The Deep Dim by Christine Rains

Book Info:
Genre: Supernatural, romance, mystery, paranormal
Publisher: Mystic Moon Press
ISBN: TBA
To Purchase: www.mysticmoonpress.com

Review:

The Deep Dim is a wistful and mysterious love story that whisks you away and captures your heart. Rains is a masterful writer, spinning poetic phrases that flow off the tongue, and weaving mysteries wrapped around mysteries where each page leads to more intriguing questions. Not only is this a heart tugging love story, it is a story of self discovery, a murder mystery, and a supernatural dream.

Kanys lives in fear of the light because of the spirits that it brings. She lives sequestered in a dark house, hiding from the world and sleeping during the daylight hours until a dashingly handsome ghost charms his way into her life and steals her heart. She leaves her refuge of darkness to help solve the mystery of his existence, because he is unlike the others and more real to her than anyone she’s ever met since the death of her mother. This journey leads her to places where she would never otherwise go and people that she’s destined to meet. Along the way she learns more about herself and finds the answers to dark secrets shading her past.

Rains creates vibrant and witty characters that are so real you expect them to come knocking at your door. They interact with such interesting banter that, at times, borders on vicious, shocking, and belly rumbling. Kanys is a sweet and fragile waif of a young woman juxtaposed with a swooningly poetic specter and a blunt and tumultuous punk. Together they show what true friendship is and how to love.

This is the one of the best books of 2009. I am thoroughly impressed with Rains’s masterful writing. This book called to me and wouldn’t let me put it down. I will be ordering an autographed copy for my bookshelf when it comes out in print.

Tiger's Realm by Kevin Grubbe

Book Info:
Genre: Fantasy, Sci Fi, Romance, Action
Publisher: Mystic Moon Press
ISBN: 978-0-9821431-2-4
To Purchase: www.mysticmoonpress.com

Review:

Full of action, adventure, and epic battles, Tiger’s Realm combines science fiction and fantasy to create a world where technology and magic coexist side by side. It deals with the issues of slavery, vengeance, and honor, bringing up the timeless question of what it truly means to be human.

Long ago, wizards created man-animals, beings that were part man and part animal that could think rationally and feel emotions like humans. When the story begins, these man-animals are fighting for their freedom from slavery. A small rebel group has managed to escape and uses the ancient wizard city for their home base. Within this city lies powerful magic, portals to unknown worlds, and answers to the beginnings of civilization itself.

Perhaps the most interesting quality of this epic fantasy book is the way Grubbe shifts perspective, telling the tale from both the human and man-animal viewpoint. As a reader I found myself gravitating to the side of the man-animals, and sympathizing more with their plight. When one man-animal wants to kill another of its kind, ironically they call him more human than beast.

Tiger’s Realm stirs up great questions about war and peace. It is an epic tale that science fiction and fantasy readers alike will enjoy.

Son of My Soul by Debra Shiveley Welch

Book Info:
Genre: Autobiography
Publisher: Saga Books
ISBN: 978-1-894936-93-4
To Purchase: www.sagabooks.com

Review:

Son of My Soul is a beautifully written and powerful story, told with heart wrenching honesty. Welch bares her soul in a profoundly emotional journey of spiritual redemption and love. Not only is this Chris’s story, it is his family legacy, and Welch’s life passage, full of moments of elation, triumph, and despair.

Welch takes the reader through her own neglected childhood, her tumultuous young adulthood, and her quest for a happy and fulfilled life. In adopting Chris, she turns around everything that went wrong in her life and finds true contentment. It is a journey that begins in darkness and ends in light.

Welch has the ability to draw upon raw emotion and describe feelings so intricately that I felt them, myself, wholeheartedly. By the end of the book I cared for her and her son as if they were my own family and friends. I look forward to reading future books about their lives.

Angels in Disguise by Betty Sullivan La Pierre

Book Info:

Genre: Mystery/Suspense

Publisher: SynergEbooks 2006 Ebook

ISBN: 0-7443-01090-3

To Purchase: www.synergebooks.com

Review:

La Pierre’s clear, matter of fact style and great attention to detail weave a close knit web of mystery, where every strand leads to a clue. As a reader, she kept me guessing throughout the entire book. Just when I thought I knew what was going to happen, there was another plot twist and a deeper level to the story.

Detective Hawkman is investigating a missing person case involving a wounded husband, a loyal daughter, a quirky grandmother, and a flamboyant mother. The mother has disappeared and the prime suspects are numerous. As Hawkman investigates leads, he struggles with personal matters as well, adding poignancy to the tale and deepening his character. It is through this personal struggle that Hawkman meets the true Angels in Disguise.

La Pierre is a masterful storyteller who keeps the reader guessing until the very end. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and look forward to reading more from this author.