Whenever I get a book by an author I've never read before, I'm willing to give him 15 pages to capture my attention, because, let's face it, life is short, right? I don't have time to waste on drivel.
Austin Camacho's Blood and Bone grabbed my attention on the first page, held it in a choke hold until I finished the book. It is exceptionally rare that I finish a book in one sitting, but I couldn't put this one down. The characters are engaging. The pacing is perfect. And Mr. Camacho's word choice is dead-on. He spins a mental image with his short but clear descriptions that drew me into the story and made me care about the characters. The twists were well plotted and this was just a FUN READ! I can't wait to get the rest of the series. I enjoyed this book so much; I've already started casting the movie in my head!
Thank you Mr. Camacho for a very enjoyable evening! I hope to have many more!
Monday, March 31, 2008
Thursday, March 20, 2008
Visit with Sylvia Dickey Smith
If you enjoy a great tale with mystery and a touch of romance and small-town humor, then check out the books by SYLVIA DICKEY SMITH. Here's her web address. Tell her I sent ya.
www.sylviadickeysmith.com
She's a hoot and a half and I know you won't regret your time on her site! :)
www.sylviadickeysmith.com
She's a hoot and a half and I know you won't regret your time on her site! :)
My review of DEADLY SINS DEADLY SECRETS
DEADLY SINS DEADLY SECRETS, the second installment of Sylvia Dickey Smith’s Sidra Smart series, is a tale of how small town secrets and small-minded attitudes seldom mix with pleasant results.
Sid is desperately trying to keep the private investigation business she inherited from her brother open while living in a ghost active house with her overly-involved aunt and her overly-indulged feline, as well as a dog Sid saved from going to the pound when his owner died. Sid’s love life and her professional life seem to be at odds with one another and with her past as the wife of a Baptist minister. To add another helping onto her already full plate, Sid is hired by a “tobacco-spitting, chair-rocking old codger more interested in the shine on his shoes than the dust on his furniture” to clear his dead son’s name after he was accused of a double murder. After all, just because he happened to have been spotted at the scene around the time of the crime and just because his fingerprints were on the murder weapon does not automatically mean he was guilty of the crime. But try convincing the local sheriff of that—especially when the prime suspect is no longer able to mount a defense to the charges.
Sid must trudge deep into the swamp and even deeper into the past in order to solve this case. As if that isn’t bad enough, her preacher ex-husband shows up in the middle of her date with a new man and the ghost who haunts her aunt’s house refuses to allow Sid a good night’s rest. This ghost is a long dead relative of her new client and former owner of that same house. Scrappy Kate, as she was known in life, has vital information for Sid about the present, her new case and the people involved in it.
Sylvia Dickey Smith is a master storyteller who weaves a tale tighter than a hangman’s noose. Her characters resonate with a down-home true feeling found in small towns all across America. They come alive on the page. This is a book I could not put down and highly recommend.
Sid is desperately trying to keep the private investigation business she inherited from her brother open while living in a ghost active house with her overly-involved aunt and her overly-indulged feline, as well as a dog Sid saved from going to the pound when his owner died. Sid’s love life and her professional life seem to be at odds with one another and with her past as the wife of a Baptist minister. To add another helping onto her already full plate, Sid is hired by a “tobacco-spitting, chair-rocking old codger more interested in the shine on his shoes than the dust on his furniture” to clear his dead son’s name after he was accused of a double murder. After all, just because he happened to have been spotted at the scene around the time of the crime and just because his fingerprints were on the murder weapon does not automatically mean he was guilty of the crime. But try convincing the local sheriff of that—especially when the prime suspect is no longer able to mount a defense to the charges.
Sid must trudge deep into the swamp and even deeper into the past in order to solve this case. As if that isn’t bad enough, her preacher ex-husband shows up in the middle of her date with a new man and the ghost who haunts her aunt’s house refuses to allow Sid a good night’s rest. This ghost is a long dead relative of her new client and former owner of that same house. Scrappy Kate, as she was known in life, has vital information for Sid about the present, her new case and the people involved in it.
Sylvia Dickey Smith is a master storyteller who weaves a tale tighter than a hangman’s noose. Her characters resonate with a down-home true feeling found in small towns all across America. They come alive on the page. This is a book I could not put down and highly recommend.
Monday, March 17, 2008
DEADLY SINS DEADLY SECRETS
What a wild ride that book was! I finished it a couple days ago--couldn't put it down actually! That doesn't happen for me with most books! I'll get my 'formal' and 'official' review up (hopefully) today, but I wanted to just let any of you know that if you are waiting for the LAINE LAND SEAL OF APPROVAL on this one, you GOT IT!
Don't walk, RUN to your nearest bookstore and purchase a copy of this one! I love my library as much as the next gal, but this is a book worth the purchase! I wouldn't part with my copy for anything! This is definitely a book I'll read again--probably right before the next installment of the series hits the bookshelves!
Look for my 'official' review later today (maybe tomorrow)...but this week definitely! :)
Off to my writer's group meeting! Wish me luck! :)
Till next time, enjoy your time in Laine Land! :)
Don't walk, RUN to your nearest bookstore and purchase a copy of this one! I love my library as much as the next gal, but this is a book worth the purchase! I wouldn't part with my copy for anything! This is definitely a book I'll read again--probably right before the next installment of the series hits the bookshelves!
Look for my 'official' review later today (maybe tomorrow)...but this week definitely! :)
Off to my writer's group meeting! Wish me luck! :)
Till next time, enjoy your time in Laine Land! :)
Thursday, March 13, 2008
Reviewing a new book this week
I received a copy of Sylvia Dickey Smith's new book, DEADLY SINS DEADLY SECRETS to review for Mystery Lovers Corner (www.mysteryloverscorner.com) and I am really looking forward to reading this book.
From the back cover:
Rookie PI Sidra Smart thinks she knows where she's headed. She's divorced her preacher-husband, she's inherited a private detective business, and she's solved her first case. But then she moves into a ghost active house and discovers that the past hold the key not only to her future, but to the lives of innocent people trapped in an unholy web of deception that spans decades.
Now doesn't THAT send a few well-placed chills up your spine? Does mine! I can't wait to get into this one! In fact, I'm signing off right now to get to it! Check back with me later. I'll post my review here (if I'm allowed). If not, check for it at Mystery Lover's Corner! :)
TTFN...so many books...so little space to store them all!!
From the back cover:
Rookie PI Sidra Smart thinks she knows where she's headed. She's divorced her preacher-husband, she's inherited a private detective business, and she's solved her first case. But then she moves into a ghost active house and discovers that the past hold the key not only to her future, but to the lives of innocent people trapped in an unholy web of deception that spans decades.
Now doesn't THAT send a few well-placed chills up your spine? Does mine! I can't wait to get into this one! In fact, I'm signing off right now to get to it! Check back with me later. I'll post my review here (if I'm allowed). If not, check for it at Mystery Lover's Corner! :)
TTFN...so many books...so little space to store them all!!
Wednesday, March 12, 2008
Other People's Opinions
I often read message boards on various sites and find one thing very interesting. It doesn't matter what the topic is, someone has something negative to say about it. Someone is going to get offended by what someone else thinks, says, does, believes, etc. And all it takes is for one person to stir the stink pot and it's Katey bar the door!
My question is a simple one. Why does someone else's opinion matter so much to some folks? I guess I wonder about this because other people's opinions rarely matter much to me. It is only those who have gotten close to me who may have opinions that might sting me, but the rest of the world can go pound dirt for all I care. Before I would allow some unknown person on a message board to get me that worked up, I'd leave the site and never look back. I know that's what I'd do because I've done it before--sometimes not as quickly as I should have, admitedly so. But I live and learn.
I've also come to the conclusion that folks who attack me for what I think have far more issues than the fact that they disagree with my opinion on the color of the sky or whether or not I encourage my child to believe in Santa or anything else. When someone attacks me because of a stated opinion, I remember a button I used to wear on my jacket in high school (in the 70's when buttons were the rage). It read, "Sounds like a personal problem to me." Their ire says far more about them than it will ever say about me. I figure that problem is their puppy and they can feed it.
Some folks are just too insecure with their own beliefs and opinions. Those folks see any difference as a personal attack on their lives. Those folks need to get over themselves! Form a support group for crying out loud! But leave those of us who are secure in our lives or are looking for answers out of their personal drama.
Just my opinion. Others may vary. Void where prohibited by law.
My question is a simple one. Why does someone else's opinion matter so much to some folks? I guess I wonder about this because other people's opinions rarely matter much to me. It is only those who have gotten close to me who may have opinions that might sting me, but the rest of the world can go pound dirt for all I care. Before I would allow some unknown person on a message board to get me that worked up, I'd leave the site and never look back. I know that's what I'd do because I've done it before--sometimes not as quickly as I should have, admitedly so. But I live and learn.
I've also come to the conclusion that folks who attack me for what I think have far more issues than the fact that they disagree with my opinion on the color of the sky or whether or not I encourage my child to believe in Santa or anything else. When someone attacks me because of a stated opinion, I remember a button I used to wear on my jacket in high school (in the 70's when buttons were the rage). It read, "Sounds like a personal problem to me." Their ire says far more about them than it will ever say about me. I figure that problem is their puppy and they can feed it.
Some folks are just too insecure with their own beliefs and opinions. Those folks see any difference as a personal attack on their lives. Those folks need to get over themselves! Form a support group for crying out loud! But leave those of us who are secure in our lives or are looking for answers out of their personal drama.
Just my opinion. Others may vary. Void where prohibited by law.
To Be Young Enough to Know It ALL, Again
Because I am the mom of a teen-aged daughter and volunteer as the co-leader for her Girl Scout troop, I spend a lot of time around kids between the ages of 13 and 18. I've realized something over the last few months. I want to be young again! Not just young, but young enough to know it all!
Yes, I wish I was young enough to know it all again! I want to be:
Young enough to think I had all the answers to every single one of life's questions, but without the knowledge that I didn't even have all the questions yet. That's when life was full of possibilities. I could change the world back when I knew it all!
Young enough to think people in their 40's were so out of the times that their advice couldn't possibly have any relevance to my life! If I was that young again, there are a few things I'd do differently this time around.First of all, I'd actually LISTEN to those 40 + yr-olds because now that I am one of them I know they actually do know what they're talking about! And they know because they've been there, done that and learned a valuable lesson from it! Yes, if I were young enough to know it all, I'd know better than to ignore that sage advice!
Then I'd get my degree, work 2 or 3 jobs if I had to in order to pay for it because it is more valuable than I realized back when I knew it all!
I would also figure out a lot earlier that other people's opinion of me really doesn't have to affect my life in any way. Someone doesn't like what I do or say or how I look or dress then that is their problem, not mine. A wise older woman once told me "if it isn't your puppy, why do you keep feeding it?" So many things I worry about turned out to be someone else's puppy. Once I started letting them feed it, my life got a lot less stressful!
I would also realize that not every comment is an insult nor is every question a judgment on my life. I'd be a lot less defensive if I were young enough to know it all again.
Yes, to be young enough to know it all, yet old enough to know better! That would make me just about perfect!
Yes, I wish I was young enough to know it all again! I want to be:
Young enough to think I had all the answers to every single one of life's questions, but without the knowledge that I didn't even have all the questions yet. That's when life was full of possibilities. I could change the world back when I knew it all!
Young enough to think people in their 40's were so out of the times that their advice couldn't possibly have any relevance to my life! If I was that young again, there are a few things I'd do differently this time around.First of all, I'd actually LISTEN to those 40 + yr-olds because now that I am one of them I know they actually do know what they're talking about! And they know because they've been there, done that and learned a valuable lesson from it! Yes, if I were young enough to know it all, I'd know better than to ignore that sage advice!
Then I'd get my degree, work 2 or 3 jobs if I had to in order to pay for it because it is more valuable than I realized back when I knew it all!
I would also figure out a lot earlier that other people's opinion of me really doesn't have to affect my life in any way. Someone doesn't like what I do or say or how I look or dress then that is their problem, not mine. A wise older woman once told me "if it isn't your puppy, why do you keep feeding it?" So many things I worry about turned out to be someone else's puppy. Once I started letting them feed it, my life got a lot less stressful!
I would also realize that not every comment is an insult nor is every question a judgment on my life. I'd be a lot less defensive if I were young enough to know it all again.
Yes, to be young enough to know it all, yet old enough to know better! That would make me just about perfect!
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