Thursday, September 29, 2011

Review: The Land Beyond the Portal by J.S Bailey

It's a dark, snowy night when Laura awakens at the bottom of a staircase with a horrible headache and no idea how she got there. To make matters worse, she is alone in the house, snowed in by a blizzard, with no way to call for help. While exploring the house in a desperate attempt to trigger the return of her memory, she discovers a small room beneath the basement. She steps inside, and an unknown force instantly transports her to a mysterious, pastoral land.
She finds a quaint village that at first glance seems life a peaceful place: but Laura soon learns that peace is merely an illusion. Why are terrible rumors circulating about the village's leader? Why do the villagers worship a sinister deity who bears no resemblance to her own powerful and loving God? Most importantly, will she ever remember who she is and find her way home? In her quest for answers, she uncovers a myriad of forbidden secrets that might keep her trapped in The Land Beyond the Portal.

J.S. Bailey lives with her husband, Nathan, in Southwest Ohio. She loves astronomy, crocheting, metal detecting, reading and writing. She also is quite found of Mexican cuisine. The Land Beyond the Portal is J.S. Bailey's first novel.

J.S. Bailey did a wonderful job on this heart-warming, inspirational story. I was hooked from beginning to end. With loveable characters and a great story line, this book is definitely a must read!
  Since this book is not the kind of book I would usually read, I was worried I wouldn't be able to get into it. But I was so wrong! The twist and turns in this book will keep you guessing till the end. Just when you think you have it all figured out J.S. Bailey throws another curve ball at you! It takes a great author to pull this off, but  J.S. Bailey did just that. I give this book 4 stars. So what are you waiting for? Read it for yourself and enjoy your journey through the portal! 

Tuesday, September 20, 2011

Guest Post with Author Laurie Bowler


Interview with the lovely A. Jacob Sweeny

I have a treat for you today Bookworms! The lovely A. Jacob Sweeny took the time out of her busy life to give me an interview. As most of you know I recently read Pulse of Heroes and wow what an amazing book! So I thought it would be great for my readers to get to know her a little better :) Ok on with the interview! Dawn 1. Please tell your devoted fans and me a little about yourself.
Dawn: a. How old you are -, A. Jacob Sweeny: As old as you want me to be ;) Dawn: b. Where do you live? - A. Jacob Sweeny: In beautiful Northern California-so far under a roof Dawn: c. A little about your family life? - I come from a family of 4 siblings. I was the total middle child before baby came along years later. My mother was reading to me Greek tragedies by the time I was seven and explaining them to me. She was a lover of History too. Dawn: d. Do you have a devoted man in your life? S. Jacob Sweeny:- So far I collected one, but Elizabeth Taylor is my role model :o So who knows… Dawn: 2. Did you always know that you wanted to become a writer? A. Jacob Sweeny: Not really. When I was little I wanted to be an Opera singer. Then I wanted to be a teacher - and I did end up teaching for a couple of years. But my love of history is my obsession; so I continued with my secret wish to become an archaeologist. I wrote as a hobby and always enjoyed telling stories. I also wrote a couple of songs that two separate bands used and they are recorded on CD! My first serious writing endeavor mixed my love of history with my love of words and I wrote a complete historical screenplay. Dawn: 3. Do you have a special place that you like to go to write? A. Jacob Sweeny: My sofa! Dawn: 4. Is it hard to balance your writing with family life? A. Jacob Sweeny: Yes. People who don't write have no idea how much alone time it takes. I have become a hermit. But don’t worry loved ones. Only one more book in the Trilogy. Dawn: 5. How long did it take you to write Pulse of Heroes?A. Jacob Sweeny: Including tons of research over 6 years! Dawn: 6. How did you come up with the idea of your story line? A. Jacob Sweeny: The Immortals have been in my head for several years and they showed up after I finished writing my historical Screenplay (7 years ago). The story of Michelle and Elliot came after I talked to my sixteen-year-old cousin who asked why so many books follow the same romantic plot. Don't hate me- but I don't read pure romance book so she explained to me that it's always a damsel in distress line, or a kick-Ass chick; Sometimes very sluty too. She asked me why are there no normal girls in books she can really identify with. So I decided to write something for her that is different and it was a serious EUREKA moment. To combine my existing immortals into a YA romance. Pulse Of Heroes was born just like that. Dawn: 7. Is it hard to come up with the names of your beloved characters or did it just come to you? A. Jacob Sweeny: Actually 'Michal' is the name of a girl in my original historical screenplay and I loved her character there, but she doesn't get much playtime. So I resurrected her as modern day Michelle. I always loved the name Elijah and Elliot is a variant of this name. It is fittingly a Godly name, which I thought was perfect for the character. With the rest of the immortals and other names I had to do a lot of research of ancient myths from the countries they came from. I picked name from there, so yes each one is tied to mythology and ancient history. Dawn: 8. I notice a few bits of the story reminded me of Twilight. Did Twilight inspire Pulse of Heroes in any way? A. Jacob Sweeny: No. This has come up so often that it's laughable at this point. I never read Twilight, and only seen the first movie once, and I was already writing my novel. A hero/super human/angel falling for a human girl is a classic theme and was certainly not invented by Mrs. Meyer. In ancient texts from around the world and even in the Bible there are plenty of stories about angels, Gods, demigods falling for the beauty of the daughters of man. Dawn: 9. If you were stranded on a deserted Island and could pick one book to keep with you, what book would you chose? A. Jacob Sweeny: The Holy Bible- It is the greatest story ever told! And the beauty of it's verses have been copied by many, including by my beloved William Shakespeare. I would like to add that I do not practice any religion, but am spiritual and believe in a higher mightier power that us humans have only tried to explain. Dawn: 10. Do you have a release date set for The Pulse? A. Jacob Sweeny: Halloween 2011 But releasing the real name of the Novel on Oct 1st. ~The Pulse~ has been a working title. Dawn: 11. I know that recently your book Pulse of Heroes was posted for free all over the Internet. I know as an author this had to be heart breaking for you. Do you have any advise for other authors to keep this from happening to them? Do you have any thing you would like to say to the person who stole your book? A. Jacob Sweeny: I have decided to remove my book from sites that offer it in E-pub or PDF forms. We all love E-books, but people who pirate them steal food off the author's table. This is especially true with independent authors who don't get any money to survive on from any publisher. All the hours, years and tears are unpaid for. I would like to say that if pirating continues more and more authors will refuse to offer their books as an e-book form- and people will have to cover the printing costs of a paper book. Everyone loses. Dawn: 12. So if I sweet talk you would you give us a few details about what you have in store for our beloved characters, Michelle and Elliot in The Pulse2? A. Jacob Sweeny: Well all I can say is that they have a lot to work on after the horrible things that took place in Europe and even between them as a couple. Oh we go on other adventures too! Thank you Dawn xoxox Wow! What a great interview! Thanks so much A.feel free to stop by and talk to us any time!

Tuesday, September 06, 2011

Guest Post by Kristie Cook

Well my wonderful Bookworms today is your lucky day! Kristie Cook, author of The Soul Saver Series, has took time out of her busy day to chat with us! So without further interruptions take it away Kristie.....


Promise
When Alexis Ames is attacked by creatures that can’t be real, she decides it’s time she learns who she really is, with or without the help of her mother, who guards their family’s secrets closely. After meeting the inhumanly attractive, multi-talented Tristan Knight, however, Alexis retreats behind her façade of normalcy…until she discovers he’s not exactly normal either. Then their secrets begin to unravel.

Their union brings hope and promise to her family’s secret society, the Angels’ army, and to the future of mankind. But it also incites a dangerous pursuit by the enemy – Satan’s minions and Tristan’s creators. After all, Alexis and Tristan are a match made in Heaven and in Hell.

Purpose
Lost in despair, Alexis teeters on the edge of an abyss, her lifeline of hope fraying into a thin thread. If it snaps, she’ll plunge into complete darkness. With the help of her son and her writing, she’s been able to hold on. Until now. Erratic impulses, disturbing delusions and her own demonic blood threaten her sanity. When she’s forced to choose between hanging onto hope or letting go to serve her Amadis purposes, she faces a decision with inconceivable sacrifices.
Alexis runs to the one place she thinks will provide answers, only to find herself at the center of another battle of good versus evil, not only with the Daemoni, not only within herself…but also against the worst opponent imaginable. But even if she wins, what will she lose?

About the Author
Kristie Cook is a lifelong, award-winning writer in various genres, from marketing communications to fantasy fiction. She continues to write the Soul Savers Series, with the first two books, Promise and Purpose, available now and the third book, Devotion, coming February 2012. She’s also written a companion novella, Genesis, coming October 2011.
Besides writing, she enjoys reading, cooking, traveling and riding on the back of a motorcycle. She has lived in ten states, but currently calls Southwest Florida home with her husband, three teenage sons, a beagle and a puggle. She can be found at:

Author's Website & Blog: http://www.KristieCook.com
Series Website: http://www.SoulSaversSeries.com
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/AuthorKristieCook
Twitter: http://twitter.com/#!/kristiecookauth
Tumbler: http://www.tumblr.com/tumblelog/kristiecook
Google+: https://plus.google.com/102746226001674797330/posts


The Evolution of a Character

When I first started writing fiction again, an intense scene came to mind immediately. I had no idea what was really going on, just that this woman was about to find out there was a lot more in store for her life than she ever expected. She would learn many secrets about souls, angels and demons (and their many forms) and she would play a key role in this supernatural world she never knew existed.

But first she had to get over a huge initial shock that I can’t tell you because it would give too much away. Sorry, but I don’t want to ruin your fun! This part became a pivotal scene in what is now Purpose, the second book of my Soul Saves Series.

In the original scene, “she” (no name yet) was a 38-year-old widow with twins going off to college. She was a bestselling author of a fantasy series, but had no idea there was anything different about her. Except for losing her very normal and human husband in a car accident at a very young age and developing a Rowling-like writing career, her life had been pretty normal.

Somehow—and it didn’t take long—this woman became Alexis. In Promise, Alexis starts at 18 years old. Although she’s 27 in Purpose, I don’t think she’ll ever reach the age of 38. She already knows she’s not normal because, you know, instant healing and a sixth sense just aren’t part of a normal human’s abilities. Her mother doesn’t age and she also has “quirks.” So Alexis is not completely in the dark. She just doesn’t know why they’re like that. She does aspire to be a bestselling author. She’s obviously not married yet and has no kids and even when it does happen, it’s all completely different than when I first started with a simple character sketch.

Fortunately, all of this came to me early on. There was a lot in that original scene that I realized wouldn’t work once the rest of the story came to me. But it at least got me started. And once I started, I learned more and more about Alexis and the rest of the characters each day. And now, the only part of that one scene that remains is that big shock. How the characters arrived at that place and where they go from there have all changed and so have Alexis and the other characters.

As the story evolved, I came to know each character better—they didn’t change much, only became more real and multi-dimensional. I can’t think of any that are completely different now than they were at the end of the first draft. There is a minor character that took on the role of what was once two people. There are characters who started as one-liners, but have and will become pretty major players in the series.

I love them all, though some I know much better than others at this point. I look forward to becoming more intimate with the others, as well as new ones, in future books. Part of the fun of writing is meeting and getting to know these people, as if they were real. And just like real people, they don’t just spill out everything about themselves as soon as they have a name. It takes time to learn what makes them tick and why they behave the way they do—what happened in their past to make them who they are now.

They will all evolve over the series, but especially Alexis. We will see her grow and mature and eventually be prepared to lead the Angels’ Army on Earth. But first, we have to see her hit rock bottom and climb out of it. We suffer with her as she faces and overcomes the challenges put before her, each one strengthening her and preparing her for what she is meant to do. By the end of the series, she will have evolved into a different person. She’ll be Alexis…but better.




Thank you Kristie that is such an interesting post! I am sure my Bookworms will love it as much as I did! Feel free to stop by and visit with us again sometime soon :)

Kristie has been awesome enough to include an e-copy of her book Promise! So to enter all you have to do is be a follower of I Love Books and leave a comment for Kristie....it's that simple so good luck and enjoy :)

Monday, September 05, 2011

Time to have some fun

Ok I have a a PFD copy a Storm Born Comic to one lucky Bookworm! Simple to enter, just leave a comment on this blog post. But for extra chances well


!. Follow my blog through GFC and leave your name
2, Like Sea Lion Books on Facebok http://www.facebook.com/pages/Sea-Lion-Books/101360683261467
3. Post a pic of your Comic Books and post on Sea Lion Books wall

Oh and one more thing I want a review to be posted on this Blog from the winner also


The winner will picked my the end of the night so get to it!