Due to ongoing, stubborn health issues, I will have to postpone my reviews for a few weeks. My sincere apologies to my readers, and to the authors whose books are scheduled for review. I will return as soon as possible. My best regards to everyone.
SOPHIE'S BOOK REVIEWS
Thursday, July 24, 2014
Saturday, July 5, 2014
Promoting 'Courteous Canines: Practical Dog Training for the Rest of Us' by Mike Dufort
Today I have the great pleasure of promoting a dog training book written by no other than the sensational, fabulous, the one and only, Mike Dufort, my dear husband. Let me start by showing him off. Isn't he the most gorgeous man on the planet? Of course he is! Just look at the cool Revo sunglasses he's sporting, at the sexy day's worth of stubble, and you will definitely think that I'm the luckiest woman on earth. And you know what? I am, without a shadow of a doubt.
But let's not wander from the main issue, which is, of course, my dear husband's book. It is called, as you certainly know it from the title of this post, 'Courteous Canines: Practical Dog Training for the Rest of Us.' Here's the cover:
May I begin by saying that a good chunk of the book is free for download today on Amazon, courtesy of the author. The link to the free sample can be found HERE.
But what is the book about? Are you struggling to teach your dog how to obey your commands, to stop chewing on your favorite belongings, to behave when interacting with your guests? Or maybe your dog is taking YOU for a walk, instead of the other way around? The answers to these questions - and much more - can be found in this humorous, fun and informative book that is packed with common sense advice and practical solutions, presented in easy-to-read, bite-sized sections.
Here is my review of the book, and you can't say that I am biased, because I reviewed the book when I was in Australia, at the other end of the world, within days of starting to communicate with Mike, when we barely knew each other. Cross my heart!
I had the privilege to read an advance copy of this book, and I must say I am very impressed. As a dog owner, I came across many challenges, even though my dog has always been an amazing, well behaved pet. As I read Mike Dufort's book, I recognized my dog's behavior in his thorough description, and found abundant common sense advice about how to deal with all challenges. 'Courteous Canines' is brimming with precious information that will make a dog owner's life so much easier. it is beautifully structured, very logical, easy to read, and as a bonus, it is sooooo fun. I also loved the dog quotes that are scattered all over the book. Clearly, Mike Dufort is an animal lover, and his passion oozes out of every page of this fantastic book. 'Courteous Canines' is a cornucopia of excellent advice, a must read and definitely a keeper. Highly recommended!
And here are two other reviews that were posted on Goodreads by other readers:
I have just finished reading Mike Dufort's book. I was very pleased with the detailed advice, and I believe that it is very useful. Simple tricks to deal with my dog's unwanted behaviour, and to overcome all challenges. From information about how to welcome the new pup into the family, how to stop him from chewing, jumping on people, barking unnecessarily, to useful nutrition recommendations, use of collars and so on, this book contains the most comprehensive and well described advice that I ever came across. I highly recommend this book to all dog lovers. MaggieD
I was absolutely thrilled to find so much useful, common sense advice compiled in one book. The information is extremely helpful and very well presented, in an easy to understand and fun manner. This one is a keeper! Jeanne Parkley
The entire book can be purchased on Amazon in Kindle format for $2.99. This is just a fraction of the price that you would normally pay for a dog training book, so what are you waiting for? Click HERE for the purchase link. Enjoy!
And yes, I love you, Mike. More than anything. Unconditionally. Forever and beyond.
Tuesday, July 1, 2014
Review of 'The Katydid Effect' by Edward R Hackemer
This is the third of Edward’s
books that I am reading, and I must admit that I am getting addicted to his
writing. It is so enticing and fluent, I just can’t seem to be able to walk
away from the computer once I get started. As I said before, Edward has a way
with words. His writing is not seamless, nor very strong, yet it has an appeal
that just keeps me glued to the pages. It is melodious, elegant, maintaining a
beautiful balance between sophistication and simplicity.
The ‘Katydid Effect’ follows
the lives of Maryanne and Alexander Throckmorton. After meeting by chance at a
roadside diner in Appleton, Wisconsin, in 1954, they fell in love and got
married. They traveled to their new home
in Pensacola, Florida. This is a story that spans over 13 years, during which
the two are confronted by secrets from the past and problems of the present,
and their love and trust of one another is tested.
I have certainly said it before,
and I will say it once again - Edward’s attention to detail may please some and
may annoy others. His descriptions are very intricate, which at times is
helpful, but more often than not unnecessary, distracting the reader from the
main story. I did enjoy, however, the cornucopia of words used therein, and I
can only commend the amount of research performed by the author. Beware,
however, of the repetition. Too many words were repeated over and over again,
to the point that they became noticeable. Using a good editor and/or a
proof reader is always a good idea, as it brings a fresh perspective on the
final draft.
Once again, I find that the
authenticity of the era was wonderfully preserved. Congratulations on that, Edward!
Just like Edward’s previous novels,
the ‘Katydid
Effect’ is not a heart-pumping story; it is a relaxing read that fits
beautifully the time period it describes, it is well written and definitely
deserves your attention. Highly recommended!
I also wish to thank the
author for sending me the wonderful soundtracks that provided me with hours and
hours of bliss. Great choice of music for the novels!
Tuesday, June 24, 2014
Review of 'Harper's Wish' by Krista Ames
I received an e-copy of this novella from the publisher in
exchange for an honest review.
It is hard to write an elaborate opinion when the story is
a little over 40 pages in length. To start with, the author barely has any time
to develop the characters, and, in truth, it is the hardest job to make them
believable in such a short amount of writing. So I can only praise Krista Ames
for achieving just that.
Harper Donaldson, a twenty four year old postmistress in a
small Montana town, has never known a happy Christmas in the midst of a happy
family, as she was orphaned at a young age. So all she wants for Christmas this
year is to have a family. Yet she does not believe in Santa, nor in the mystery
Santa’s mailbox that has appeared in the
lobby of the post office. Given the fact that the novella is so short, any
further details would be spoilers, so I will stop here.
What I will add though, is that this short story, although
not strongly written, is a sweet, touching read that will make you smile. As
you keep reading, you will have the certainty that there will be a perfectly
happy ending, like in every Santa book, and you will turn the last page
brimming with satisfaction, and wishing for that Santa’s mailbox to appear at
your local post office.
COMING SOON
REVIEW OF 'The Katydid Effect' by Edward R Hackemer
Wednesday, June 11, 2014
Review of 'Old Flame' by Annabelle Blume
A review copy was provided by the
author in return for an honest review.
Hannah has been obsessed with
James ever since they broke up. She just cannot let go. So she secretly spies on
him, alters her own schedule hoping to meet him face to face once again. She
doesn’t. Instead, she meets gorgeous waiter Marc while dining with her friend
Annie at Pecorino’s. Marc feels an instant attraction towards Hannah and asks
for her phone number. She gives it to him, thinking that he might hook him up
with Annie later on. But that’s not how things will work out in the end.
Annabelle Blume has written a
very short novella. It is so short, indeed, there was no time to develop the
characters at all, hence the concept of love seems to be misplaced. While real
love comes from long companionship and persevering courtship, it can also be
born in a moment, and it will be just as strong and lost lasting as the former
if certain criteria are met. But that’s not the point that Annabelle failed to
make in her story. I felt all along that she rushed the characters’
relationship, and maneuvered them towards a premature ending. She painted a canvas in front of the reader’s
eyes, pointing at her every stroke, explaining her technique, instead of
showing the magic of the final product and letting the reader discover its
secrets.
I also found that by the end of the
story I couldn’t figure out what Hannah really wanted, or if she really knew
what she wanted, even though the author listed the heroine’s inner thoughts
about her past life as opposed to her new existence.
What also distracted me was the
repeated occurrence of typos and syntax errors. Where on earth were the editor
and proof reader?
Having said all that, Annabelle’s
novella does deserve your attention. It is well written, sweet, and it depicts
feelings that are so familiar to many of us. We have all been through deception,
suffering, we all had a broken heart, and most of us found it hard to let go. Annabelle
has a gift at capturing all these feelings, and the female behavioral response
to an emotional loss. I commend her for that.
‘Old
flame’ is a pleasant read that I would not hesitate to recommend.
Wednesday, May 28, 2014
Review of 'Love's sorrow' by Terri Rochenski
A review copy was provided by the
author in return for an honest review.
May I begin by apologizing to the
author for the extended delay in finalizing this review. I wasn’t very well
lately, and this is likely to impact my reading speed over the next few weeks
as well, but please bear with me, I’m getting there.
I must say I am rarely so impressed
with a novel. Terry, thumbs up! This is a great book, and I am giving it four
and a half stars. There were a couple of reasons I didn’t go up to five.
Perhaps I should start with them, and get the cons out of the way.
What bothered me was the certainty that
I had all along that there was something wrong with Gavin MacKay. The author showed her presence, albeit unwittingly, by
presenting a main character who was suspicious from the beginning.
The author’s presence was noticeable
throughout the book as she kept telling the reader things that she should have inconspicuously
showed (as per the famous writing rule I keep quoting in my reviews.) I agree
that sometimes this is not possible when writing a book from a first person point of view, but I feel
that there were many instances in the novel where Terri could have better used
her writing skills.
Other than that, I can only praise ‘Love’s
sorrow’ at every level. Beautifully written, authentic, it drew me in like a
magnet and I just couldn’t put it down. One of those rare page-turners with
well-developed characters, great attention to detail that provides an amazing
sense of time and place, but most importantly an amazing, heartrending story for
which I can only commend the author. I am glad that this is the beginning of a
series, and I beg Terri to come back to me with the next instalment.
I apologize that this review is not more
elaborate, but since I have no criticism to add, I see no reason to extend it.
Congratulations, Terri!
Terri’s novel can be purchased on Amazon in both hard copy and Ebook format. Click HERE to access the purchase link.
COMING SOON
Review of Old flame by Annabelle Blume
Friday, May 16, 2014
Announcement
Due to persisting health issues, I am forced to postpone reviews for a little while. I hope to be back on track by the end of next week. I sincerely apologise to my readers, and to the authors whose books were scheduled for review this week.
Monday, May 12, 2014
Review of 'A bridge to cross' by Edward R Hackemer
A
review copy was provided by the author in return for an honest review.
I recently read and reviewed ‘In A Cream Packard’ by the same author.
In spite of my lengthy criticism of that novel, the author did not back down,
instead requesting reviews of two other books that he wrote. Few authors take
criticism well, and I truly appreciate Edward in this regard.
‘A bridge to cross’ has stirred my
interest for several reasons. To start with, I was very curious to see how Edward’s
writing has evolved. I was not disappointed.
The pros:
The
expression is very pleasant, polished and highly educated; characteristics that
are magnets to me when it comes to picking my readings.
I
paid particular attention to the way the author depicted the late 1920s. A
wonderful sense of authenticity was present all along. Few authors have the
ability to capture time and place in their novels, and I must say that Edward
masters it beautifully. Just like with my previous read, I could picture this
novel successfully turned into a black and white movie (if this were possible
nowadays).
I also appreciated the
author’s thoughtful decision to add notes and a glossary of the 1920s slang at
the end of the book.
The cons:
I
feel I must repeat a comment made in my review of ‘In A Cream Packard.’ Although beautiful, the depiction of things
and places is excessive, providing details that are often unnecessary and
irrelevant. Edward may argue that they contribute to the sense of authenticity,
but they are, in my view, unnecessarily elaborate. A good book is one that
draws the reader in; one in which the author’s presence is barely noticeable,
if at all. A writer’s first rule is ‘Show, don’t tell.’ This technique enables the reader to experience the story through action,
words, thoughts, senses and feelings rather than through the author's
exposition, summarization, and description. Ernest Hemingway has depicted it as
‘the Iceberg Theory,’ from which I quote what I believe to be the relevant
phrase: ‘The dignity of movement of an iceberg is due to only one-eighth of it
being above water.’ It speaks for itself.
A relevant example of the
author’s departure from the above theory in ‘A bridge to cross’ is his description of the main characters. He
tells the reader all about them in a few condensed paragraphs at the beginning
of the book. I was disappointed to read all that was to be known about the
characters, instead of seeing them fleshed out throughout the book. It felt as
if there was nothing to discover or to explore about them after that.
Conclusion:
Although this novel has
its shortcomings and fails to send my heart into an excited throb, it was a
pleasant and relaxed read that I would certainly recommend to every lover of the
1920’s era, the dynamism of which is beautifully depicted therein. A great read
sprinkled with some surprises, more energetic than ‘In a Cream Packard’, more daring too as far as romanticism and
intimate scenes are concerned.
Edward’s novel can be purchased on Amazon in both hard copy and Ebook format. Click HERE to access the purchase link.
Edward’s novel can be purchased on Amazon in both hard copy and Ebook format. Click HERE to access the purchase link.
COMING SOON
Review of Love's sorrow by Terry Rochenski
Sunday, May 4, 2014
Review of ‘The siren’s secret’ by Debbie Herbert
A review copy was provided by the author in return for
an honest review. Due to personal commitments, it took me much longer than
expected to read this book and to complete my review. I apologize to the author
for that.
I must say that ‘The siren’s secret’ intrigued me. I
never read a mermaid book before, and I was tempted to think that I will come
across a bedtime tale rewritten to accommodate the reading tastes of an adult audience.
Instead, I came across a complex plot that blends together romance, crime,
social and family issues, all presented with a surprising normality,
considering that the main character is not our everyday heroine. She’s a modern
day woman with a real job, but a mermaid nonetheless, a marine creature with
the head, torso, and
arms of a woman
and the tail of
a fish.
The pros:
Debbie
Herbert managed to combine a thriller, a romance and the paranormal element and
make them look like our day-to-day life.
The
romance is intense at times (graphic scenes alert!), but as opposed to other
books that I read, it is not an unrealistic fairy tale. It contains all
plausible elements of a love story: initial flame, emotions, conflict,
heartache, trials, intimacy and so on.
The
author managed to capture really well the family issues that tormented the
households of the main characters. Quite complex situations involving painful
truths, challenges, feuds between characters, reconciliation etc.
The
description of the villain and his actions is just as intricate. We don’t only
learn about his crimes, but we see inside his head, how he thinks, what
prompted him to turn into the man he is today.
I
also loved how the author captured
life in the Alabama Bayou. It gave me a sense of authenticity, making me feel
that I was actually walking along the town streets. It is great to read a story
that gives a sense of time and place, and this novel achieved just that.
The
cons:
Although I much appreciated
the down-to-earth side of the romance story, I thought that it started too
abruptly, only to go back to normality as I kept reading. Having said that, I
disagree with other reviews that I read about this book. Some readers were
disappointed with the relationship’s failure to really spark, but I truly think
that the author managed to capture very well the initial intensity that
characterizes the beginnings of a flame, then went on to describe what most
people go through in their love life: setbacks and disappointments, mistrust, resilience
and, ultimately, endurance.
I thought, however, that the
characters failed to properly develop throughout the book, which probably
prompted some readers to question the realism and depth of this love story. I felt
that Tillman was too much of a contradiction, his reactions quite erratic,
confusing and often unjustified, as it was his rudeness and professionalism. He
is not a well-defined individual, which is a shame, considering his status as a
main character. I cannot say that Shelly was really fleshed out either, but the
author’s consistency in describing the differences between her and the two
other mermaids (her cousins) created a feel of character authenticity, which
ultimately saved the day.
I also have a problem with the
clichéd life story of the villain. The typical childhood issues that turned him
into a criminal would more rightfully belong to a newspaper clipping that summarizes
a series of murders. I felt that the author failed to use her imagination, offering
a trite, hackneyed
scenario instead.
Tillman’s mother
and brother are unnecessarily predominant in the book, and fail to contribute
to fleshing him out. While some of the scenes involving them are clearly needed
to move the plot forward, I thought that some other were there just to provide
filling.
As opposed to the
rest of the book, the ending is disappointingly slow, and I could see it coming
from a mile.
Conclusion:
I have mixed
feelings about this book. The writing and the dialogues aren’t as strong as
they should be, there are pros and cons as described above, but overall I think
that this is a very interesting and pleasant read, as it blends really well
many potent elements. Without being an adrenaline pumper, this novel is quite
attractive, and I would recommend it to all lovers of unusual paranormal.
COMING SOON
Review of A Bridge to Cross
by Edward R Hackemer
Thursday, April 24, 2014
'MINDBENDER BOOK ONE' giveaway
CLICK HERE
For your chance to win one of THREE copies of Lillian Summers' paranormal romance novel 'Mindbender Book One'.
Winners will be announced on May 1st, 2014.
They call him MB1. The mindbender. Jason Asbury has the ability to turn people into his puppets with the power of his mind. He is NSA’s most treasured asset, until he escapes a top secret facility at age fourteen. Twelve years later, he has achieved everything a man could want, except for lasting love. But Jason’s past comes to haunt him, as a mystery man employs burglar Ally Brown to steal his personal diaries. The theft was an easy job for Ally, or it should have been. She now finds herself caught between the man she stole from and the one who hired her. But which one turns out to be the most dangerous to her?
Read more about the novel HERE.
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