Teddy Rose Book Reviews Plus More


Spirit KeeperBook Description:

A fiery frontier woman falls deeply in love with her Native American captor on an epic journey 

The thirteenth child conceived of miserable Irish exiles, Katie O’Toole dreams of a different life. Little does she know that someone far away is dreaming of her.

In 1747, savages raid her family home, and seventeen-year-old Katie is taken captive. Syawa and Hector have been searching for her, guided by Syawa’s dreams. A young Holyman, Syawa believes Katie is the subject of his Vision: the Creature of Fire and Ice, destined to bring a great gift to his people. Despite her flaming hair and ice-blue eyes, Katie is certain he is mistaken, but faced with returning to her family, she agrees to join them. She soon discovers that in order to fulfill Syawa’s Vision, she must first become his Spirit Keeper, embarking on an epic journey that will change her life—and heart—forever.

My Thoughts:

I was invited to download this ebook from Net Galley quite awhile ago.  After reading the book I got to busy to write my thoughts and then, to be honest I forgot I still need to write my review.  Please don’t get me wrong, my forgetting to review it, has no reflection on what I thought of the book, in fact, I quite enjoyed it!

Katie was born the thirteenth child and by then her mother had enough of mothering.  Katie was expected to take care of the household and raise the younger children.  She was treated like a slave.  Actually, some slaves were treated better than her.

One day she was in the house caring for the younger children when there was a raid by “savages”.  Her father was killed.  She hid in the loft with the children but two of the “savages”, Hector and Syawa, caught her and her younger siblings.  They were taken, along with their mother to be sold.  The family was feed very little while waiting to be sold however, Syawa, favored Katie and gave her more.  Even in this situation her mother treated her horribly.

When a man arrived at the camp who spoke English, he explained that Hector and Syawa were not with the others that kidnapped them.  The two came only to get her.  Syawa was a holyman and saw her in his dreams.  He called her “the creature of fire and ice”.

Katie was given the choice of going on a far, unknown journey with Hector and Syawa or to stay with her family.  She chose to go with the two native men.

K.B. Laugheed captured both the harshness and beauty of the vast landscape beautifully.  She did a great job studying the characters.  I love to get an inside glimpse of all the different tribes that the three came across on their journey.  There were a couple of slow periods in the book for me but there weren’t many.  The journey doesn’t end when the book does, so I am hope that means there will be a sequel.  It made me wanting to beg for more! I highly recommend The Spirit Keeper!

4/5

I received the ebook for my honest review.

About K.B. Laugheed:

K.B. Laugheed is an organic gardener and master naturalist who has spent a lifetime feeding the earth. Her efforts have culminated in The Spirit Keeper, her first novel and largest contribution to the pot-luck so far.

 

I had the pleasure of kicking of the tour of When Camels Fly on May 12th.  Today I am sharing my review.

Book Description:

Publisher: NLBHorton, via Amazon’s White Glove (May 15, 2014)
Agent:  Mary Keeley at Books & Such Literary Management
Category: Contemporary suspense, thread of Romance
Tour Date: May/June, 2014
Available in: Print & ebook, 370 Pages

A mother’s fatal shot. A daughter’s deadly choice.

In Israel, archaeologist Grace Madison shoots her daughter’s abductor. Seconds later, a handsome shepherd drops from the sky to kill a second assassin. Their world changes in two blinks of an eye.

Unbeknownst to them, a fiercely ambitious evil is destroying everything in its path—the unconventional path Grace and Maggie take. They struggle to right a wrong as old as time, and discover time is running out in the race for their lives. Family and friends are swept into their vortex, extinguishing old flames while igniting new loves.

While the scale tips dangerously toward disaster, millions of lives hang in the balance. And the mother-and-daughter team soon realizes nothing is as it seems. Even each other.

Because choosing what’s right is all that’s left.

My Thoughts:

When Camels Fly grabbed my interest from the first page and didn’t let go until the end.  NBL captured the landscape so well that I was automatically transported from Canada to Israel every time I picked up the book.

The characters were so well drawn out.  Grace, the mother of two grown children, was like a fierce mother bear, protecting her cubs.  The entire family had secrets that came out during the story especially Mark, the father, and Jeff, the son.

Though the family was busy trying to protect each other and on the run the entire time, they had a great sense of humor. I loved the family dynamics and felt welcomed into their lives and their bantering back and forth.  I also liked the subtle ecological message about water.  You could even call it a water thriller.

NbL Horton is a graduate degree from Dallas Theological Seminary, I never felt preached to.  Sure there was reference to religion and even a couple of religious artefacts but that is to be expected in Israel, of all places.  Like her character, Grace, NBL has surveyed Israeli, archaeological digs.  I think her personal background is what helped make this story so good.

I can hardly wait for her next book, The Brothers’ Keepers!  I highly recommend When Camels Fly!

5/5

I received the ebook for my honest opinion.

NLB with Shushi, the camel

About NLB Horton:

After an award-winning detour through journalism and marketing and a graduate degree from Dallas Theological Seminary, NLBHorton returned to writing fiction. She has surveyed Israeli archaeological digs accompanied by artillery rounds from Syria and machine gun fire from Lebanon. Explored Machu Picchu after training with an Incan shaman. And consumed afternoon tea across five continents.

When Camels Fly is her first novel. Her second, The Brothers’ Keepers, will be available November 2014.

Website: http://www.nlbhorton.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/NLB-Horton/289059931145461
Twitter: https://twitter.com/NLBHorton
Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/nlbhorton/
G
oodreads:https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/8121286.N_L_B_Horton

Buy When Camels Fly:

Amazon
Barnes and Noble
Smashwords
Kobo
iBook

Don’t forget about the book giveaway, already in progress.  This giveaway is open internationally and is for the choice ebook or print.  Sorry, print is only available to the U.S. Please use Rafflecopter to enter.
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Today it is my pleasure to kick of The Life and Times of Richard Musto by Joe Lamport Tour, with a review and giveaway.

Publisher: Roll Your Own Press  (April 8, 2014)
Category: Biography, Photography, Literary
Tour Date: May/June, 2014
Available in: Print,  210 Pages

Kirkus Reviews – The Best Books of 2013 – Indie

“A winsome character sketch that celebrates a homeless man’s quirky personality and picaresque life story…The result is a heartening lesson on “How to live life in extremis / Yet to the fullest.  A romanticized but beguiling saga of one man’s life on the streets.” 

“In a city known for its larger-than-life  characters, perhaps none boasts a personality as outsized and eccentric as Musto’s”- The New York Daily News

Biography of an eighty-nine-year-old man living on the streets of New York City offers a journalistic investigation into the art of survival in America today.

Joe Lamport met Richard Musto completely by accident. The old man had built a campsite on the street corner down the block from where Joe lives in New York City.

Joe had never seen anyone quite like him, a man of that age living on the streets in a cardboard shack of his own construction. He seemed to be about the age of Joe’s own father, so Joe and his photographer friend

Michel Delsol stopped and spoke with him to hear his story.

Two years and countless conversations later, The Life and Times of Richard Musto: The True Life Story of a Survival Artist is the result. This biography of an anonymous man – Lamport explains that Richard literally calls himself “Anmomas” – tells in blank verse and photographs the true life story of a now nearly ninety-year old man who makes his home on the streets of New York City.

Richard is currently In a rooming house in Atlantic City where his rent is paid up through March 1st. If nothing else, we hope sales from the book will be sufficient to cover the cost of his rent for the following month.

A free download of the first two chapters of The Life and Times of Richard Musto is available at www.lifeofmusto.com.

View the Trailer:

My Thoughts:

This is an unusual biography in that it is told in poetic verse. I is also unique because it is about a homeless man who is 90 years old living in the streets of New York City.  It is the portrait of a colorful man who served his country in WWII.

Joe Lamport tells the reader about the varied life that Mr Musto has lived.  He is a larger than life character that you could expect to come across in New York City, yet perhaps not guessing his circumstances.  Nothing is held back.  With Richard Musto’s permission, Joe Lamport tells us all about the life of Mr. Musto, warts and all.

I haven’t read a book in poetic verse for a long time.  Who would have thought that the technique would even work for a biography? Wow, it succeeded fully.  The Life and Time of Richard Musto captured my attention from the first page and I couldn’t put it down.  Enhancing the experience were the photos taken by Michel Delsol.

This book is an honest portrait of a real man.  That means at times it could be considered rated “R”.  It is not for children or those who can’t stomach some swearing, and sexual content, such as occurs in real life.  I highly recommend you read and experience The Life and Times of Richard Musto.

5/5

I received this book for my honest review.

About Author, Joe Lamport:

Joe Lamport is a translator and poet who lives in New York City. His translations of classic Chinese poetry have been published extensively online by The Epoch Times and Brooklyn Rail. He is also the co-founder of the website and newsletter Tang Spirit Network. He has published a chap book of his own poems online and maintains a blog for other work. He isalso the author of a novel called Dinkelmann’s Rules.

Right to left:  Michel Delsol, Richard Musto, and Joseph Lamport

Right to left: Michel Delsol, Richard Musto, and Joseph Lamport

About Photographer, Michel Delsol:

Michel Delsol’s photography has been shown in solo exhibits at galleries such as the Japanese Information and Cultural Center, of the Japanese Embassy in Washington, DC, Kinokuniya in New York and La Gaia Scienza in Venice, Italy as well in many group exhibits in New York. His work has been selected for  ’Le Journal de la Photographie’ and F-Stop magazine.  His portrait work has been commissioned by leading magazines, book and music publishers and major advertisement agencies.  His work has received awards and nominations from the Society of Publication designers, the International B + W Spider awards, PX3  and One Life International photography. Several additional collections of his photographs are available on his website: http://lifeofmusto.com/.

Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/micheldelsol/the-life-and-times-of-richard-musto/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Life-and-Times-of-Richard-Musto/1400520040189108

Buy The Life and Times of Richard Musto:

https://gumroad.com/l/lifeofmusto

Thanks to Joseph Lamport, I am giving away one copy of The Life and Times of Richard Musto. This giveaway is open to the U.S. only and ends on June 17, 2014.  Please use Rafflecopter to enter.
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Follow the Tour:

Indie Reviews Behind the Scenes Apr 16 Interview 8 pm cst-Recorded
So Many Precious Books May 9 Review & Giveaway
Teena in Toronto May 12 Review
Cassandra M’s Place May 13 Review & Giveaway
Inspire to Read May 14 Interview
Every Free Chance May 19 Review & Giveaway
Rebecca’s Writing ServcesMay 23 Guest Post
Rebecca’s Writing Servces May 30 Review
The New In Books May 28 Review & Guest Post
Deal Sharing Aunt May 29 Review & Guest Post
Minnesota Girl in the World June 4 Review
Open Book Society June 6 Review
Room With Books June 10 Review & Interview
I’d Rather Be At The Beach June 12 Review & Giveaway
Books and Bindings June 16 Review, Guest Post & Giveaway