Lizzy Speare and The Cursed Tomb by Ally Malinenko is a young teen read that in some aspects is a lot of fun.  That’s saying something since, this particular writer, reader, and reviewer, doesn’t particularly like Shakespeare.  At all.  In fact, my personal opinion is that he’s shoved down our throats so much from middle school, high school, and college, that you just want to find every work he’s ever done and burn it so that no one else will ever be subjected to it again.  Once a person is introduced to Shakespeare academically he always seems to come up again.  So it’s refreshing to see Shakespeare in a new light, with a modern twist, and a unique way to draw readers in.



"MEET LIZZY SPEARE…

…a normal twelve year old girl with a talent for writing, who has a very not normal family secret. And when Lizzy’s father vanishes, that secret will change her life in ways unimagined. (Spoiler Alert! It turns out that Lizzy, or Elizabeth S. Speare, is the last living descendant of William Shakespeare. Shhh! Don’t tell anybody!)

Then Lizzy and her best friend Sammy are kidnapped, awakening in the faraway land of Manhattan. Their host is Jonathan Muse, whose job is to protect Lizzy from becoming the latest victim in a family feud nearly five hundred years old. Could that be why the mysterious, eye patch-wearing Dmitri Marlowe is after her? (Spoiler Alert 2—he’s the last living descendant of Christopher Marlowe, a friend and rival of Shakespeare’s. But keep it to yourself!) Is Marlowe after Lizzy’s family fortune rumored to be kept in Shakespeare’s tomb? Does he seek artistic immortality? Or Revenge (with a capital R) for a death long, long ago?

In a dangerous game of cat-and-mouse, Lizzy and Sammy are thrust into the realm of the mythical and fantastic—from satyrs and Cyclopses to Middle Eastern cab drivers and Brooklyn hipsters—in what is truly “an improbable fiction” as the Bard himself once wrote"

-Ally Malinenko

That being said, while it’s meant for a younger group of readers, in some aspects I think that the author would have done better by showing instead of telling.  There’s an overabundance of pronouns in some areas of he did, she did, they did – that could have been revamped into a bit of showing that wouldn’t make it so repetitive.  Is a middle school kid likely to pick up on this? Probably not.  They may well be too engrossed in the story to notice, and the story is worth picking up – especially if you’re a Shakespeare fan.

It’s an easy read, and doesn’t go too overly in depth – which makes it perfect for that young teen and tween.  I give Lizzy Speare and The Cursed Tomb by Ally Malinenko three stars, for a unique twist on Shakespeare, and an easy read that a lot of kids will enjoy. 

 

For more information on Ally Malinenko and her Lizzy Speare's books you can visit her website at: http://allymalinenko.com/

Twitter: @AliMalinenko

There are many reasons I love Twitter.  The personality of people, the breaking news updates in the publishing world, book promotions, and not to mention the fact that sometimes you can catch an author looking for a book reviewer. The ladder is how I snagged a copy of Troy Blackford’s short story collection entitled, “For Those With Eye’s To See.”  

When he asked if there was anyone who wanted to review a short story collection, I asked, “What sort of short stories?”  To which Troy replied, “Mostly horror, but all completely weird.”  Yes, this was our twitter conversation.  Mr. Blackford, you had me at weird.  I’d also like to mention that in his introduction, Troy states:

“The short story isn't the most respected or read form of writing right now, but I don’t see why that should be the case. If tawdry romance can make a literary comeback, then I think the short story’s time is due.”

I couldn't agree more.  I love short stories, reading them, writing them, drooling over them – and they are the perfect thing for someone to read who has a busy day.  Catch a story in between tasks at work, at lunch, or on the bus ride home.  So, for anyone reading this who hasn't given the short story a chance, I would suggest doing so, and if you’re into the weird, the macabre, and the twisted – like me – I would definitely suggest picking up Troy Blackford’s “For Those With Eye’s To See.”

These stories are fiendishly twisted, beautifully described, and never fail in sucking the reader right into the thick of things.  Each story is vastly different from the next.  His scenes are subtle, and he knows when he needs to show or to tell, and how to blend everything in between.  Blackford’s imagination is fun, original, and will no doubt in a few instances have the reader going:  “Seriously, dude, what the hell goes on in that head of yours?”

It is excellent and refreshingly original, not to mention it’s something you can read on the go.  I foresee many good things coming from one Mr. Troy Blackford.  Be careful though, wildly creative talent and addictive fans often lead to stalkers – which may only fuel more of the authors imagination.

"For Those With Eyes To See," by Troy Blackford gets FOUR ½ out of FIVE stars from me for being engaging, not having the same repetitious crap in one book, and I’ve only shed the half star because in the story “All In Your Head,” Mike knew the name of all the surgical equipment after doing crazy research, but Victor in “Promising Candidate” - a veteran trucker well versed in the lingo - never once referred to a refrigerated truck as a reefer unit.   However, that’s just my own little peeve because my daddy was a trucker in his younger days.  Don’t let that little tidbit deter you at all.  Trust me this is well worth the read if you enjoy the dark side of literature.

 1/2

About The Author:

Troy Blackford is a 29 year-old writer living in the Twin Cities with his

wife, two cats, and a son on the way.

His stories have appeared in places like Bewildering Stories, Roadside

Fiction, Roar & Thunder, the Glass Coin, Rose Red Review, and

Inkspill Magazine.

He has three other publications available on Kindle and in Paperback.

You can find out more about him on his website:

http://www.troyblackford.com

or follow him on Twitter: @TBlackford3

Happy Hump Day Nerds! Wednesday leaves us two days away from Friday! HAZZUH! Since my extracurricular activities at work have been severely restricted, I’ve been doing more print book reading. It’s putting me behind on my book list, since I refuse to buy in print what I already have in e-format. It’s just not happening. However, I forgot how going into the bookstore and browsing the shelves, glancing at new titles and authors, as well as reading the blurbs on the back of the book without all the extra reviews and things on a website is so refreshing. No preconceptions, notions, or otherwise conditioned thoughts towards a book one way or the other. I read the blurb on the back and think, “Hmm this sounds interesting,” or “Nah, not really my thing.” If I’d been looking on line, I probably wouldn’t have found Little Bee by Chris Cleave. I’m realizing I tend to stick with my own genre, and maybe too heavily rely on reviews as opposed to forming my own opinion.

The moral of the story: Some people will love a book, some people will hate a book, but each of us are our own person and can only make the decision for ourselves. If I give a book a bad review, it doesn’t mean that someone else won’t like it. It just means it wasn’t suited to my tastes. Don’t forget to make your own opinions, and never let anyone speak for you.

All right, onto the review.

Little Bee by Chris Cleave was not something I planned on reading. It wasn’t a book or author I had ever heard of. The power of an artistically strong orange cover is what first grabbed my attention. Granted, I’m bias. Orange is my favorite color, but the silhouetted girl on the front, with a whited out woman as the eye, intrigued me along with the title. I flipped it over to read the read the blurb, and this marketing skill completely drew me in.

“We don’t want to tell you WHAT HAPPENS in this book.

It is a truly SPECIAL STORY and we don’t want to spoil it.

NEVERTHELESS, you need to know enough to buy it, so we’ll just say this:

This is the story of two women. Their lives collide one fateful day, and one of them has to make a terrible choice, the kind of choice we hope you never have to face. Two years later, they meet again – the story starts there…

Once you read it, you’ll want to tell your friends about it. When you do, please don’t tell them what happens. The magic in how the story unfolds.”

- Chris Cleave

That was pretty damn clever. It hooked me. I wanted to read and learn the women’s story. It’s a great technique to draw readers in, giving them just a taste, but not really revealing anything. It works, and to stay true to the author’s wishes, I’m not going to reveal what happens in the story. What I will say, is that Little Bee is fantastically written. The author keeps a good pace, speeding things up when he needs to, and slowing them down to let the reader catch a breath at opportune times. Chris Cleave truly knew what he was doing. The characters are bold, sympathetic, and far from perfect. (I love flaws!) Chris Cleave is a British author, but it really doesn’t matter where you’re from. The message is more than clear, and it’s completely work the read. Put it on your book list, make time for this story. It’s worth it.

Chris Cleave was born in London and spent his early years in Cameroon. He studied experimental psychology at Balliol College, Oxford. His debut novel, INCENDIARY, won a 2006 Somerset Maugham Award, was shortlisted for the 2006 Commonwealth Writers' Prize, and is now a feature film. His second novel, LITTLE BEE, is a New York Times #1 bestseller with over 2 million copies in print. GOLD is his third novel. He lives in London with his wife and three children. Chris Cleave enjoys dialogue with his readers and invites all comers to introduce themselves on Twitter; he can be found at twitter.com/chriscleave or on his website at http://www.chriscleave.com

Little Bee by Chris Cleave receives five stars from me, but remember, take the time to make your own opinions.

Wednesday I had the privilege of listening to Rye Barcott – author of It Happened on The Way To War – speak for my college.  I also got to speak to him individually. Of course, me being the person I am, blundered my questions.  That’s not to say I stuttered, but once I was in front of him the actual questions I had fleeted far away from the sensible part of my mind, and instead I asked him other – not nearly as awesome things.  At least I had the chance to meet the guy.  Phenomenal book, though in my opinion a bit dry in places – but still worth reading.   I don’t even like memoirs, but I think one of Rye’s greatest attributes – one of his best traits as an author – is his capability to make the readers care about what happens to the characters in his novel.  Even if the story itself isn’t something you’re interested in – which to be honest, it’s not my kind of read – there’s no doubt of being utterly sucked in from the first chapter.  You want to know what happened to these remarkable people.

It Happened On The Way To War is considered in the memoir genre, but in reality it’s Rye’s perspective of what happened over the six years of his life.  It’s how he dealt with two very different worlds – one of war, one of peace.  Dual culture shock.  It’s how he spent twenty six dollars that wound up changing the lives of so many, and how being a Marine, he still wanted to taste the action of war – even if it wasn’t something he necessarily agreed with.  It’s fascinating to delve into the culture and see how such small things can change the world for the better.  Twenty six dollars, that’s how it started, but it grew into so much more. 

Carolina for Kibera (CFK) is a non profit organization Rye started when he was still in college.  It’s to help empower youths in Kibera, hopefully giving them a better future. They work with sports, healthcare, education, community clean up and more. In the words of CFK as stated on their website:  

“Carolina for Kibera (CFK) exists to develop local leaders, catalyze positive change and alleviate poverty in the Kibera slum of Nairobi.” 

You can visit CFK’s official website to learn more about this empowering and inspiring organization that is working to change the world here. http://cfk.unc.edu/ 

Rye himself is an inspirational person.  He was down to earth, taking the time to encourage and promote students dreams, hand out some personalized cards to a few, and speak with every single person in line who was waiting to have their book signed. I haven’t met many authors in person.  I’ve never had the luxury of being able to afford to go to writing conferences or lucky enough to have authors that I enjoy come to my area for a book signing.  It’s amazing because, as much as I liked the book – even though I don’t like memoirs – listening to Rye speak, and having a few brief moments to speak with him one on one, made me like it so much more because I actually got to meet one of the characters in the book.  There are a few things that Rye spoke about that stuck with me, and I’d like to share them.  I wish I had been recording the session so I could quote him verbatim, but hopefully I’ll keep it true to the man himself. 

“Talent is universal, opportunity is not.” 

“The story is not about me.  It’s my perception of the events that took place.  The story is meant to be presented to and inspire others.” 

“Make it personal so that the readers will feel the emotion. 

- Rye Barcott 

Rye is truly a great guy, a mentor for many, and an inspiration for more.  I give It Happened On The Way To War four stars.  I’m nixing one because there were a few areas I feel dragged out a bit and would have had more impact were they shortened. Even if you don’t like memoir’s (which Rye hates them and doesn’t like calling the book that) picking up this book will give you a glimpse into a world you may not have known existed and inspire you to make changes in your own way.

 

It was in 2007 that I first picked up Dime Store Magic.  Little did I know, I was picking up a book that was actually the third installment of what would become one of my all-time favorite book series.  I was working at a bookstore at the time.  Lingering in the Sci-Fi and fantasy section was something I tended to do, especially when restocking.  I found so many gems while walking down those aisles, reading the backs of books that looked interesting or had a catching title.  Dime Store Magic was one of them.  I bought a copy, read the book – and then realized that Bitten and Stolen came before it.  I was happy that Kelley Armstrong was able to weave a story in a series that had enough information to be a stand-alone novel as well.

I was introduced to Paige, Lucas, and Savannah, the wonderful world of witches, cabals, and magic.  It took me a day and half to read.  After that I was scouring the net for information on the author and any other books she may have written. That’s when I found out that Bitten was the first in the series.  The bookstore I was working at also had it in the bargain section for $2.00.  So, I read Bitten, then Stolen, then the next book, and the next, until I was caught up and had to wait with the other fans in eager anticipation of the next book being released.  Armstrong intricately brought so many characters together in one world, and it was pleasure to meet all of them, following their adventures as they try to keep their magical existence a secret from the world. Armstrong didn’t create just one protagonist with supporting characters and stick them into a world.  She created a world with several stars and stories to tell. 

Picking up ‘Thirteen’ for the final hurrah left me with a feeling of dread and excitement.  There was no way that this book was going to be anything less than phenomenal, but at the same time, I knew it meant saying goodbye to so many of my favorite characters.  Watching Savannah grow from a little girl into an independent, kick ass witch who could handle her own was probably my favorite.  The reunion with her mother Eve was heartbreaking and finally seeing Savannah and Adam admit their feelings for each other had me cheering to the literary muses that spark Armstrong’s imagination.  It was action packed, with twists, turns, and cameos of just about everyone from previous books.   Riveting, full of emotional ups and downs, and ending that had everyone taking the next step in their lives, ‘Thirteen’ is perhaps one of the best series finales I’ve read.  

It’s always hard to say goodbye to people we care about.  Characters we’ve been following for years are no different.  Fare thee well you strong, independent, inspiring woman.  I shall revisit your stories often, and hope that Kelley Armstrong gives us a glimpse into your lives in the future.