Review Tales
Trusted Reviews and Author Features Since 2016
Encounter (Talon 5) by Gigi Sedlmayer (Book Review #213)
Pete and Zed dominate the story with their vicious plot and agenda towards these birds. The story is filled with action and drama as Matica sets her heart in, once again, protecting these birds.
I found the novel to have a faster pace and more suspenseful feel to it, compared to the first book. I enjoyed the love spent for these animals and the way Matica had grown and matured. I admired the fact that even though she was psychically restricted, her determination was stronger than ever. The story had a small hidden reveal to it and the ending made you feel satisfied with the outcome.
I believe the author has great potential in writing about similar genre stories. I recommend this book to bird lovers and anyone that enjoys a well-written story.
Written by Jeyran Main
You may read my review of the first book, Come Fly With Me, here.
This review was kindly requested by Gigi Sedlmayer.
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Success is your birthright by R. Stanton Tucker (Book Review #267)
Every person on this planet has either endured hardship or is dealing with day to day troubles. This book takes all this into account and demonstrates the comparison with people who are well known in history and have overcome their trouble through a different way. It also demonstrates how you should deal with the people of reasons that make you go through the hardship in the first place. By reading this book, one can be assured that their perspective will change and as the author aims to provide, he succeeds in doing so.
The work is relatively easy to read and to follow through. The agenda is clear and the notion is set for a better living. Anyone dealing with troubles and aiming to succeed in life by relying on God will enjoy reading this book.
I recommend this book to religious and spiritual readers.
Written by Jeyran Main
This review was kindly requested by Christelle, Stanton, Lillie Publishing, LLC.
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Writing for bliss by Diana Raab (Book Review #266)
This, by far is one of the best books I have ever read. It is so organized and well thought out that everyone should have it. From preparing to write, cultivating self-awareness, speaking the truth, to finding your form and sharing your writing, the author displays a rich and well-worth learning experience for a writer.
The book even goes into detail about how you can write about sex and intimacy or write love letters and what to include when revising or editing a piece. There is nothing off topic and everything receives a well in-depth placement in this book.
Anyone searching for a therapeutic way to heal or to deal with trauma can benefit from this book. It encourages you to write a memoir and to keep a diary. I specifically loved how the author invites you to write without thought, making you realize later where your train of thoughts take you and how significant the outcome of it is.
I highly recommend this book to writers, psychology majors and anyone that wishes to heal through writing.
Written by Jeyran Main
This review was kindly requested by Underrated.com and the author, Diana Raab. Â
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Lalibela’s Wise Man by Matshona Dhliwayo (Book Review #248)
Lalibela’s Wise Man is a short book novella about Christian. His life changes when his father passes away. Christian is denied his inheritance. Not only does he have to overcome the fact that he has lost his dear father but now, he is disowned and abandoned by his family as well. His journey begins when he reads a letter from his dad asking him to travel to Ethiopia. Once there, he meets some wise men called, Lalibelas. Things turn for the better once he embraces on this wonderful discovery. Christian learns a much greater lesson and that is what makes this book special to read.
I found the characters to be very relatable and easy to bond with. Christian is very brave and likable. The book is mere 60 pages and so it is very short to include thorough world settings and details, however, what existed is a very sweet story, with a nice pace to it. The literature was easy to understand and I believe anyone reading the story would take away something important from it.
The book does have a sense of connection to religion embedded in it. It is not preachy but spiritually included. I would recommend this book to anyone that enjoys a short fictional story.
Written by Jeyran Main
This review was kindly requested by Matshona Dhilwayo.
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American Civil War by William D. Willis (Book Review #249)
American Civil War is a non-fiction history book about America and how the deadliest wars effected its country. It covers subjects like how Lincoln ended slavery and how the Confederate were defeated. This book does not, by all means, cover an extent and in-depth version of the incidents. However, what it does cover is enough for someone who really has no idea about the topic.
The author expresses the wish to analyze the Civil War but unfortunately, the content did not cover anything analytically. The book is more of a historical telling rather than anything else and I recommend it to people that wish to have a quick read on the topic just to have an idea about the subject matter.
Written by Jeyran Main
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A Sense of Place by A P McGrath
A Sense of Place
Michael grew up in Liberia in the midst of its brutal civil war. His childhood experiences shaped him and made him what he is. I wanted to explore the idea that he had the freedom to think differently from his environment. He had the ability to strike out against its dominant mood because he wanted the world to be good and not characterized by the destructive madness of war. And he had the strength of character to do it.
I studied English and Philosophy at University College Dublin, but I also trained and studied as a photographer. In the late eighties, I had the opportunity to go to the tiny Caribbean island of Montserrat and used my time there to take portraits of some of its people. Some months ago, after I’d finished writing the novel, I was doing a clean-out of the attic and came across the photographs which had been hidden away for many years. I was struck by the way they explore the intertwined relationship between character and environment. The looming Soufrière Hills volcano is in the center of the island and it becomes the backdrop to many of the photographs. However, in July 1995, the volcano erupted and destroyed most of the main habitable areas, including the principal town, the airport, and docking facilities. Two-thirds of the population was forced to leave, mainly to the UK.
I could see that the photographs of Montserrat might say as much about me as they do about the people in the photographs. The quality of the relationship between the subject and the artist is crucial. The ultimate skill is not in mastering the camera or having a fancy ability with words; it is getting the subjects to reveal themselves – even if the subject is entirely your invention.
About the Author
AP was born and grew up in Ireland. He now lives in London and works in TV. He is a single father with three beautiful teenage children. He studied English and Philosophy and then post-graduate Film Studies. A Burning in the Darkness is his first novel.
apmcgrath.com
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Southern Dust by Caspar Vega (Book Review #251)
Southern Dust is an old school pulp adventure using several narrators to tell an interconnected Southern story. The tale begins with Gretchen. She lives in Alabama has a cotillion coming up and she also is looking to find a husband. For those of you who don’t know what a cotillion is – it’s a French country dance, a social gathering that was popular in the 18th century. There is more dialogue than description when it comes to this segment of the story. However, what flows is nicely written and interesting to read.
The second part is the Governor. The tale is set in 2008 and appears to be from a diary. His name is Matthew Nightingale. The diary provides some information of Matthew’s life and is written in his own words. It covers his life as years go by- up until 2032.
The third part is about Roger Conaway, titled, ‘Sunburn’. Roger is sent to find a friend’s daughter. She has gone missing. Again, the story takes a turn as a first-person narrator and describes this short tale. The content is smooth and has a hint of humor in it.
The last part of the book is about Dominic White. He is seeking revenge over his murdered sister. Greif has taken over him. Black magic and other sorts of interesting aspects take over this tale.
I found the entire book to be extremely well written. I barely noticed any editing or structural issues. That made this collection of stories to be very well organized and easy to follow through.
I really look forward to reading more books by this author and would prefer a full single novel from him next time.
The literature standard was superb. Since the narrators were all from the first person, the stories had a personal touch to it. The settings of the story did not require much description and so the content covered more dialogue and backstory, which was sufficient in intriguing the reading for wanting to know more.
I recommend this book to people that like reading short stories and fiction thrillers.
Written by Jeyran Main
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