The Last Thing I Remember by Andrew Klavan

This is the first book in a four book series.  I highly, HIGHLY! recommend this book to all those people out there that are searching for an awesome book for the young BOY readers out there.  Although it is great for girls as well.  Charlie West is the main character in this story.  He is a karate expert that makes me want to immediately sign up to take classes.  Charlie wakes up strapped to a chair, kidnapped by bad guys for a reason he is not clear of and sets off on an adventure to set the record straight and prove that he did not kill his friend.  At every turn his friends become enemies and he is drawn into espionage.  It is a book that grabs you from the get go and made me thankful that I had a kindle and I could immediately download the next book in the series. Don't start reading this if you have anything else to do.  The character development is superb and the action is written to grab you by the shirt front and drag you along.   My son was a fan and gave it a double thumbs up! 

Whoops! here we go!

lots of time to think....

I sent my son off to college last week and due to his choice of colleges I now have 12 hours of thinking time when I go visit.  I spent some time thinking over character development on the way to Portland...then on the way home I started thinking about what it takes for me  not to finish reading a book. As a rule I do not post reviews of books I can't recommend, but even the ones I don't like I finish.  There was one book I disliked so much I closed it after the first chapter and returned it to the book store!  So what was it that made me close it? Poor characters?  Bad storyline? What makes you stop reading a book?

Wilde's Fire(Darkness Falls) by Krystal Wade

I found this book a good fit for those who yern for more romance in the midst of unrest in other worlds.  Wilde's Fire will sit on my shelf next to The Wicked Lovely books by Melissa Marr and the Mortal Instrument series by Cassandra Clare.  Kate, the main character discovers that she isn't the normal college student she thought she was, but instead has been hidden in our world until the time she can return to her world and help her people defeat the darkness. Katie spent her life having distrubing dreams that her mother has dismissed as just that...dreams.  However, a hiking trip brings those dreams crashing down and Kate is thrust into to a harsh reality of the world she was born from.  After being led through a portal, Kate comes face to face with Arland, not only the man from her dreams but also the man who was born to protect her.  Soon Kate discovers that her prophecy is to save this new world from distruction in a war against darkness.  The only problem is she has to use powers she doesn't know she has or how to use and she's been promised to a man she doesn't love.  I enjoyed this book and the more I read the harder it was to put down.  The character of Arland definitly pulls you into the romantic aspect of the book, while Kate is a strong female character who I rooted for as she begins to believe in herself and her powers to do the job she is destine to do.  This is the first in a series. Wilde's Fire left me hanging in suspense, ready to download the next in the series.

When you see your characters on the street

The blogfest got me thinking about my characters and I thought, since I am in the middle of a book and don't have a review I'd talk about characters.  You see...I actually saw Solomon, the love interest in my book If You Only Knew.  Of course I don't know if his name was Solomon, but he is who the character is based on.  My family was vacationing in Monument Valley.  Staying at Gouldings Hotel, on the Navajo Nation.  It was five years ago, yes that is how long I have been working on my book.  My kids were swimming and needed towels so I was sent off to the hotel office to retrieve them and there HE was.  Of course at the time I didn't look at him and say WOW that is going to be my main characters love interest, but it was a person that stuck with me.  I find myself always looking for people to represent my characters.  Either on t.v. or in magazines...even the mall.  I am always searching for my characters.  It helps me visualize my story when I can see their faces.  Tonight I went to a movie and there was a preview of a movie about an author whose character comes to life.  Wouldn't that be awesome if it could actually happen.

Final Days of the Blogfest

I can't express how much fun I have had as a part of this blogfest!  What a blast getting to read the blogs of other writers over the summer.  I am excited to continue to follow and look forward to reading some of the books that are soon to be released, or already have been.  I have appreciated to opportunity to read the tough road others have walked on their way to publishing as well as what's up with thier lives.  Thanks to those who follow me and I hope to cross paths again.