Paperback: 320 pages Publisher: Scholastic Paperbacks; 1st edition (September 8, 1999) Language: English ISBN-10: 0439708184 ISBN-13: 978-0590353427	Order book here:
		Order E-book here:

Characters:

Harry Potter – 11 Year Old Wizard to be.
Hermione Granger – A female classmate of Harry’s.
Ron Weasley – A male classmate and one of Harry’s best friends.

Synopsis:

Harry Potter was dropped on the doorstep of his Aunt and Uncle Dursley’s house as a baby. No One has ever told him about his parents. His Aunt and Uncle care very little about him, to the point they make him live in a small cupboard beneath the stairs. Then as Harry approaches his 11th birthday strange things happen. Harry is about to begin on an adventure that will change his life.

Review

My first exposure to all things Harry Potter was through the movies. I hadn’t read the books. At the time they just seemed to large and bulky for me, and there were just so many of them. Then I bought a nook. I’d made up my mind that if the books ever became available, I’d get them and read them. Suddenly this year, Ms. Rowling announced that the whole Harry Potter series would be available in ebook format.

Reading the book I was drawn into Harry’s world. There were areas that were touched on moreso than the movies that gave me more details on what was going on. The author did a great job of following the classic hero’s journey of literature.

The characters were extremely well developed, the scenes were exciting. There was humor and you just liked Harry so much that you wanted him to succeed. If you’ve seen the movies, then there isn’t much that happens in the books that would come as a surprise, and that perhaps is my biggest regret, that I don’t get to experience them firsthand through the written word.

I’d say this book is good for all ages, though some parents may not wish for their children to read it due to the use of magic and witchcraft. If however, you don’t mind your child reading fantasy type books such as the Wizard of Oz or Lord of the Rings, then definitely pick this up. I look forward to rejoining Harry soon for book 2.

About the Author

J.K. Rowling was a struggling single mother when she wrote the beginning of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, on scraps of paper at a local cafe. But her efforts soon paid off, as she received an unprecedented award from the Scottish Arts Council enabling her to finish the book. Since then, the debut novel has become an international phenomenon, garnering rave reviews and major awards, including the British Book Awards Chidren’s Book of the Year and the Smarties Prize. Ms. Rowling lives in Edinburgh with her daughter.

You can discuss it here or join my facebook page and discuss it there.

0 people like this post.

Like 

There’s a significant revival of interest in the movies of the ’60s and  ’70s. Films ranging from The Godfather to Easy Rider, from Nashville to Midnight Cowboy have become iconic in our pop culture.

Those of us who were lucky enough to work in the film industry of that period are often asked, “Could those films be made in today’s Hollywood?” My answer is a resounding ‘no’ and the reasons are simple.

The key aim guiding studio decision-making in that period was to surprise even shock the audience. Today’s film executives are eager to re-capture the familiar. The most important resource to tap into is “awareness,” not surprise.

Studio tentpoles are predicated on giving filmgoers something they’ve seen before and hopefully will want to experience again.   The upshot, of course, is the abundance of sequels, prequels and remakes.   The success of “21 Jump Street” has underscored an appetite to re-cycle the ’80s by remaking films like “Robocop”, “Dirty Dancing,” and a new “Die Hard”.

Geriatric action stars like Bruce Willis, Sylvester Stallone and even Arnold Schwarzenegger are in demand again. Even Billy Crystal is coming back as a leading man.  Hence, while there is a desire to revisit the past, the intent is not to re-discover films that changed the landscape of pop culture. Instead, there’s a search for re-cycled superheroes.

The Tribeca Film Festival caused some surprise by booking “The Avengers” as the centerpiece for its closing extravaganza, after a two-week menu of art pictures and documentaries. This tentpole offers audiences the chance not to revisit just one superhero of the past but a veritable who’s who of heroic retreads. They include Iron Man, Thor, Hawkeye, Black Widow, Captain America and  even the Incredible Hulk.

Hence fest-goers, too, can enjoy a return to the familiar — the Avengers comic book dates back to 1963.

The decision to showcase The Avengers is intriguing in that festivals are customarily irrelevant to the superhero genre of motion pictures, as are the major film critics. Tentpoles need tweets and viral buzz, not the approval of cineastes.

Most of all, tentpoles, with their enormous costs, need instant awareness.  The auras of books like the Harry Potter series or Hunger Games can create a foundation for that awareness. So can some comic books and video games.  By and large, the game-changing films of the ’60s and 70s emanated from original film ideas or obscure books. Even the Godfather was an unpublished and incomplete manuscript when it was acquired by Paramount. The motivation behind such films as Bonnie & Clyde was to provide culture shock, not to capitalize on an existing franchise. Films of that era opened in a very few theaters and ultimately found an audience.

Culture shock actually was a rewarding experience. Hopefully audiences may again get to experience it in films some day.

© 2012 Peter Bart, author of Infamous Players: A Tale of Movies, The Mob (And Sex)

Author Bio

Peter Bart, author of Infamous Players: A Tale of  Movies, The Mob (And Sex), spent seventeen years as a film executive (at Paramount, MGM, and Lorimar Film Co.), only to return to print as editor in chief of Variety. Along the way, he was responsible for seven books, including Shoot Out, written with Peter Guber. He is now the host of Movie Talk, a weekly television show broadcast here and abroad.

For more information please visit http://www.weinsteinbooks.com and Amazon

0 people like this post.

Like 

	Hardcover: 256 pages Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan (March 27, 2012) Language: English ISBN-10: 0230117570 ISBN-13: 978-0230117570	Order book here:
		Order E-book here:

Review

You’re sitting at dinner in a restaurant. Your cellphone lies next to you. Your significant other is telling you about problems at work. Suddenly your cellphone buzzes. What do you do?

If your answer is you check your phone, you might need this book because you might have an iDisorder. An iDisorder is a psychological disorder related to technology. It can be an addiction to social media, it can be the urge to use your cellphone when you are engaged in conversations with others. It can involve texting and driving or even sexting.

In iDisorder Dr. Larry Rosen, Phd. visits many different psychological disorders. In a survey of 3500 people, 61% said they keep their cellphone by their bed.

Some statistics from the book:

• Pre-teens who used more technology and played more video games were more depressed.
•  Once interrupted, lag time to resume tasks could be 5 minutes or more, in a business environment, this could amount to hours of lost productivity every day.
•  995 (18%) distracted driving crashes resulting in fatalities were cellphone use.
•  Technology is reducing our ability to be empathic to others.
• It can lead to medical issues related to sites like WebMD or in eating disorders from images we’re bombarded with.

Throughout the book, the reader is given specific examples at the beginning of each chapter as well as throughout the chapter. Each chapter is on specific iDisorders. The book presents the facts, figures, and the author even included some sample tests to determine if you might have an iDisorder.

Overall a very eye opening book. I think it would be valuable for anyone to read, particularly those who use a lot of technology and feel like it’s in control of their lives. One caveat though, if you read it, like myself, you might find you have a lot of these iDisorders. I think my problem lies with like facebook, the internet, and my ereader.

Pick it up, give it a read, and stop by here and let us know what you thought.

About the Author

Larry D. Rosen, Ph.D., author of iDisorder: Understanding Our Obsession with Technology and Overcoming its Hold on Us, is past Chair and Professor of Psychology at California State University, Dominguez Hills. He is a research psychologist and computer educator, and is recognized as an international expert in the “Psychology of Technology.” Over the past 25 years, Dr. Rosen and his colleagues have examined reactions to technology among more than 30,000 children, teens, college students, and adults in the United States and in 23 other countries. He has been quoted in numerous media outlets, includingThe New York Times, USA Today, Chicago Tribune, CNN, and Good Morning America and writes a regular blog for Psychology Today.

Nancy Cheever, Ph.D. and L Mark Carrier, Ph.D. are Associate Professor and Chair of Communication and Professor and Chair of Psychology respectively, at California State University, Dominguez Hills, where they cofounded the George Marsh Applied Cognition Laboratory with Dr. Rosen.

For more information, view  Larry D. Rosen’s Web site.

*Disclaimer* A special thanks goes out to Anna at FSB Associates for a review copy of this book. It in no way influenced my review. You can discuss it here or join my facebook page and discuss it there.

0 people like this post.

Like 

	Publisher: StoneGate Ink; 1 edition (January 27, 2012) Language: English	Order e-book here:

Characters:

Synopsis:

Mike McMahon – Chief of Police.
Sharon Dupont – Rookie cop, partners with Mike.
Kenneth Dye – Professor of Native American Studies at Maine University.

Review
.
An ancient Indian Curse. A monster bent on revenge. Body parts strung hither and yon. This book had everything you could want in a good horror story. The story concerns Mike McMahon newly hired chief of Police. He assigns Sharon Dupont to be his partner and show him the ropes. On his first day he’s drawn into a murder. Then another.

Professor Kenneth Dye from the nearby University contacts Mike and tells him about an ancient curse in Paskagankee. The curse involves the murder of a young Indian woman and her child by Puritans. This attack is actually shown as the opening of the book.

The bodies start to pile up, and it’s tried to be explained away as a wild animal attack. The FBI is called in and does their own investigation concluding that it’s a bear. But Mike doesn’t believe a bear could be doing the damage this is doing.

This book was full of suspense and kept me glued to the storyline. I really began liking some of the characters, not liking others. I also enjoyed the ride trying to figure out how they were going to end up stopping the creature. In the end it was a very satisfying horror story, and makes me want to read more of Mr. Leverone’s novels, particulary any of this genre.

I’d give it a PG or R rating for blood, gore, violence, and language. But if you are a fan of horror, grab this book, crawl into bed, and pull the sheets tight. And don’t worry about that scratching at the window. After all, it’s probably just the cat.

About the Author

Allan Leverone is the author of the Amazon bestselling thriller, THE LONELY MILE (StoneHouse Ink), and the thrillers, FINAL VECTOR (Medallion Press) and PASKAGANKEE (StoneGate Ink), as well as the horror novellas DARKNESS FALLS and HEARTLESS(Delirium Books). Allan is a 2012 Derringer Award winner as well as a 2011 Pushcart Prize nominee. His short fiction has been featured in Needle: A Magazine of Noir, A Twist of Noir, Shroud Magazine, Morpheus Tales, Mysterical-e and many other print and online magazines, as well as numerous anthologies. He lives in New Hampshire with his wife Sue, three children, one beautiful granddaughter and a cat who has used up eight lives. Connect with Allan at www.allanleverone.com as well as on Facebook and Twitter, @AllanLeverone.

*Disclaimer* A special thanks goes out to Molly at Partners in Crime Tours for a review copy of this book. It in no way influenced my review. You can discuss it here or join my facebook page and discuss it there.

0 people like this post.

Like 

	Paperback: 818 Pages CreateSpace Language: English ISBN-10: 1475024746 ISBN-13: 978-1475024746	Order book here:
		Order E-book here:

Characters:

Characters:

Kita – Martial Warrior – He and Kenyatta were raised together.
Kenyatta – Martial Warrior – Raised with Kita
Akemi – Ninja Demon Hunter
Kenjiro – Akemi’s Samurai brother.
Malimakuru – Mentor and protector to Kita and Kenyatta.

Synopsis:

The Drek has resurfaced with a horde of the foulest demons from the abyss. The first battle was a test. The final battle will see the fall of Brit’s most powerful enemy and, finally, the destruction of the Tower of Balance.

Kabriza, the quentranzi demon general has plans of his own. Brit’s hold on the demon is not as strong as he believes, and Kabriza has sent his minions to human civilizations. Through the chaos they create, more demons will enter the world, and when the barrier between the earth plane and the abyss is shattered, the drek will die and the world will belong to the demons.

Review

R.J. Terrell’s Heroes of the first two Takashaniel novels are back in this thrilling, action packed third leg of the trilogy. This time ard we find all those we’ve come to know and love, Kita, Kenyatta, Seung, Malimokuru and a.ll the rest coming together through separate adventures. These adventures will culminate in a final struggle between good and evil on the battlefields surround Takashaniel.

I loved the story. I loved seeing the relationships build more between the characters we’ve already gotten to know. There were many surprises along the way, some good, some sad, and all unexpected.

For a nice blend of fantasy mixing Asian culture with the epic stories like Lord of the Rings and the Magnificent Seven, pick up Mr. Terrell’s Takashaniel series. If there were one drawback, I think it would be that while this can be read standalone, you miss much of the history between the characters. That though is a very small drawback, because the same would happen if you just read Return of the King or Return of the Jedi.

For fans of fantasy I’d highly recommend this. I think you’d enjoy it.

About the Author

About the Author R. J. Terrell was instantly a lover of fantasy the day he opened R. A. Salvatore’s: The Crystal Shard. Years (and many devoured books) later he decided to put pen to paper for his first novel. After a bout with aching carpals, he decided to try the keyboard instead, and the words began to flow. When not writing, he enjoys reading, videogames, and long walks with his wife around Stanley Park in Vancouver BC. Connect with me at: R J Terrell on facebook RJTerrell on twitter R. J. Terrell on Goodreads

*Disclaimer* A special thanks goes out to the Author for a review copy of this book. It in no way influenced my review. You can discuss it here or join my facebook page and discuss it there.

0 people like this post.

Like 

Words With Friends: Another Stupid Game — or an Obsession?
We are becoming obsessed with our smartphones and all that they can do.
By Larry D. Rosen, Ph.D,
Author of iDisorder: Understanding Our Obsession with Technology and Overcoming its Hold on Us

The New York Times Magazine ran a fascinating cover story on April 4, 2012 written with wisdom, humor and insight by Sam Anderson. Anderson’s basic premise is that the concept of gaming has changed. For decades, a special class of teen or young adult gamer would use specialized systems, to play complex multi-player, multi-level games that might last from a few hours to many days or even weeks. Now, however, anyone can play a quick game — what Anderson terms a “stupid game” — any time of the day or night right there on their smartphone that rests somewhere next to their body 24/7. And this, Anderson argues, has changed the world of gaming to ” . . . not just hard-core gamers, but their mothers, their mailmen and their college professors. Consumers who never would have put a quarter into an arcade or even set eyes on an Xbox 360 were now carrying a sophisticated game console with them, all the time, in their pockets or their purses.”

For decades I scrupulously avoided video games even when my four children delighted in playing them. I think that I once played Pong and perhaps Donkey Kong in a bar somewhere but that was under duress and the influence of a few beers. I have never played a video game that resides on a console although I have watched, fascinated, as young children seem to understand intuitively what actions to take to make the next level or win the game. Just last night I watched my friend’s 9-year-old son sit down at a game console in a restaurant as we were waiting to be seated and without even glancing at the instructions, he popped in two quarters and played.

I have, however, always enjoyed card games and board games, particularly those that required thought or cunning to win the game. I consider myself a pretty good Scrabble and Trivial Pursuit player and delighted in winning nearly every Monopoly game with my children (I used a unique strategy that I refuse to divulge as I plan to use it with my grandchildren!). My iPhones (I have owned four of them) have always come with a hefty game center in the App Store, which, as you might guess, I have avoided like the plague. Until someone pointed out Words With Friends!

Arghhhh! I shall mark that day on my calendar as the day that my life — and my brain — changed. And I am pretty sure that it changed for the worse.

As soon as I downloaded WWF I was hooked. Now I am playing a dozen games with multiple players (all of my opponents are personal friends, as I think it is a bit bizarre to play with people you don’t know, although it is a good way to meet new people). In his NYT article Sam Anderson relayed a similar situation with his wife: “My wife, who had never been a serious gamer, got one and became addicted, almost immediately, to a form of off-brand digital Scrabble called Words With Friends. Before long she was playing 6 or 10 games at a time, against people all over the world. Sometimes I would lose her in the middle of a conversation: her phone would go brinnng or pwomp or dernalernadern-dern, and she would look away from me, midsentence, to see if her opponent had set her up for a triple word score.”

That is so true! Anderson’s wife sounds like me, and like everyone else that I play with. I am beginning to see patterns in my WWF friends (I call them that even though two are colleagues, one is my partner, one is a student in my lab and two are other people that I know very well). At first I said that I was going to “just play at night” after watching Rachel Maddow and Anderson Cooper but before The Daily Show and The Colbert Report. Pretty soon I found myself pausing the news and jumping in and making a few plays, and then returning to the news. Then, I think I said “to heck with it” and left the news on and played WWF with the news as background. Now, who cares about the news. Who cares about anything. WWF RULES!

I confess that I am now addicted. But is it truly an addiction or is there more to it? I don’t feel like an addict. I am not shirking my responsibilities at home (I still cook every night although one night I had to grab a cooked chicken because I got into a vicious back-and-forth WWF game with someone — and I WON!) nor is my work suffering. I still teach, still write, but something is happening and I think that I know what it is. What I am feeling, I believe, is a compulsion. Somewhat like Jack Nicholson in “As Good As It Gets,” I feel as though if I don’t do a certain behavior — i.e., play WWF — I will meet with some dire consequence. I am not washing my hands constantly or locking and unlocking my doors, nor am I avoiding cracks when I walk in the neighborhood. But I feel anxiety much as Jack did when I spot my smartphone. And the anxiety is “I wonder if so-and-so played a word and I better check and play one, too.”

As I sit and stare at my phone wondering about WWF, I am not feeling the discomfort that someone feels when he or she has a true psychological addiction. I am not even hoping that playing will bring me pleasure. What I am feeling is an intense NEED to play or rather to check in to see who has played. And when I do play I don’t feel that rush of dopamine, which feels like pleasure. What I feel is . . . nothing. But then my phone beckons to me and I slide to the last page of apps (I made myself put the WWF app on the last page to make it more difficult to get to. What a fool! It must take me all of a second to flick a few times and it literally pops out at me when I get to that page) and press my finger on the icon and, voila, my games appear!

So, what do I think is happening? I had some time to think about this the other day. I was at public radio studio, waiting to go on a noontime radio broadcast followed by a TV taping. Since I always arrive early I had lots of time and only my phone to keep me busy. I knew that I was going to talk about this on the air so I spent some time with my phone in front of me trying to analyze what might be going on in my brain. Wow! After just a few minutes of “thinking” I somehow found myself looking at a WWF screen of 12 ongoing games. How did I get there? Well, partially I think it was a habit and partially I think I was compelled to do so in a way that resided just below the surface of conscious activity. Sure sounds like a compulsion to me.

How do I plan to break this compulsion? I have started giving myself “WWF Time” where I grant myself the option to play for 15 minutes and no more and then put my phone away, out of sight, and do something else for 45 minutes. I set a timer (on my phone, of course) and when it rings I play and when it rings again I stop. Not sure if it will work as I have only been doing this for a week but I am finding that the 45 minutes is going by pretty quickly now compared to the crawling seconds and minutes that appeared to barely move the first few times I waited for my WWF Time.

Do you feel compelled by your technology? Do certain games or activities that you do on the phone beckon to you? This is one of the main points of my new book, iDisorder: Understanding Our Obsession With Technology and Overcoming its Hold on Us, where I devote two chapters to obsessions and compulsions surrounding technology. Let me know what you think.

© 2012 Larry D. Rosen, Ph.D, author of iDisorder: Understanding Our Obsession with Technology and Overcoming its Hold on Us

Author Bio

Larry D. Rosen, Ph.D., author of iDisorder: Understanding Our Obsession with Technology and Overcoming its Hold on Us, is past Chair and Professor of Psychology at California State University, Dominguez Hills. He is a research psychologist and computer educator, and is recognized as an international expert in the “Psychology of Technology.” Over the past 25 years, Dr. Rosen and his colleagues have examined reactions to technology among more than 30,000 children, teens, college students, and adults in the United States and in 23 other countries. He has been quoted in numerous media outlets, including The New York Times, USA Today, Chicago Tribune, CNN, and Good Morning America and writes a regular blog for Psychology Today.

For more information please visit http://us.macmillan.com

0 people like this post.

Like 

Today we are pleased to once again have Joshua Graham join us. Joshua is the author of the recently released Darkroom.

About Josh

Joshua Graham is the award winning author of the #1 Amazon and Barnes & Noble legal thriller BEYOND JUSTICE.

His latest book DARKROOM won a First Prize award in the Forward National Literature award and was an award-winner in the USA Book News “Bests Books 2011” awards.

Rhodes Review: What gave you the idea for Darkroom?

Joshua Graham: It started with the title, which I thought would make for a great double entendre, then I remembered how ghostly some of the images in an old fashioned darkroom looked when they were coming up in the developing solution on the contact paper.  They start off looking like a negative, then they turn out normal.  But I thought:  What if someone could see clairvoyant images in the darkroom, the way Johnny Smith did in THE DEAD ZONE by Stephen King, when he touches someone?

Rhodes Review:  It goes heavily into background in Vietnam, what was the research process like?

Joshua Graham:  It was fascinating! I learned a lot from historical records, but I also got a lot of firsthand information from people who were actually there, especially around the fall of Saigon.

Rhodes Review:  Is there any chance of the characters returning in other stories?

Joshua Graham:  Does the name Jodi Bauer sound familiar to you?  If you read BEYOND JUSTICE, you’ll remember that she was nick-named Jodi the Piranha, and was the defense attorney for the serial killer in that novel.  Well, the attorney that defends Xandra Carrick in the last part of the book comes from her law firm.  So, as you can see, my characters sometimes inhabit the same world.  And they might
even cross paths, who knows?

Rhodes Review:  Which character would you most and least like to invite to dinner?

Joshua Graham:  Interesting question.  Of course, I think Xandra would be a real kick to hang out with.   She’s got quite a personality and is not boring.  She’s feisty (as one reviewer put it) and she doesn’t let things go easily, so I bet she’d be fun to get into a debate with.  I’d also love to meet her father Peter Carrick and hear the stories he has to tell from the Vietnam War.  Who would I least like to invite to dinner?  Mark Collinsworth.  Everyone has their story, but his cocky attitude really grates me.  Great for a book character, but for a dinner guest, not so much.

Rhodes Review:  What do you think makes a good story?

Joshua Graham:  That which draws you in, such that you forget your reading a book.  And it should also provide a healthy dose of catharthis.

Rhodes Review:  What is your work schedule like when you’re writing?

Joshua Graham:  Wake up, get the kids ready for school, have breakfast, study the Bible and pray, check email, social media, write, write, write…answer phone calls, emails, write, write, write…

Rhodes Review:  What would you say is your interesting writing quirk?

Joshua Graham:  Once in a while, I interview my characters.  Ask them probing questions, then let them answer in their own voice.  Some of them have gotten pretty mad at me, some of them have broken down, and still others have made me laugh so hard I was grateful I didn’t have a mouthful of coke.

Rhodes Review:  What was your favorite part of Darkroom?

Joshua Graham:  The surprises and twists.  Which ones?  Well, I could tell you…

Rhodes Review:  What was the hardest part to write in Darkroom?

Joshua Graham:  Definitely witnessing the human atrocities where innocents are killed and tortured.  These are things you never want to imagine.  But they have happened, tragically.  And in order to fully bring it to life, I had to put myself in the scene and imagine the details, the emotions, from different points of views.   As a husband and a father, these kinds of images (scenes) are always the most difficult to write (as it was in the opening chapters of BEYOND JUSTICE.)  My readers have had the same reaction to these pages as mine.  We all wanted to go and hug our children after reading them.

Rhodes Review:  What do you wish was different about Darkroom?

Joshua Graham:  Maybe that a major motion picture studio had already optioned it before the book was published?  So many people (early readers) have told me that this book must be made into a movie.   I even have an agent from one of the top Hollywood talent agencies who approached me and said the same thing.   On the other hand, it’s probably better that the book comes out first, because a book and a film adaptation are very different creatures, and must be viewed as such.

Rhodes Review:  Which of your books was the easiest/hardest to write?

Joshua Graham:  None of them are what I would call easy.  I already described
what was difficult about them to write.   But the truth be told, DARKROOM came through divine providence and inspiration.  I never completed a first draft as quickly as I did DARKROOM.  The words and story just flowed and I practically typed non-stop from start to finish.

Rhodes Review:  Does writing a book get easier as you write?  Ie. Is it harder to write your first book, then your 14^th?

Joshua Graham:  I’ll let you know when I get to book 14.   Each book has its own
challenges and rewards.  On one hand, being more experienced makes it easier.  But then, the challenge is to write with equal and better quality, and remain fresh.  After about 4 novels, I can tell you that the latter concern is becoming more and more of a challenge.  But it’s a challenge ALL writer’s must face, nothing new under the sun.

Rhodes Review:  If the author could have dinner with one person, dead or alive, who would it be and why?

Joshua Graham:  C.S. Lewis, for sure.  He was a remarkably gifted man of deep insight and literary skill.  I love everything he’s written in regards to his literary, philosophical, and theological viewpoints.  And, from what I gather, we share a similar sense of humor—I think.

Rhodes Review:  How did you get interested in writing?

Joshua Graham:  I’ve been writing stories for as long as I can remember.  Even in the 1^st grade, with crayons and construction paper, my pictures had a separate sheet of paper with a story (caption).  Since then, I’ve enjoyed writing scripts for plays, movies, and all kinds of stories.   It was only later in life that I rediscovered this passion for storytelling, and at the urging of some great friends, decided to pursue it
professionally.  Little did I know it would alter my destiny and be there, ready and waiting, when my 12 year career in IT disappeared, making way for my life as a writer.

Rhodes Review:  What are some of your favorite books/authors.

Joshua Graham:  GOD:  The Bible

C.S. Lewis’ Narnia, The Screwtape Letters

Stephen King: The Dead Zone

John Grisham:  The Rainmaker

Rhodes Review:  Do you have any suggestions to help my readers become a better
writer? If so, what are they?

Joshua Graham:  For those interested in becoming a writer professionally, remember, the key characteristic needed more than talent, connections, more than anything else combined, is persistence.  Never give up until you’ve arrived.  Even then, you have to keep honing your skills, learning the business, making connections, learning from others.  You’ll either love the sound of that, or hate it.  Chose this path carefully, because like all things worthwhile, it will come at personal cost and sacrifice.  But it will also come with unspeakable rewards, if you are looking for the right things.

Rhodes Review:  If you were to do your career as an author again, what would you do differently, and why?

Joshua Graham:  I might have spent a lot less time worrying about what others think because ultimately, the books I’ve written that drew the most negative comments from other aspiring writers, have gone on to become #1 bestsellers and have given me a new career (all thanks to God!)

Rhodes Review: Would you like a Snickers bar?

Joshua Graham:  If you even have to ask….

Connect with Josh at the following:

Website: www.joshua-graham.com/blog
FACEBOOK: http://joshua-graham.com/fb
Twitter: @J0shuaGraham

1 people like this post.

Like 

Join Joshua Graham, WINNER OF  INTERNATIONAL BOOK  AWARDS,Amazon.com and Barnes & Noble #1 bestselling author LIVE
ON CAMERA as he talks about his latest high-stakes thriller DARKROOM!

We’ll open the chat lines for Q&A’s, and a chance
for readers to win a brand new Kindle Fire or Nook Tablet, Free eBooks, and
autographed copies of paperback and hardcovers by the author
himself!

DATE: MAY. 1st, 2012
TIME: 6:00PM Pacific
/ 9:00PM Eastern

How to join:
- click this link:  http://t.wbx.me/ges8v
- use the guest tab (not registered users tab)
- enter your name in the guest field
- click enter button to join

0 people like this post.

Like 

	Paperback: 384 pages Publisher: Howard Books; Original edition (May 1, 2012) Language: English ISBN-10: 1451654693 ISBN-13: 978-1451654691	Order book here:
		Order E-book here:

Characters:

Ian Mortimer
Xandra Carrick
GRACE TH’AM AI LE
Peter Carrick

Review:

Xandra Carrick is a photographer following in the footsteps of her father. Peter Carrick is a Nobel Prize winning photo-journalist. His prize came for his photo essay on a massacre in a Vietnamese village during the war. The camera he’s used has been passed down to his daughter Xandra. It is this camera that is at the source of this surreal journey. It begins on a trip back to Vietnam that Xandra and her father take. The trip was to honor her late mother’s wishes and to release her ashes there. But strange things begin to happen when Xandra develops the film. What are those things? You’ll have to read Darkroom find out.

The story is a thriller and a vivid retelling of historic events. Each chapter is seen in first person point of view. Mr. Graham alternates between characters from Grace, to Ian, to Xandra. Grace’s story is achieved through her diary entries. These diary entries really bring the Vietnam War to life in alarming detail. In Particular, Mr. Graham covers the fall of Saigon in a very realistic manner. I’d seen the videos of it happening, and he captured it very well in the pages of this story.

If you like Thrillers, or the odd story you’d see on Twilight Zone, then grab this book when it’s released. You’ll enjoy every minute of it. Kudos to Mr. Graham on another job well done.

*Disclaimer* A special thanks goes out to Joshua for a review copy of this book. It in no way influenced my review. You can discuss it here or join my facebook page and discuss it there.

1 people like this post.

Like 

	Paperback: 394 pages Publisher: Fiction Std (January 17, 2012) Language: English ISBN-10: 1936558327 ISBN-13: 978-1936558322	Order book here:
		Order E-book here:

Characters:

Wayne Wilkins – Agent in “The Division”
Jonathan Rickner – Graduate Student of History and Archaelogy
Mara Ellison – Michael Rickner’s Fiancee’
Enrique Ramirez – Agent in “The Division”
Dr. Richard Leinhart – Professor to Michael Rickner

Synopsis:

Graduate students Jonathan and Michael Rickner, sons of eminent archeologist Sir William Rickner, are no strangers to historical secrets and archeological adventures. But when Michael is discovered dead in his Washington, D.C. apartment, Jon refuses to believe the official ruling of suicide. Digging deeper into his brother’s work, he discovers evidence that Michael was murdered to keep his dissertation research buried. Joined by Michael’s fiancée Mara Ellison, Jon travels to New York where he uncovers the threads of a deadly Depression-era conspiracy – one entangling the Hoover Administration, the Rockefellers, and the rise of Nazi Germany – and the elite cadre of assassins that still guard its unspeakable secret. Finding themselves in the crosshairs of the same men who killed Michael, Jon and Mara must navigate a complex web of historical cover-ups and modern-day subterfuge, outwitting and outrunning their all-powerful pursuers as they race through a labyrinthine treasure hunt through the monuments and museums of Manhattan to discover the last secret of John D. Rockefeller, Jr., before their enemies can bury the truth – and them – forever.

Review

This book was quite the adventure from beginning to end. In the style of Dan Brown and other conspiracy fiction authors, Mr. Burns has weaved a tale going as far back as World War I.

The character development was well done. As a reader, I found I could believe the characters existed. The conspiracy itself as it played out was well described, and all fit logically together in the end. The author also included a brief history (through the characters) of events during World War I and World War II which I really enjoyed.

If there were one drawback, I’d say that some events seemed rather predictable. Whether it’s from me having read a lot of these types of novels, or the author telegraphing his scenes I don’t know. For me there wasn’t that sense of the unexpected that there should have been, except for one large twist which I didn’t see coming.

If given the chance, I would definitely read another of this authors books particularly in this series. It was a thrilling adventure, and kept me turning the page, which means the author accomplished his goal. I’d rate it for mid teens/adults due to the content, but overall a well told story, and if you get the chance to read it, grab a copy and do so.

About the Author

An avid reader since the age of three, Jeremy Burns was devouring novels by the time other children his age were still learning their ABCs. Blessed (and, at times, cursed) with a decidedly active imagination and an insatiable curiosity for nearly everything, Jeremy made learning and storytelling two of his chief passions. After earning his degree in History from Florida State University, Jeremy accepted a position teaching literature, creative writing, political science, and philosophy at an international school in Dubai.  Like the characters in his books, Jeremy is an intrepid explorer whose own adventures have taken him from Mayan ruins in the Yucatan to the pyramids of Egypt, from medieval castles across Europe to the jungles of Bangladesh, and beyond.  To date, Jeremy has traveled to more than twenty countries across four continents, seeking adventure, discovery, and ideas for future novels.  When not exploring a new corner of the globe, Jeremy lives in Florida, where he is working on his next thrilling novel.

Also check out Jeremy Burns on his Facebook page.  No Facebook account is required to access the page, but if you are a Facebook member, click “Like” to join in the adventure and show your support!

*Disclaimer* A special thanks goes out to Molly at Partners in Crime Tours for a review copy of this book. It in no way influenced my review. You can discuss it here or join my facebook page and discuss it there.

0 people like this post.

Like