge by Mark Young - and now it's my pleasure to introduce the author himself.  Please join me in welcoming a man of many talents of which writing is only one, Mark Young.

*applause, applause*

Hi Mark! Tell us a bit about yourself. How did you get started as an author?

After combat in the Vietnam war, I returned to college to become a journalist and picked up a copy of Ernest Hemingway’s For Whom The Bell Tolls. His writing about war and human conflict resonated with me because I knew he was writing from experience. His writing started me thinking about writing fiction. Shortly thereafter, I took the next step—since I was already writing news—and began to think of writing a novel …someday in the future. Many years later, after writing two other novels, I decided to become an indie author/publisher and launch Revenge.

The intricate suspense story and the character development were wonderfully balanced in Revenge. Which of these aspects did you more enjoy crafting? Was either easier or more of a challenge for you?

I find writing suspenseful plots easier than creating believable characters. Story plot lines come easy to me, and I found my past career in law enforcement gave me ample material to work from as I created stories. Every writer, I imagine, has strong and weak points. Character development is one of my weaker points. So, I’ve tried to focus on developing my skills and knowledge to create solid, believable characters that readers can visualize and relate to in some fashion. My main characters—Travis Mays and Jessie White Eagle—are vividly alive in my own mind. In fact, they still talk to me from time to time—but that’s another story.

Your book also has a wonderful setting and captures the mountains and rivers of Idaho as well as city streets of California. Are your travels as varied as those of Travis Mays or are your descriptions from research of those locations?

All my scenes in Revenge are from places I know well. This plot concept arose from my life-long goal to learn how to fly fish and where I honed my fishing skills along the Lochsa and Clearwater rivers in central Idaho. As I traversed those rivers and learned about the history and people of those mountains, the story began to unfold.

I really appreciated that your Native American characters were believable and not drawn as stereotypes. What prompted you to include characters from the Nez Perce tribe?

First, their land and history in Idaho intrigued me, a nation whose boundaries once extended into eastern Washington and western Oregon before the Treaty of 1861.

Also, I am part Cherokee on my mother’s side, and have always had an interest in Native American issues. Before I became a police officer, I worked on a number of newspapers. One publisher allowed me cover the 1973 takeover of Wounded Knee in South Dakota. I was able to sneak onto the reservation and interview American Indian Movement leaders Russel Means and Dennis Banks before federal authorities closed it off to outsiders.

Finally, I did not feel my main character—Travis Mays—could be involved in anything along the Clearwater tributaries without including characters from the Nez Perce nation. And Jessie White Eagle is quite a character.

Photo from author's website

Travis and Jessie White Eagle begin their relationship when she serves as a river guide to him. Do you share Jessie's talent for kayaking?

I share Jessie’s love of the mountains and rivers. Though I like to kayak, I would not consider myself an expert. As part of my research for this novel, I signed up with a female guide from the Three Rivers rafting company to take me down the Lochsa River whitewater on a raft.

Confession time: I fell in the Lochsa River twice and my guide, Tasha Lyons, fished me out both times. She is an amazing athlete, who works on the river during the summer while working on her teaching credential the rest of the year. And, yes, the Three Rivers company in the novel actually exists, but all the characters are a figment of my imagination.

One of the more turbulent whitewater rapids, dubbed Grim Reaper in the novel, actually exists by that name. It’s aptly named. This was one of the two places I fell in, and it was from this experience that I could write so vividly. Hanging upside down in white turbulence is quite an adventure. One of the rookies on my raft—who thought she was helping—hung on to my legs as I was face down in the turbulence. I couldn’t get back up without smacking her. Fortunately, Tasha jumped in and told her to back off, then she helped me climb onboard. True story!

What authors or works would you say have inspired or influenced you?

Ernest Hemingway, of course, was one of the first authors to really inspire me about writing. I have been an avid reader all my life, hiding away in the library on Saturdays as a child after my chores were done. Though I’m more inclined to write police/mystery/action-adventure novels, I enjoy mixing up my reading choices. Among my favorite contemporary mystery suspense and thriller authors are Michael Connelly, Tess Gerritson, John Lescroart, David Balducci, Lee Childs, and James Scott Bell. These and other genre writers I read regularly to study their styles, techniques and writing craftsmanship.

What do you find to be the greatest challenges and rewards of being an indie author?

The greatest challenge as an indie author is that everything falls on your shoulders once the novel is written—editing, formatting, cover design, marketing, and advertising. I pay others for editing services, because an author who self-edits is akin to an ailing medical patients performing surgery on themselves. But the indie author still needs to coordinate with others to get all these tasks done, or do it all themselves. Another big challenge is getting the word out to readers. An indie author generally does not have a large advertising budget, nor do they generally have access to other avenues of publicity open to traditional publishers. Sometimes you feel like David facing the Goliaths of the publishing world. Opportunities like this interview on your wonderful blog help indie authors connect with readers.

The greatest reward is that you don’t have to wait eighteen months to two years before your novel reaches readers. Once everything is in place, a few clicks and the novel is up and ready to be sold in a matter of a day or two. You have more control over price, distribution, and content. Once an indie author determines who their readers are and what those readers want, the writer does not need to water down or change their characters to meet a broader market as defined by traditional publishers. They have the freedom to write the kind of unique character their readers expect and want. Finally, an indie writer does not have to wade through hundreds of rejections from traditional publishers or agents as they try to get their works before the public.

What projects are you currently working on?

I am working on an international thriller titled Off The Grid, with an expected release date the first week of December. The main character is Gerrit O’Rourke, a Seattle cop with a doctorate in computers and nanotechnology, and a veteran from the Iraq and Afghanistan wars. He and a mysterious woman, Alena Shapiro, find that they must team up with others to live Off The Grid when they stumbled over a conspiracy that threatens national security. Their foes have unlimited resources, and Gerrit and his companions must learn to elude a highly-technological manhunt. And for Travis Mays and Jessie White Eagle fans, they make a limited appearance in this novel as well.

Which brings me to a point about the characters in my novels. From my own experiences as a cop for twenty-six years, I learned that the law enforcement community is relatively small. I’ve maintained friends and acquaintances in local, state and federal agencies, as well as contacts around the nation and other counties. So, in my novels it is not unusual for a Travis Mays character to have contact with a Gerrit O’Rourke, as well as other characters in my novels. You just never know when your favorite character might suddenly emerge in someone else’s novel.

Where can we find out more about you and your work?

Unfortunately, the only place right now is on my blog, Hook’em and Book’em. Before the release of Off The Grid in December, however, I will finally have my web sit up and running at MarkYoungBooks.com and a blog—connected to that web site—simply titled Mark Young. Meanwhile, you can connect with me on Twitter or Facebook, or shoot an email to me at MarkYoung@MarkYoungBooks.com.

The print version of Revenge should be out later this summer, and eBook version is available on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Smashwords.

Thank you for agreeing to this interview!

Thanks for inviting me on this great blog, Lisa. It is a privilege to be able to share my passion for writing with your readers.

I've been reviewing a wealth of fantasy lately so I'm pleased to jump genres again and spotlight an action thriller.

Shouldering responsibility for the death of a witness, Travis Mays walks away from police work and settles into the scenic mountains of Idaho accepting a job as a criminology professor. Content with teaching and learning to kayak with the help of a lovely instructor, Jessie White Eagle from the local Nez Perce tribe, Travis has no desire to return to the life of an investigator. However, when trouble strikes Jessie's family and a deadly sniper seems to have targeted Travis and his loved ones, Travis may have no choice but to confront his past and a killer set on Revenge.

Action packed from the very beginning, Mark Young builds layers of suspense and subterfuge into his story and he does a fabulous job weaving great characters into this fast-paced thriller. Travis was an original lead hero and Jessie was far from a sniveling damsel in distress stereotype. I am always impressed when the female lead can hold her own and Jessie was as interesting and complex a character as Travis. The supporting characters were also well drawn and the identity of the killer was as unpredictable as the next victim.

Along with realistic characters and an intricate mystery, Young excels at painting a scenic and varied setting for the story. From whitewater rapids in Idaho, to gritty California city streets, and capturing the culture clash of tradition and modernity among the Nez Perce people; details bring the narrative fully to life. Reminiscent of Michael Connelly's Harry Bosch series or Tony Hillerman's Jim Chee books - Revenge, the first Travis Mays novel, is a solid work that promises great things for future mysteries by Mark Young.

This post also marks a return to Indie in Summer - my tribute to small press and independent writers - but I have to say that if you didn't know Revenge was an independent work, you would be hard pressed to believe the claim that author Mark Young has not yet been scouted by a big name publisher.  The book was definitely on par with bestsellers in the genre and at just $0.99 for the Kindle eBook it's a bargain not to be missed!

Stay tuned this week for my interview with author Mark Young!

Emily Castles is finally coming to accept the death of her beloved dog Jessie. Knowing that it's time to stop mourning, she decides to attend a party thrown by some of her neighbors. She expected music, drinks, food, and circus performers... but not murder.

Three Sisters was a great summer read. Even in the short story format, author Helen Smith (Alison Wonderland) manages to pack in surprises and plot twists, creating a story that is fully engaging from start to finish. The characters are creative and multi-dimensional and I loved the unique personalities and talents of all the party guests. As a wallflower turned super-sleuth, Emily Castles was a wonderful protagonist and I'm eager to read more of her adventures.

It's time for another fabulous author interview!  My guest today has a bright and witty personality, topped only by her talent as a writer.  Her debut work Take the Monkeys and Run was a quarter-finalist for Amazon's Breakthrough novel award and it's sequel Citizen Insane has leapfrogged up my TBR list.  Please join me in welcoming Karen Cantwell!

*applause, applause*

Tell us a little bit about yourself, how did you get started as an author?

I'd like to say it started with a delightful (if I do say so myself) book I wrote in the sixth grade called The Adventures of Frog and Mr. Toad. However, any success I hoped to achieve in publishing THAT masterpiece ended when I discovered a little novel titled, The Wind in the Willows. Gee, I thought I was being SO original! Well, my mother thought it was good (thank goodness for mothers), so she encouraged me to keep at it. In high school, I wrote for the yearbook, and in college I studied literature and wrote screenplays. Then came real life, jobs, and kids. I finally hit the ol' keyboard more recently, determined to write and complete a novel. That novel is, Take the Monkeys and Run.

You have a great talent for writing from the perspective of a wife and mother. Are you a family woman?

Oh yes! I'm married and have four amazing kids. No, really. I mean it -- They're AMAZING.

Barbara Marr was a wonderful protagonist and she encounters some crazy circumstances from witnessing suspicious activity at a house in her neighborhood to a yard full of monkeys (just to name a few!) How much of your own personality is mirrored in your character? Do you think you would react the way Barb does in similar circumstances?

My relationship with Barbara Marr is . . . interesting. She has curly hair like me, but that was an accident. She was supposed to have straight, dirty blonde hair. She didn't care for it. So, many people think Barbara Marr IS me. This isn't entirely true. Many of her thoughts are thoughts I have had, but I would say that these are the universal sorts of thoughts many women and mothers my age have had as well. I put Barb into chaotic scenarios, because let's face it, the everyday life of a mother often lacks the adventure we crave. THEN I watch her react. Barb never reacts the way I would -- that's because she's not a royal chicken when the rubber meets the road like I am! Nope, I'm a freaky foul through and through. Ultimately, Barbara Marr is the heroine I dream of being.

The mystery in your book was really well done with multiple layers that kept me guessing - and laughing - throughout the story! Was it hard to balance the suspense of a murder mystery with your humor and wit?

YIKES! Yes, it's the hardest part of writing these books. I write humor, because I think there's enough sadness on TV and in the world today, and I'd rather give people a chance to escape from that. BUT, it's hard to inject humor into a story about murder and keep it believable enough to entice the reader to continue reading instead of throwing the book out the window! I feel like I'm walking a very thin tightrope when I write these Barbara Marr mysteries.

How did the different aspects of the mystery develop as you constructed your ideas for this story? With all the classic elements - motive, suspects, clues, red herrings, suspense, and intrigue - where did you begin and how did the novel come together?

I started with an idea for WHODUNNIT (the end), then went back to the beginning and wrote my way there. I knew I wanted monkeys and a long-vacant house in the tale. The rest came as I wrote. When I got to the end, the WHODUNNIT had changed enough, that I had to write a few more drafts before it was cohesive enough to say THE END. I'm not sure I could write another Barbara Marr novel that way now though. Many of those characters in her life, sprung from my twisted imagination, but now they exist, so writing future stories for her, I find I have to plan more - outline.

I noticed that Take the Monkeys and Run is one of many books you authored. Will you share a bit about your other works? Do you have a favorite among the pieces you've written?

Thank you for asking! (You ask wonderful interview questions, by the way!) I released a Barbara Marr short story collection in November of 2010 titled The Chronicles of Marr-nia. One of the stories in that collection is a between-the-novels short, "Missing Impossible" - it takes place between Take the Monkeys and Run and the second novel, Citizen Insane (just released). There are also three other family life stories in that collection. I also co-authored a fun chick-lit, Foxy's Tale, with women's fiction author, LB Gschwandtner which we released just this year.

I've also had a historical mystery, "The Recollections of Rosabelle Raines," published in the anthology, Chesapeake Crimes: They Had it Comin'. I'm very proud of that story.

I will say, that the piece that holds the most special place in my heart is a short story titled, "Taming the Hulk" - one of the family life shorts found in The Chronicles of Marr-nia. It's funny and touching at the same time, and mothers often tell me that it actually made them cry.

What would you say are the biggest perks to being an indie author? What are the greatest challenges?

The biggest perk is the freedom. I choose my own titles and covers. I publish when I want to, not when it's convenient for a publishing company. I have instant access to my sales numbers. I'm paid on a timely basis. It's all great stuff. I love every minute of it.

The challenges are that I must promote on my own. Finding an audience is much trickier when your access to the greater purchasing population is limited.

I first checked out your writing because of a recommendation from author J.C. Phelps! In the spirit of paying it forward, who is/are your favorite indie author(s)?

Oh! JC is great, isn't she???? She's amazing, so of course, she's on my list! Also, I love LC Evans, Michael Wallace, Debbi Mack, Maria Schneider, Barbara Silkstone, LB Gschwandtner, Michael Crane (gee, I have a thing for Michaels, don't I?), Cathy Wiley (I'm just reading her mystery, Dead to Writes, right now, and it's wonderful - she's a very good writer), and Misha Crews. There are more I'm sure, that I'm probably missing, but these are all authors that I have read and absolutely LOVED their writing.

What projects are you currently working on?

Well, I just finished and published the second Barbara Marr novel, Citizen Insane, so I'm going to get right to work on the third - Silenced by the Yams. I would also like to write another between-the-novels short story, as well as finish a middle-grade novel I started some time ago, called My Cupcake Summer, about a rather dramatic young girl who thinks her problems are the worst in the world, until she meets another young girl who is suffering a serious illness. Not only does she realize her problems may not be so bad, but she learns to reach inside the caring part of herself, and find a way to help her new friend.

Where can we find out more about you and your work?

I love for people to stop by my website - www.KarenCantwell.com !

Thanks so much for being part of Indie in Summer!

Thank YOU, Lisa! This was such fun, and I truly appreciate the opportunity to blabber on about my passion for writing. :)

As Indie in Summer continues this week, I'm pleased to feature a book I read recently that is not only one of my new favorite independent works, but is one of the most fun mystery novels I've read in years.  At $2.99* for the Kindle eBook, I was hooked by the title and price tag alone, but a great bargain is just one of many things this fabulous work has going for it!

Barbara Marr is an average wife, mother, and movie aficionado, but when her husband moves out her solid foundation is shaken. A sleepless night leads to observing the abandoned house in her neighborhood, and when a moving truck arrives at the suspicious house in the middle of the night - followed by monkeys populating her backyard the next day - Barb is determined to figure out what's going on. Her amateur sleuthing soon turns up a grisly scene, and talk of the mafia is buzzing around her block. Barb could be suffering from an overactive imagination, but she's not ready to give up easily. Add in a police officer who looks like Brad Pitt, Barb's private investigator ex-boyfriend, and her walk-out husband who keeps walking back in and the mysteries pile up as high as the laughter.

Take the Monkeys and Run is a smart and witty book that is as charming as it is suspenseful. The plot twists and turns are delightfully unpredictable and layered with a great blend of intrigue and comedy. Barbara Marr was a freshly unique protagonist, too. She is an everyday woman yet there is nothing vanilla about her character or her life. Facing extraordinary circumstances, she summons both courage and brain power while demonstrating the strength of her heart as well as her sense of humor.

Karen Cantwell excels at creating a fun and engaging novel with this work. The characters were well-developed, the story well-told, and even though the plot wraps up nicely, I left the book eager for more. Cantwell is definitely an author to keep an eye on and if her future works are as entertaining as Take the Monkeys and Run, a long and successful writing career is surely in her future!

I love books that cross genres and this one was a great blend of comedy, mystery, family, and cozy romance.  It's a book that will appeal to a wide range of audiences and if you're looking for a great eBook bargain or a starter to indie fiction - Take the Monkeys and Run is a great recommendation.  Along with seeking out more Barbara Marr stories in the future, I'm pleased to announce my interview with Karen Cantwell that will be appearing later this week!

*I bought the Kindle copy for $2.99 but it looks like it's currently on Amazon for $0.99 - Go buy it!!

Willa Jackson and former classmate Paxton Osgood have never been close friends despite the fact that their grandmothers were inseparable. With their stations reversed from past generations - the Jackson family meeting financial ruin and the Osgoods climbing to social elite - the two girls have never had much in common. However, when Paxton takes on the project of restoring the Blue Ridge Madam, a mansion built by Willa's ancestors, a skeleton buried under a peach tree thrusts Paxton and Willa together to uncover the secrets and half truths hidden in the distant - and not-so-distant - past.

In The Peach Keeper, Sarah Addison Allen has composed another gem of a novel. Set in Walls of Water, North Carolina the story is infused with the signature southern charm and touch of magic that distinguished Allen's previous works (The Sugar Queen, Garden Spells). The mystery is compelling and the characters are delightful. Willa and Paxton were equally enjoyable to read and as the masks that each hid behind were whittled away, I was torn between which heroine I preferred.

Though less dependent on fantasy elements than some of Allen's other novels, The Peach Keeper still had an air of magical realism to it. Allen fans will also enjoy a brief cameo appearance from a past heroine. I really enjoyed this book. The plot is fresh and unique, but the themes of love and friendship - across generations, past grudges, and hurdling stereotypes - are timeless.

It's historical fiction time again!  I realize that the past few reviews I've posted have all been historical fiction, but especially in the doldrums of winter, it's a genre I love.  There's something wonderful about allowing a book to spirit me away - not only to distant lands, but to long ago times as well! - when I am most in need of a vacation.  My most recent bookish trip was to London in the summer of 1553 in which I explored the pageantry of the English court!

C.W. Gortner's The Tudor Secret is the first novel in the new Elizabeth I Spymaster Chronicles. The book tells the story of Brendan Prescott, a young man who was raised in the Dudley household after being abandoned as a baby. Prescott is brought as a squire to the court of the ailing King Edward VI. Immediately caught up in the intrigue and drama surrounding the nobles who seek the throne for themselves and others, Prescott is drawn to the charismatic and commanding Princess Elizabeth and soon finds himself working as a double agent for her and the Dudley family.

This book was really interesting and well constructed. The fictional hero fit in seamlessly with the setting and players of the Tudor court and the novel provided an imaginative look at the final days of Edward VI. Where as many historical fiction works focus on King Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn or on the reign of Queen Elizabeth I; this book was unique for portraying a younger Elizabeth and the turmoil in London surrounding the task of crowning a rightful heir. The Tudor Secret was a fast and entertaining read. I enjoyed Gortner's writing and am excited to see further drama and mystery unfold in future books in the series.

 Do you enjoy "traveling" via historical fiction?  What place or time period have you visited lately?

Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child have done it again! Fever Dream marks their tenth thriller (holy cow! Is it really ten? Mental roll call: Relic, Reliquary, Cabinet, Still Life, Brimstone, Dance of Death, Book of the Dead, Wheel, Cemetery... Definitely tenth!) featuring their Sherlock Holmes-esque hero Special Agent A.X.L. Pendergast, and it is another great work.

The latest adventure begins with a flashback set in Africa chronicling the events surrounding the death of Pendergast's wife Helen. Longtime Preston & Child fans will appreciate this glimpse into the enigmatic history of Agent Pendergast's past, but there's little surprise to be found that evidence arises indicating what was once declared an accident may have actually been murder. In present day, the search for answers leads Pendergast and his frequent partner Vincent D'Agosta from New York to New Orleans to seek out the truth.

Much like the previous Preston & Child collaborations, this action-oriented story blends sleuthing with science in an intelligent and multi-faceted mystery. Fever Dream is full of suspense and surprises and is definitely one of the best entries in the Pendergast series thus far. As usual, the door has been left wide open for future adventures, and in my opinion, the eleventh book can't come soon enough!

I actually started this series with book three or four but was so enamored with the main character that I had to go back and fill in the blanks and have since eagerly devoured each book as it is released.  I also managed to get my husband, Tony, hooked on the series as well.  As crazy as it sounds, we really enjoy reading books aloud to each other and this series has lent itself well to audio.  The downside of course is "one more chapter!" syndrome which inevitably occurs when each chapter ends with an agonizing cliff hanger.  It's near impossible to insert the bookmark when one's favorite character is in mortal peril.  Also, I usually make Tony do most of the reading because he switches seamlessly between Pendergast's southern drawl and D'Agosta's New Yawk accent - yes, in our family character voices are a must!

Any one else a fan of creating a voice cast when reading aloud?  What are your favorite novels to perform... er... I mean read?  Any other Pendergast fans in the blogosphere want to weigh in on Fever Dream?  What is it about this smart but not sardonic agent that is so addictive?

Earlier this year I had the fun opportunity to sit in on a panel discussion at the Printer's Row Literary Festival in Chicago.  The discussion was about cozy mysteries and one of the authors was Heather Webber, a writer I knew from her book Truly, Madly that I read back in January.  I was already impressed with Heather's writing so it was a pleasure to find a fun and witty personality behind the smart books she authored.  While waiting on Deeply, Desperately (the recently released sequel to Truly, Madly), I dove into Heather's other mystery series starring gardener Nina Quinn and greatly enjoyed A Hoe Lot of Trouble.  So without further ado, it should come as no surprise that I am thrilled to welcome to my blog author Heather Webber!

*applause, applause*

Thanks for agreeing to this interview!  When writing mystery novels, how do you find the balance between making the central case challenging for the reader to solve, while still providing enough clues so the solution does not seem too far fetched?

For me, it’s really about the characters. Because my mysteries are character driven, I make sure I have plenty of interesting suspects with strong motivations. All my clues usually come from those characters and their behaviors and are tied into the crime in some way. If I’ve introduced a motivation for murder, I make sure that it’s resolved and not left hanging. Hopefully it all makes sense and ties together by the end of the book.

Is it hard to keep things fresh and unpredictable when writing multiple books in a series? Which is more enjoyable for you, starting a new series or continuing a current one?

Tough one! There is something so fun about creating a new series, but for me, it’s also really hard. The rest of the series is based off that very first book. If I decide three books in that I don’t like a main character, I’m out of luck! There’s a lot of planning ahead that has to be done.

Writing a book in the middle of the series is fun because I know the characters, know how they’re going to react in certain situations, and I love to see how they’ve grown throughout the series. That’s my favorite part—seeing the characters grow and evolve.

Do you think Nina Quinn and Lucy Valentine would be friends? How do you imagine a lunch date between them would go?

I think they’d definitely be friends! Imagining it is making me laugh. A lunch between them? Nina would probably talk Lucy into getting into trouble with her, and Lucy would probably be thinking of a way she could move her parents (or Dovie!) into Nina’s neighborhood. Both would be talking about their complicated love lives.

Have you always wanted to write mystery novels? Are there other genres you've considered writing?

I started my career writing romances, and I think my readers would be able to tell I still love that genre. I love the puzzle of the mysteries, and I love the characterization and happily-ever-afters of romance—so I usually to blend all three in every book I write.

You recently announced on your blog that you were given a Kindle for your birthday (and by the way, happy belated birthday). As a reader, how do you like the switch to digital books? As a writer, in what ways does the digital movement influence your work?

Thanks! I think digital books are here to stay and that authors would be best served to learn as much as we can about them. E-books haven’t made much impact on my writing life yet—but I have many friends who are starting to publish books that never sold traditionally. It’s also a great market for short stories and novellas that are often hard to place in the print market. As a reader, having a Kindle has been great. It’s hard to beat the instant gratification of buying a book with one click. Hard on the book budget, though! I’m working on the balance of buying print versus e-books, because I do still love holding a book in my hands.

Absolutely, Positively (Lucy Valentine book 3) is due out in February, and like many of your readers, I'm pretty excited about it!  What other projects are you currently working on?

I’m working on a couple of new projects. One’s a paranormal mystery series, and the other is more of a cozy/traditional mystery. I also have the beginnings of a paranormal romance series—but that’s still in the brainstorming stages.

Thanks again for being part of this interview!  Where can we find out more about you and your work?

The best places are my website (www.heatherwebber.com) and my blog (www.heatherwebber.blogspot.com), which is updated four to five days a week. I’m also on Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/pages/Heather-Webber/107003867409).

Check out all the fun facts on Heather's blog and check out the wonderful adventures of Nina Quinn and Lucy Valentine in Heather's books at your local bookstore!

It's probably pretty obvious that I read a wide variety of books.  Sometimes it depends on my mood, sometimes I just want a change from whatever genre I just finished.   Needless to say, I always enjoy when I find an author who writes with as much variety as I enjoy reading.  Heather Webber is that sort of writer.  Though some classify her strictly as a mystery author, there's definitely more to her stories than just "who dunnit".  Earlier this year I read and reviewed the first in Webber's Nina Quinn series (A Hoe Lot of Trouble) but bringing even more variety to the mystery genre is Webber's protagonist Lucy Valentine.  This series (which began in the book Truly, Madly) combines mystery, Chick Lit, supernatural, humor, and a dash of romance.  I recently picked up the second in this series and enjoyed it equally as much as the first!

Lucy Valentine is back! The Valentine family is known for being successful matchmakers - able to find perfect love for everyone but themselves - but Lucy's talent is a little different. With the touch of a hand she can locate missing objects, and sometimes even people those objects were given to. Her own new branch of the family business specializes in tracking down Lost Loves. Her partner - and boyfriend - is the handsome detective Sean Donahue but Lucy's not sure if their relationship can survive "Cupid's Curse", the family legacy that dooms the Valentine matchmakers to always be unlucky in love. On top of everything she's got a missing persons case to solve; one friend trying to break up another friend's engagement; and an annoying reporter following her every move.

As in Truly, Madly (book one of the Lucy Valentine series), Heather Webber constructs a fabulous story. The characters are wonderfully interesting and the plot is well layered with multiple story lines. There is plenty going on but every aspect is balanced, woven together such that nothing gets confusing or lost in the mix. I love the supporting cast and Lucy's friends and family are realistic characters that I could see myself being friends with or related to. And Lucy Valentine is all heart: smart, spunky, clever, and wise with just a touch of vulnerability. Caring and kind to everyone around her, but still capable of anger, envy and suspicions, ensuring that the reader find hers fully lovable and delightfully real.

With psychic mystery, sweet romance, and witty humor, Deeply, Desperately is a terrific sequel that does not disappoint after the delight of book one. Equally as good as the first in the series, the novel is a fun entry into Lucy Valentine's adventures and I can't wait to see what Webber concocts for book three!

I love the creativity that surrounds this series and I love the fun characters that populate all of Heather Webber's books!  What's your favorite book or series that combines a mix of genres?

Stay tuned this week for my interview with Heather Webber!