Sheila's Guests and Reviews

Today I'm delighted to welcome author Frank McKinney to my blog. His book, The Other Thief, has just come out and took 6 months to design and finalize. Each of his last three book covers were painstakingly designed to look like a coming-attractions movie poster. The novel took  over a year to write because the author went back and rewrote much of the middle and ending after receiving valuable input from his editor, her 24 year-old intern, and from an acclaimed filmmaker. So it should be seriously good! In his other life he says he’s a real estate “artist” where he creates multi-million dollar oceanfront homes on speculation on the sun-drenched canvas of the Atlantic. It’s a life he’s lived 10 years longer than that as an author. And he' s  here to tell us something about the hows and whys of the wise things he does. Over to you Frank... On the first night when I arrived in Florida from Indiana as an 18 year-old without the hope of education beyond graduating high sch...

Today I'm pondering unwanted changes in my day-to-day, life and the question of whether they're truly dark or light comes to mind. Putting the spotlight on a book called Darkest Before the Dawn seems singularly appropriate to my feelings. I shall look forward to dawn. Meanwhile, enjoy. DARKEST BEFORE THE DAWN Author: Mike Martin Publisher: Ottawa Press and Publishing Pages: 266 Genre: Mystery Price $14.99  paperback Darkest Before the Dawn is the latest adventure of Sgt. Winston Windflower, a Mountie who finds himself surrounded by a new family and a new life in tiny Grand Bank, Newfoundland. There are signs of trouble that may disturb his pleasant life, including a series of unsolved break-ins and the lack of supports for young people in the most trying time of their lives. But there are always good friends, good food and the sense that if we all pull together, we can find a way to get through even the darkest days. Ghosts, mysterious...

My world's not feeling as good as it might--job uncertainties, aging, insurance all rearing their heads. So perhaps it's a good time to escape into a strange new world, seek out new lives, new civilizations... or something. Which I suppose answers my question, "Are strange new worlds scary or good," because Star Trek sought out some pleasing ones as well as scary ones. Anyway, many worlds reside in good books, so here are three, all science fiction based, and all truly intriguing. First is Water to Water by Karen Wyle . You can find my reviews of Karen Wyle's earlier novels on Goodreads , and you'll tell from their number and ratings that I love her writing. Water to Water is no exception--a well-imagined alien world with truly alien life-forms, alien culture, and even alien faith. Readers are quickly drawn into lives and questions as a young adult comes to terms with his father's passing. But why do the dead go to the sea? Where do the dead of other s...

Do you prefer sweet, sharp or dark... or all three rolled into one. With two romances recently read, my book reviews should surely be sweet, except those romances had the sort of sharp insights and even dark (or stark) reality, they can't be simply classified with only one kind of flavor. Then there were all the other books. And then time ran out, so here are just a few book reviews while I snatch moments from trying to get my own volumes released. Sweet William by Sherrie Hansen and Goldenrod , by the same author, are both Scottish-themed romances that delve into differences of language, culture and meaning as Americans and Scots try not to fall in love. An intriguing extra is the "meaning" of flowers. But best for readers is the sense that love is stronger than death, that romantic love doesn't eliminate other kinds of love, that faith is part of real life and not everyone shares it, and that misunderstandings really can be overcome. Enjoy with some well-balanced...