~DAVID MASSIE AND THE QUANTUM FLUX – Review~
~A Middle-Grade Sci-Fi Action And Adventure Book~
DAVID MASSIE AND THE QUANTUM FLUX – by Andrew M. Nehring – A Middle-Grade Sci-Fi Action And Adventure Book.
‘In this ordinary world of extraordinary technology lies a kid genius, David Massie. After the abrupt disappearance of his older brother, Morgan, David spends his days fending off the class bully and searching in Morgan’s past for answers. Then one rainy day, his world implodes thanks to a mysterious dark armored figure.’
I had a blast reading DAVID MASSIE AND THE QUANTUM FLUX, a story centered around fantastic characters, imaginative scenes, tense moments, and at times, its laugh-out-loud funny.
Highly Recommend!
After reading this book, I have one question for the author: ‘When do we get to read the sequel???’
I Neeeeddd It!
Thank you, Zoe Venezia, for reaching out to me to request an honest review of DAVID MASSIE AND THE QUANTUM FLUX. My apology to you and Andrew M. Nehring for the delay in my review. Thank you so much for your patience.
~About The Author~
Andrew M. Nehring is the author of David Massie as well as The Corrupted Light Chronicles. Growing up, he was always a very imaginative child who would tend to get lost in these worlds he created for himself. That passion for creativity never stopped. The concept of David Massie came to him after years of being an avid fan of science-fiction. This world that he created draws from both old and new sci-fi concepts.
Andrew has recently graduated from Northeastern Illinois University in the beautiful city of Chicago. Now that he has graduated, he is focused on expanding David Massie’s worlds and The Corrupted Light Chronicles.
~An Interview With Andrew M. Nehring~
~Credit – Book Foward~
- What inspired you to begin writing the book?
The inspiration to write “David Massie and the Quantum Flux” came from my love of the sci-fi genre with media like Star Wars as well as action-adventure like Indiana Jones, all of which I was obsessed with as a kid. That being said, the idea itself came to me one night when I suddenly thought of a kid stuck in different realities, having to overcome impossible odds. Over time, I expanded that idea into what it is today.
- Why did you choose to target the book toward middle grade readers?
I feel middle grade to YA is the perfect audience for my books. First, the books themselves aren’t too long, but more importantly, I want them to be a fun adventure that inspires the youth to read. Because I remember when I was a kid, I’d look at these thick novels and feel so overwhelmed.
- Why is this story so important to you personally?
Like with most authors, my books are like my babies, I want them to grow and succeed. But David Massie holds a special place in my heart because it’s sci-fi, and I love the characters as well as the universe I built.
- Did you do any kind of special research to help write some of the more scientific parts of the book?
Around the time that I started thinking of “David Massie and the Quantum Flux,” I read about different dimensions or realities, as well as listened to podcasts explaining it. As for other research I did, I pulled from a variety of sources, whether in the sci-fi genre or different genres like action-adventure or even a nine.
5. What do you hope readers take away from reading the book?
I want readers to take away a few things. First, after they read, I want them to be excited for the next book and curious as to what happens. Second, I want my readers to think back on the fun experience they had reading the book. Finally, with all my books, I want my readers to know that if you lose or make a mistake, like David Massie, you can get through it and find victory through perseverance.
6. So, what’s next for David Massie?
There will be a sequel where the group of CP, David, and Rory will travel back in time to ancient Greece, and the plot will thicken as the universe expands. As for the David Massie series itself, I plan for at least five books in total.
DOOMSDAY MEDALLION ~ REVIEW
~Blackthorn Book Tour~
THE DOOMSDAY MEDALLION, Book Three in the VanOps series, centers around Maddy Marshall—an Aikido black belt—and her twin brother Will Argones. As they celebrate the completion of Marshall’s black-ops training, news of a military takeover in the South China Sea shocked the world because it was predicted by a sixteen-year-old French student, Avril.
‘VanOps Director Bowman assigns Marshall and Argones to protect the girl.’
‘Emotions between the siblings are running hot due to their aunt’s recent stroke, which has reminded them of the childhood accident that scarred both his chin and her heart. Tensions ratchet higher when they arrive at Avril’s home to find the instant social media star has been kidnapped….’
THE DOOMSDAY MEDALLION is my first read of Centrae’s writing; color me surprised to learn the main characters hail from my neck of the woods in Northern California–the Napa Valley region, their younger years spent in Lake Tahoe. Nice!
Now, the characters may reside in Cali, but the VanOps task force in Book Three must travel the globe in this tension-filled Thriller in search of the teenage seer whose been kidnapped whilst deciphering cryptic code that will lead to…
Nope, no spoilers! 😉
If you are a fan of historical fiction, I think you will enjoy reading THE DOOMSDAY MEDALLION, easily read as a stand-alone or in order.
What I love about reading historical fiction, centered explicitly around places I’ve never been, is visiting these places online to vicariously experience what the characters are seeing and feeling in that moment as described by the narrator.
Thank you, Blackthorn Book Tour and Thunder Creek Press, for providing me with an eBook of THE DOOMSDAY MEDALLION at the request of an honest review.
NOTE: It would be remiss of me not to mention how much, as a content warning, the storyline in the book kept reminding me of real-world events.
Blackthorn Book Tour – February 28, 2022
Scheduled Date Of Release – March 8, 2022
~About The Author~
International multi-award-winning and Amazon #1 bestselling author who blends intrigue, history, science, and mystery into pulse-pounding action thrillers.
Avanti Centrae is the author of the international multi-award-winning VANOPS thriller series. Her father served as a U.S. Marine Corporal in Okinawa, gathering military intelligence during the first decade after the Korean War. Her work has been compared to that of James Rollins, Steve Berry, Dan Brown, and Clive Cussler but has a voice all its own. She resides in Northern California with her family and German Shepherds.
~The Dark Chorus~
~By Ashley Meggit~
- Purchase link: mybook.to/TheDarkChorus
- Genre: Horror suspense, Metaphysical science fiction
- Print length: 241
- Age range: 18+
- Trigger warnings: Explicit violence. Ritual killing.
About The Dark Chorus
Oblivio salvationem Angelis opperitur: Oblivion awaits the Angel’s salvation
The Boy can see lost souls.
He has never questioned the fact that he can see them. He thinks of them as the Dark Chorus. When he sets out to restore the soul of his dead mother it becomes clear that his ability comes from within him. It is a force that he cannot ignore – the last shard of the shattered soul of an angel.
To be restored to the kingdom of light, the shard must be cleansed of the evil that infects it – but this requires the corrupt souls of the living!
With the help from Makka, a psychotically violent young man full of hate, and Vee, an abused young woman full of pain, the Boy begins to kill.
Psychiatrist Dr Eve Rhodes is seconded to assist the police investigation into the Boy’s apparently random ritualistic killings. As the investigation gathers pace, a pattern emerges. When Eve pulls at the thread from an article in an old psychology journal, what might otherwise have seemed to her a terrible psychotic delusion now feels all too real…
Will the Boy succeed in restoring the angel’s soul to the light? Can Eve stop him, or will she be lost to realm of the Dark Chorus?
My Thoughts
THE DARK CHORUS is the first book that I have read by Ashley Meggitt, and in a word—WOW!
I Love Meggitt’s writing style; though the content is violently intense at times, the mystery surrounding The Boy (as identified throughout the narrative) and the storyline piqued my interest to the point I did not want to put the book down.
LOVE the opening paragraph:
‘I was born right here in this asylum – literally into bedlam, delivered into a stark white-tiled cell, in what I’ve come to think of as The Screaming Room. As quickly as I arrived, I left. Prised from my mother’s arms, I swapped one institution for another. But even as the car took me away, the darkness of my mother’s despair curled itself around my soul, anchoring me to her and my birthplace. I know this because I remember.’
Highly Recommend!
About the Author
Ashley Meggitt lives near Cambridge, UK, with his wife Jane. He left school to join a psychedelic rock band when he realised that sex, drugs, and rock and roll was a thing. Subsequently he went back to education and became head of IT for a Cambridge University college. In recent years Ashley has retrained in psychology and is now an associate lecturer in sports psychology. He is studying for his PhD.
Ashley writes when not studying, playing his guitar, or coaching triathletes.
~The Last Shimmer~
~By Sage Hyatt~
- Purchase link: https://bookgoodies.com/a/B093T23L3F
- Genre: Middle-grade horror
- Print length: 27 Pages
- Age range: From middle-grade to all ages
About The Last Shimmer
In this middle-grade horror story, Tiger Lily Dander and her friend, Stacy, wake one morning to a world in which everyone they care about is missing, except each other. Together the girls must determine why their loved ones have disappeared before their menacing shadows succeed in robbing them of their joy and making sure they, too, vanish forever.
My Thoughts:
THE LAST SHIMMER, a middle-grade horror story written by the talented Sage Hyatt, is super dark, literally!
The story opens with Stacy and her friend Tiger Lilly who must find a way to stop their shadows from consuming the shimmer within them, those of their loved ones, and threatens to blanket the world in darkness.
Will the girls be able to fight off the darkness?
‘Cool hands, like a sneaky breeze, wrapped around me and held me in place. Then, the lights turned on dimly, just enough for me to see . . .’
DUN-DUN-DUUUUUUUUN!
Nope, No Spoiler. 😉
About the Author:
Sage Hyatt loves to sing, make arts and crafts, and is a connoisseur of desserts and cute cat memes [Me Too! 😉 ]. She is author of The Last Shimmer, and her story “Psychopath Strawberry” was published in the June issue of Spaceports & Spidersilk. More of her tales can be found at Not Your Father’s Bedtime Stories.
Media links (of her dad):
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ucalthisreality/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ryan.hyatt.528
~Inhuman – Review~
About:
Sergeant First Class John Nicholas and his Recon Team New York, lead by the inexperienced Captain Brandon Doran, are sent on a rescue mission in North Vietnam to find Recon Team Florida have gone missing.
‘At first, John expects heavy resistance. But intercepted radio traffic suggests something near that village has spooked even hardened NVA. And soon after New York’s midnight insertion behind enemy lines, John finds out what.’
My Thoughts:
INHUMAN is an intense Supernatural, Military Thriller that I didn’t want to end—with unexpected, cringeworthy moments and scenes that broke my heart. Author Eric Leland does an excellent job submerging the reader into the vast jungle of Vietnam alongside characters you genuinely care about as they come face to face with formidable foes.
Highly Recommend!
Thank you, Eric Leland and Publicist Shelby Kisgen, for providing me with an eBook and Paperback copy of INHUMAN in the request for an honest review.
Trigger Warnings: sexual abuse, suicide, child abuse, discrimination
~Q&A WITH ERIC LELAND~
Courtesy Of Smith Publicity
Question: What inspired you to write Inhuman?
Eric Leland: During a class for my MA I wrote a 25-page short story titled Recon Team: Mercury. That story was shortened to five pages and is now the prologue to Inhuman. For a NaNoWriMo idea I thought it would be interesting to see what happened when the rescuers came looking for the team that disappeared in my original short story. Inhuman is the result.
Q: What sets Inhuman apart from other military and horror books?
EL: The bravado one comes to expect when reading military fiction is quickly ripped away to expose and pick at the delicate flesh of fear and self-doubt we are ashamed to admit exists.
Q: What do you hope readers will take away from the book?
EL: It was never my intent for Inhuman to be didactic. Primarily I hope readers are entertained. I hope readers will remember the experience of Inhuman rather than any particular lesson.
Q: Inhuman features a diverse cast of characters. How did your military friendships, and experiences with “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” inform this inclusivity?
EL: A diverse cast adds verisimilitude to military fiction simply because any U.S. military unit features a diverse roster. In my first combat experience I found myself fighting shoulder to shoulder with Mexican Americans, an African American, and a gay woman. Unfortunately, DADT was still a thing for most of my military career and I would only find out after DADT was repealed that some of my greatest friends were gay. I think truth in fiction is important, and if I did not write a diverse cast I would by lying. Readers can spot a lie from a mile out.
Q: How did you develop your characters? And which of them do you have the strongest connection to?
EL: The character Jaran is heavily based on my wife’s experiences who was born in Vietnam. At an early age, she and her family fled to a refugee camp after the war. The chaos of displacement during war time seemed terrifying. I can’t really say which character I have the strongest connection to—John’s sense of duty; Chris’s refusal to take anything seriously; and Brandon’s severe depression and self-doubt—they’re all variations of me.
ERIC LELAND grew up in Massena, NY and entered Army basic training upon high school graduation. He was an MP in the Army for six years and reclassified to a Special Agent with the Army Criminal Investigation Division. Eric deployed to Honduras in 2002, and Iraq in 2003 and 2009 where he was awarded an Army Commendation Medal with “V” device for valor. He completed his MA in Creative Writing from Southern New Hampshire University and has happily traded in his gun for a pen. Eric lives in Seattle with his wife. Connect with Eric Leland on Facebook, Instagram, and Goodreads.
Inhuman is available on Amazon in both print and digital.
Audiobook forthcoming in Summer 2021.
~Hold Back The Night – Review~
by – Sean Lynch
~Amazon Image – NetGalley/Kensington Publishing Corp./I received an eBook – 04/27/2021~
~Available Now On Amazon~
I would describe HOLD BACK THE NIGHT as Grip-Lit—a psychological thriller that kept this reader engrossed until the very end. The novel is set in my neck of the woods, though the County depicted in the book is fictional, a firestorm that sweeps through Northern California—the backdrop of the story—is very real to Cali’s like me, adding a visceral tension to the narrative.
‘It begins with a spark. A simple act of carelessness that ignites the autumn grass of the Sierra Nevadas. In minutes, the flames spread.’
‘In Farnham County live three very different women. Marjorie Guthrie, a wealthy suburban housewife fleeing an abusive marriage; Mary Hernandez, her troubled, rebellious sister; and Leanne Strayer, a young SWAT deputy with a dark past. All three share one thing in common: they are in the wrong place at the wrong time….’
‘Today, their worst fears come true. Tonight, the nightmares come home.’
I LOVE a novel centered around strong women, and Lynch did not disappoint!
Highly Recommend!
Thank you, NetGalley and Kensington Publishing Corp., for loaning me an eGalley of HOLD BACK THE NIGHT in the request for an honest review.
Scheduled To Release On – April 27, 2021
~The Safe Return – Review~
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
About – THE SAFE RETURN:
It’s a topsy-turvy world that children live in today, but the adventures must safely return. Face masks on or face masks off, this fast-paced book takes kids through the ups and downs of a balance bike ride with friends. A stuffed bunny is temporarily lost, but a community is found. No matter which way you read it, the book reinforces the joys and freedoms of childhood and advocates for a safe return to the fun. Print copies of this book flip over so that the book can be read either way.
Perfect for Covid-19 and to normalize the wearing of masks. Yet, this book will remain in your collection when the crisis has ended. e
About the Authors:
Ashley is a writer and lawyer on the central coast of California. She loves books, especially children’s books, and began her book career as the then youngest editor-in-chief of her elementary school’s press. She dreams of marshmallows and witches.
Arwen is a PR executive. Her mission is to raise strong girls, which is important as she has three of them. She spends her commute embroidering elaborate gifts while dreaming up her next story. Arwen is a member of SCBWI.
Abigail Gray Swartz is a fine artist, muralist, and illustrator. Her work has appeared in The NY Times, countless magazines, and most notably, she painted the Women’s March cover for The New Yorker magazine (Feb 9, 2017 issue). Her cover went on to win several awards. Abigail is also the founder of City of Hidden Figures a national public art program that seeks to celebrate local hidden figures through murals, statues, and the renaming of streets while providing art opportunities and equal pay for female-identifying artists. Abigail earned her MFA from The Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts. She lives in Maine with her young family and a handful of chickens, where she loves to garden, go swimming and breathe in the salty sea air.
By Ashley Wheelok and Arwen Evens
Illustrated by Abigail Gray Swartz
~My Thoughts~
THE SAFE RETURN: KIDS WEAR MASKS FOR A SAFE RETURN TO FUN
I am a huge advocate for wearing masks during the COVID-19 pandemic—both children and adults—in the ongoing effort to keep everyone safe, so when I was presented with THE SAFE RETURN to read and review, I didn’t hesitate to say yes.
As things begin to slowly normalize, children safely return to the classroom, spending time with their friends, it’s important to do so safely by wearing a mask, but you can still have fun.
In THE SAFE RETURN, five friends go on a bike-ride through their neighborhood—together but slightly apart—as the main characters’ Dad jogs behind them.
‘Feet on pavement.’
‘Tush in seat.’
‘Kick, balance, roll.’
During their adventure, ‘a stuffed bunny is temporarily lost, but a community is found.’
The book illustrations are warm and colorful, reminding of those late Summer days that blend into Fall, my favorite time of year.
Thank you, Blackberry Children’s Book Tour, for providing me with an eBook of THE SAFE RETURN in the request for an honest review.
Blackberry Children’s Book Tour/My Blog – April 19, 2021
Age Range: Infant to 12
Genre: Children’s Picture Book
- Purchase link: https://bookgoodies.com/a/B08GSS6H1T
~Colony – Review~
~BLACKTHORN BOOK TOUR~
‘An edge-of-your seat action thriller that will appeal to fans of James Rollins, Michael Crichton and Clive Cussler.‘
~About~
The novel centers around one of the many main characters, archeology Professor Callum Ross, who is asked by one of his colleagues, Dr. Jonas Olsen, to take his place on The Arctic Council to conduct a field survey in his stead, which means going to Harmsworth Island in the Russian Arctic.
As Ross and his colleagues survey the Island, Ross and his guide discover a prehistoric ice mummy preserved for thousands of years—it’s evident that they did not die from natural causes.
‘As Callum races to unravel the mystery of the mutilated corpse, others race to sabotage the expedition. He and his team are left stranded, and they are not alone on the island. Someone, or something relentless, is stalking them.’
~My Thoughts~
Have you ever read a book that so profoundly puts the suspense and thrill in Suspense-Thriller, that keeps you on the edge of your seat with anticipation and makes you utter out loud, ‘Ooooooohhh, I wasn’t expecting that!’?
For me, at this moment, that book is COLONY by Benjamin Cross. I am a fan of chapters that end on cliffhangers, which deliciously amps up the suspense and tension as you eagerly wait to see what happens next.
The one issue I have, though it does not factor into my overall enjoyment of the book, was the depiction of the women, at times, portrayed as damsels in distress.
Cross has another book coming out in 2022, THE ANACONDA TREE: A Ryan Miller Thriller, and I can’t wait to read it!
COLONY was unputdownable, a novel that I Highly Recommend!
Thank you, Blackthorn Book Tours, for providing me with an eBook of COLONY in the request of an honest review.
~About Benjamin Cross~
Benjamin Cross has an M.Phil. in Landscape Archaeology from the University of Oxford. He’s been lucky enough to explore some of the world’s most spectacular ancient sites; from the temples of Cambodia to the Andean cloud forest cities of Peru; from the burial sites of the Tibetan plateau to the Maori strongholds of New Zealand.
He is now an Associate Director of Heritage and Archaeology at a national consultancy and is a member of the Chartered Institute for Archaeologists. Colony is Benjamin’s first novel and it was written whilst he worked full-time as a professional archaeologist.
Media links:
- Website: https://www.benjamin-cross.com/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/BenCross_author
~Wasatch Witches – Review~
~Cover Design by Rooster Republic – Fear Knocks Press LLC. – 03/11/2021~
~Available Now On Amazon~
~Available Now On B&N~
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
WASATCH WITCHES, a Horror Anthology was written by Utah Horror Writers, contains twenty-five short stories and poems centered around the darkness of witches and witchcraft, an arcane tome meant to terrify and titillate your senses.
‘Be warned, once you pick this book up, you just might hear cackling coming from the darkness!’
Though the stories and poems in WASATCH WITCHES didn’t terrify me, they most certainly titillated this reader’s, horror-filled heart. More, Please!
The following are my favorites, including snippets from each:
‘The Pestilence’ – by Vince Font
‘They came up the mountain with their torches and their bibles and their godly heads held high. Boots plunged into snow-packed earth and scarves drew over ears as winter’s icy breath blew down the Wasatch Range. At the end of the path where the Devil dwelt, the men stopped and formed a hard line.
‘Within the darkened cottage, nothing stirred. The serpent lay in wait.’
‘The Witch’s House’ – by Jesse N. White – Love this one!
“‘Quite the spooky place you got here, Miss Why-chel,” Paul remarked, purposely mispronouncing their host’s name as he walked over and casually cupped the mannequin’s breasts. “ I love the decor.”’
‘Olivia smirked at Paul and gave Angie a wink. “Not quite what you were expecting? Nothing here frightens you, Mister Olmstead?” She cackled as she swirled and allowed her dress to fall off her shoulder.
‘She motioned the couple further into the house. “Well, not to worry. A float session is meant to relax…”’
‘Wasatch Witches’ – by C.H. Lindsay
‘[O]nce the sun has gone to sleep,/they stalk the night ‘mid shadows deep./
‘In graveyards cold,/ through darkest night,/they harvest names while moon is bright.’
‘The Crazy Cat Lady’ – by Jo Schneider – Love It!
‘A high-pitched yowl came from inside. I leaned forward. Was that a cougar cub? Or a regular cat? The sound stopped abruptly, and the door clicked open. I jumped back, straightened my shoulders, and smiled.
The Cougar Lady had never agreed to be interviewed before. Her stipulation to let me come had been that I kept all of this a secret until I published the article.
‘Persona Non Grata’ – by Lehua Parker
‘The doorbell won’t stop, not for God or love or money. I open the door just wide enough to scowl at the woman on my front porch. She’s not alone, but doesn’t know it.’
‘For Scrying Out Loud’ – by Caryn Larrinaga – Love it!
‘Here’s the crappy thing about scrying: the mirror doesn’t always tell you what you want to know. It only shows you what you need to see. . . . And don’t be surprised if it shows you something you didn’t want to see—even when you didn’t ask it a question.’
‘Rip to Reset’ – by Sariah Horowitz – That was really good!
‘Mark was near perfection; dark hair, bright brown eyes, kind, and understanding. Marie assumed that when they reached high school, they would be dating, attend the same college, then marriage, and spend the rest of their lives together.’
‘But then that Nancy Hanks ruined all of it.’
‘Frankenbear’ — by C.H. Lindsay
‘In autumn’s chill/ the witches watch/for teddy bears/ in graveyards dark. . . . .Beneath full moon/ the witches chant/ for graveyard bears to coalesce.’
‘Cadmium Blue’ — by Jeff Dosser – Love The Ending!
‘Cadmium blue. Emily Ray lowered her binoculars and studied the children. The girl’s aura was a brilliant cadmium blue. . . . Satisfied, she lifted her binoculars and studied the children once again. They sat beneath a rusted ‘Bus Stop’ sign. The boy was nothing special, virtually no aura at all, but the girl….’
‘Why Are Children So Delicious?’ — by Joshua P. Sorensen
‘I’ll fatten up my neighbors/ With cookies and with cake,/ Chocolate ice cream, custard,/And sweets that I will bake/When they’re fat and plump,/ With pudgy little toes,/ I’ll roughly grab and toss them;/In my oven they will go.’
‘The Warlock of Kay’s Creek’ — by Bryan Stubbles
‘Johnnie’s death made dusk’s chill all that more miserable. Sixteen-year-old Mabel looked on from afar as the hushed graveside service quickly concluded. Not even Johnnie’s parents attended the funeral.’
‘Only the Presbyterian minister, his wife, and the gravedigger attended. None of the Mormons—many of them related to Johnnie by blood or marriage or both—could be bothered.’
‘Welcome to 1894 Kaysville.’
‘Danara’s Coven’ — by C.H. Lindsay
‘The clinking of the prismatic wind chimes drew Danara’s attention to the rainbows dancing across the ceiling. How many times had their magic—her magic—drawn her back? . . . Time held no meaning for her anymore; only the addition of another presence, another voice.’
‘They were here with her now, whispering to each other that another woman would die that night.’
‘Miss Fortune – Anastasia’ — by Natasha MorningStarr
‘You would expect to see her floating overhead on a broom. Instead, she struts with grace in Louboutin pumps—reminiscent of Meryl Streep, only melanated—she walks with the Devil wearing Prada . . .The essence of her roots is magick. Her presence pulses with a subtle vibration known to draw people into a trance. One beat of her drum, and you’ll do her dance.’
‘Her name is Anastasia.’
‘Unfruitful Works’ – by D. J. Moore – Love It!
‘I first met her outside the gates of Temple Square. In the spot where you usually see a bagpiper playing Amazing Grace for loose change. Arianna Plemmons. . . . Both arms were raised high above her head, fingers twitching as if playing upon an invisible instrument. . . . [F]ollowing the gazes of several people in the audience, I saw a young man dressed in a white shirt with a red tie jerking about in a kind of marionette dance.
‘Like a puppet dangling from unseen strings.’
‘Vice’ – by Donald Evans – Love This One!
‘I grabbed the first envelope on the top of the slush pile. What kind of life do you have when you spend your day looking through a slush pile? I read about ten pages and threw it in the trash. . . . After reading it, I felt like washing my hands to get the icky off. The next story had something to do with toast and a guy who stares at the toast for like nine pages. I picked up the next package, and I felt cold run up my wrist. . . The packaging was nondescript, but it bothered me. I couldn’t tell you why. I didn’t want to open it.’
‘I opened it.’
‘What Happens in Salem’ – by Angela Hartley – Love It!
‘I can hear their thoughts as I walk down the hall of Salem High. Hate rolls off them in waves as they give me a wide six-foot berth. Even the teachers keep their distance as if my presence were a dangerous pathogen.’
‘Catching.’
‘They aren’t wrong. I am dangerous, especially to small-minded humans in a little town like Salem, Utah.’
Thank you, Fear Knocks Press LLC.For providing me with an eGalley of WASATCH WITCHES in a request for an honest review.
~Orange City – Review~
~BLACKTHORN BOOK TOUR~
Cover design by Christina Loraine 
Author Lee Matthew Goldberg
~About the Author~
Lee Matthew Goldberg is the author of the novels THE ANCESTOR, THE MENTOR, THE DESIRE CARD and SLOW DOWN. He has been published in multiple languages and nominated for the Prix du Polar.
As well as the sci-fi novel, ORANGE City, his first YA series RUNAWAY TRAIN is forthcoming in 2021.
After graduating with an MFA from the New School, his writing has also appeared in The Millions, Vol. 1 Brooklyn, LitReactor, Monkeybicycle, Fiction Writers Review, Cagibi, Necessary Fiction, the anthology Dirty Boulevard, The Montreal Review, The Adirondack Review, The New Plains Review, Underwood Press and others.
He is the editor-in-chief and co-founder of Fringe, dedicated to publishing fiction that’s outside-of-the-box.
His pilots and screenplays have been finalists in Script Pipeline, Book Pipeline, Stage 32, We Screenplay, the New York Screenplay, Screencraft, and the Hollywood Screenplay contests.
He is the co-curator of The Guerrilla Lit Reading Series and lives in New York City. Follow him at LeeMatthewGoldberg.com
Media links:
Website: http://www.leematthewgoldberg.com/bio/
~About Orange City~
What would you do, by way of a second chance at life, if you were selected to live in a hidden City—a place for felons and deformed outcasts, a place for rehabilitation wherein everyone gets a job, a place to live, but there’s one catch—you can never leave—would you agree?
And, what would a dystopian world be without a dictator to rule over its citizens—keeping them firmly under his thumbs as he watches their every move through the pupil on top of the Eye Tower, who has eyes everywhere—they call him the ‘Man,’ a looming, Stalin idolizing figure with multiple robotic limbs the likeness of a monstrous, demented spider as seen by the expendable flys caught in his web.
*Insert full-body-cringe here*
Through fear of being exiled into the apocalyptic region known as the Empty Zone, everyone follows the ‘Mans’ every order to make Promised Land stronger, including Graham Weathered.
Graham Weathered, the book’s main character, who, after ten years working as an advertising executive in the Factory Region of the City, is given the job of testing different flavors of Pow! Soda, Warton, Mind & Donovan Advertising and Concepts’ newest client.
It is only when Graham becomes addicted to the mood-altering soda that he sees the puppeteer holding the strings in his newfound variegated reality, but is it too late to cut the ties that bind him?
You will have to read the book and find out. 😉
~My Thoughts~
ORANGE CITY is the second book that I have read and reviewed by author Lee Matthew Goldberg, THE ANCESTOR being the first—you can read my review here ~THE ANCESTOR~
Though the first half of the ORANGE CITY is a slow build, it is not difficult to like, root for, and get invested in some of the characters—many pawns themselves under the oppressive thumb of the ‘Man,’ specifically Graham, who’s the most fleshed-out within the dystopian world Goldberg created.
I am a huge fan of dystopian, apocalyptic, post-apocalyptic, survivalist stories, so I look forward to reading Book II, LEMONWORLD.
Thank you, Blackthorn Book Tours and Atmosphere Press, for providing me with an eBook of ORANGE CITY in the request of an honest review.
Purchase link:
~NetGalley~
~NetGalley~
~NetGalley
~Blackberry Children’s Books~
~BookSirens~
dkhundt.com 