Archive for November, 2013

Review: Mission One of Auggie The Alien – Leah Spiegel and Megan Summers

Thursday, November 7th, 2013
Paperback: 146 pages
Publisher: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform (June 6, 2013)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1490377107
ISBN-13: 978-1490377100
Order book here:

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Order E-book here:
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Characters:

Auggie – Nine Year Old Human/Alien Hybrid.
Mrs. Malumrector – Auggie’s Fourth Grade Teacher.
Left Hand Chuck – Auggie’s best friend.

Synopsis:

Auggie is trying to learn the habits of earth people. For his first mission, he set three goals: Attend a sleepover, go on a social outing, and attend a birthday party. Along the way, in trying to achieve his goals, he often runs afoul of his teacher and finds himself at the end of many incidents of miscommunication.

Review

This was an entertaining little story. There was a lot of humor that resulted from Auggie’s not understanding our language and culture. Some of the humor though, such as thinking GrandMa was from Massachusetts (Ma) and GrandPa was from Pennsylvania (Pa) seemed like it may be above the heads of the target audience.

The characters though really made me think they were kids, though at times, I think the language and thinking patterns were a little too developed for that age group. However, it’s been a very, very long time since I was nine, so they may be more sophisticated then I was at that age.

Overall though, I’d definitely recommend this book to parents and grandparents for their 9 year olds, or those around that age. There was no objectionable language, and I think it would be appropriate for almost any child, and I think it’s one they’d definitely enjoy.

We are pleased to be able to offer our readers a copy of Auggie the Alien. To enter go here and enter.

About the Authors

 Leah Spiegel, a graduate of Edinboro University, spent her first twenty years drawing imaginary worlds, and now she writes about them. She is a native of Washington, Pennsylvania but has lived in North Carolina for the last six years. Check out her upcoming books on her blog: www.leahspiegelandmegansummers.blogspot.com/

Megan Summers received her teaching degree from Edinboro University and her Masters in Curriculum and Instruction with an Emphasis in Technology from Grand Canyon University. She is a native of Washington, Pennsylvania but has been teaching in Morganton, North Carolina for the past thirteen years.
You can follow them on Facebook and Twitter

*Disclaimer* A special thanks goes out to Teddy at Virtual Author Book 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.

Giveaway – Mission One of Auggie the Alien

Thursday, November 7th, 2013

Thanks to Teddy at Virtual Author Book Tours, I’m able to offer my readers 1 copy of this book in either print or ebook. To enter, follow these simple rules:

1) One Entry if you’re a follower [You can follow through Google Friend connect to the right, you can also sign up to follow through Twitter or Facebook].
2) An Additonal Entry if you blog about this contest.
3) An Additonal Entry if you’re a new follower.
4) One entry each for posting on facebook and/or twitter.
5) Must leave a comment letting me know how you follow me, blog link to this post, facebook/twitter link, etc.
6) Contest will continue until 11/14/2013.
7) This giveaway is open to residents of US and Canada. No PO Box addresses (street mailing only).

See our review here.

Review: Cut to the Bone – Jefferson Bass

Tuesday, November 5th, 2013
Hardcover: 368 pages
Publisher: William Morrow (September 24, 2013)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0062262300
ISBN-13: 978-0062262301
Order book here:

amazon

Order E-book here:
amazon

Characters:

Dr. Bill Brockton – Forensic Anthropologist with Tennessee State University
Satterfield – Serial killer preying on prostitutes.
Tyler Wainwright – Brockton’s Graduate Assistant.

Synopsis:

The skull of a young girl is found in the woods. Dr. Bill Brockton is called in to investigate. Bodies though begin piling up. Is it the work of individuals or serial killers. Find out in Cut to the Bone.

Review

This was quite the novel. At times I was repulsed, but I kept reading because the science behind it fascinated me. The story is told in the pov of the various characters. When Bill Brockton is the character viewpoint, it’s written from 1st person perspective. So essentially the whole story is being told by him. When chapters switch, we are taken into 3rd person perspective where we see the events from Satterfield’s, Tyler’s and others views, including in some cases that of the victims.

The character of Satterfield we are first introduced to in Chapter 2, and he has to be one one of the more disturbing villains I’ve read in a novel. In just a few short pages, you realize just how sick and twisted this guy is.

Tyler is also well developed. He’s very good at his job, but as the job goes on you can see the weight of it bearing down on him. Will he finally reach the tipping point, or find out how to emotionally detach from his job.

The main character though is Bill Brockton. There are subtle nuances that gives you the impression that at times, Dr. Brockton is so involved in his work that he fails to notice the world around him. One example, he can’t remember anyone’s name.

The plot is drawn from a true case file and that helps lend credibility to the story. The scenes involving the killings can be quite visual, and that may not appeal to some readers. Because of the dark imagery, language, etc. I’d give this one a strong PG-13 or higher rating and say it’s for older teens and adults.

It’s a great story, with interesting characters, a dark villain, and educational at the same time. For all you thriller fans, if you’ve not read any of the Body Farm series, of which this is #8, then by all means pick one up, maybe give this one a shot first to get your nose wet.

About the Author

Jefferson Bass is the writing team of Dr. Bill Bass and Jon Jefferson. Together, they wrote Death’s Acre, a nonfiction account of the Body Farm, before tackling forensic under the pen name of Jefferson Bass. Their debut novel, Carved in Bone, reached # 25 on The New York Times Best Seller list and was followed by Flesh and Bone, The Devil’s Bones, and a second nonfiction title, Beyond the Body Farm. Of the six Body Farm novels already in print, five have been New York Times bestsellers. Their seventh novel, “The Inquisitor’s Key,” comes out May 8, 2012.

Jefferson and Bass bring their own unique set of strengths to the partnership.

Dr. Bass, the duo’s scientific expert, is a legend in forensic circles. In 1980 he created the world’s first laboratory devoted to human decomposition: the University of Tennessee’s “Body Farm.” Dr. Bass has authored or coauthored more than 200 scientific publications, most of them based on the research facility’s work. During half a century in the classroom, Dr. Bass taught tens of thousands of students, including many of the foremost forensic anthropologists practicing in the United States today. He’s been featured on numerous network television news programs, as well as in documentaries for National Geographic and the BBC. CBS was not exaggerating when it called Dr. Bass “America ‘s top forensic scientist.”

Jon Jefferson, the “writer” half of Jefferson Bass, is a veteran journalist, science writer, and documentary filmmaker. His journalism credits include work for The New York Times, National Public Radio, Newsweek, and USA Today. Jefferson learned the art of combining scientific material with compelling human stories during a decade as a science writer at Oak Ridge National Laboratory. In the 1990s he began writing and producing television documentaries, mainly for the History Channel and the Arts and Entertainment Network, covering topics ranging from World War II fighter planes to ancient art treasures at the Vatican. While making a two-hour A&E special about the Vatican in 1998, Jefferson first visited Avignon; thirteen years later, he returned to Avignon to research the richly layered new Body Farm novel, The Inquisitor’s Key. The Jefferson-Bass collaboration began in 2001, when Jefferson wrote and produced two National Geographic documentaries about the Body Farm–films that earned high rating around the world. The rest, as they say, is history–or, in this case, memoir and crime fiction!

*Disclaimer* A special thanks goes out to Danielle at Harper Collins 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.

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