2014 Reading Challenge

2014 Reading Challenge
Michael has read 1 book toward his goal of 50 books.
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Monday, July 26, 2010

Monday's Novel Talk (6)

Hey guys this won't be that long. It's more of an update than a Novel Talk.

I still have my laptop with me. It's slowly falling apart. And HP is stupid! YES I'M CALLING YOU OUT!

We called three times, the first time they said "pay 50 dollars, someone will go there to fix it at your house. or send it in for free and we'll fix it but if its broken inside it'll be up to 400 dollars." I said I will call back again after I talked to my father. The second time I called I told them I wanted someone to come here for the 50 dollars. "no sir. that is false, whoever told you that lied. You have to pay 90 dollars and send it in." I'm all like wtf I'll call back. So the next day they call back and the second guy says, "are you gonna pay the 90 dollars and send it in?" Not only was it around 11 at night, they can't just call out of nowhere. So I was like I'll call back tomorrow. I call back, a third person picks up. "No sir. You don't have to pay 90 dollars. We'll send you a box and we'll pick it up." I'm like ok. But the thing is the laptop won't close. If I close it it begins to break apart more. The cover comes off from the screen. The guy said "oh just send it opened." I'm like ok thank you.

I get the box. It's skinny! I open the box. It has foam and plastic for me to close the fucking laptop!




IT DOESN'T CLOSE! HOW STUPID CAN YOU BE WHEN YOU TELL ME TO LEAVE IT OPENED AND I REPEATEDLY SAID THAT IT WOULD NOT CLOSE! AND YOU MAKE ME CLOSE IT!

On top of that! They don't come pick it up, I have to pay for UPS to come pick it up. Stupidity! So I'm going to have to call again and tell them! Because they do not learn or listen!

So anyway, aside from that, I'm going to finish Bitten today to write the review. =D

And tomorrow is my BIRTHDAY! I'm turning 19! So leave comments and stuff tomorrow and stuff. Seriously, do it or else I'll send out the Nargles. So yea, I told you this wasn't a book talk but eh. I'll see you all later.

Friday, July 23, 2010

Painful!

I'm just gonna go straight to the point. My laptop is broken. The hinges broke and the cover is coming off so I have to send this in like now. So I won't be posting as much because my computer sucks! I just hope that my laptop comes back soon and looking brand new because I really need it. So if you see a lack of posting! SORRY!

Thursday, July 22, 2010

Guess That Novel (8)

So it's a sad day. I have to send my laptop in to get repaired since the hinges are broken and the cover is coming apart. I have no idea when I'll have it back. Could be a week, could be three. All I know is that I'll have to work from my slow ass computer. Which will not be good. But I'll have to do it. Oh, and I won't put a review up this week on Friday, which is tomorrow. I'll put one up on Tuesday instead, my birthday! And then another on the Friday.

But let's go with this weeks Guess That Novel!
Last week we had;

"He used initials for the name. RBR. But it's a 212 area code. That's New York City, so it could still be the Edison Group, using a local contact for the job."

Right away someone got it. SpunkiiReader! She knew it was The Reckoning, right after she saw my hint. =D

Now for this week's it's going to be a bit hard. But at least one person should get it.

"You forget, darling. I am the local psychopath."

That's all your getting. Just tell me which novel that is from and bam you'll win. Haha. Like I said, at least one person should get it. We'll find out next week who won.


Tuesday, July 20, 2010

Hottest Female Characters (1)

Now excuse me for pointing this out... Why the hell are there no male bloggers. Oh I know why! Because all the women do is talk, talk, talk about men. And no guys talk about girls! What the hell is up with that?! You know what screw this, I'm about to show you some of the hottest women in literature that I have read. Let's start with Buffy Summers. Oh and I might curse in this so beware. Oh and I won't be doing Tuesday's Novel Spotlight this week. So this makes up for it.


Look at her! That position, the hair, that pooch of her lips, the fire in her eyes and the blood on the dagger. Such a big turn on people! You can not say that she does not turn you on! Seriously! Buffy, and I'm talking about her because of the release of the new book, is beyond hot. She is inspiration to all men out there. What guy wouldn't like a girl who can kick ass and make a sandwich for them?! Now the picture we see up there is of Sarah Michelle Gellar, who is also hot beyond imagination, but she is portraying Buffy and she does one hell of a job at it. I wouldn't mind getting my ass kicked by her. -sigh-

Now, the next person is....


Luna Lovegood! Now shut up people! I can already hear you guys saying, WTF she isn't hot. And for those girls that are now following along in this conversation, it's more about just looks. Although Luna is pretty hot. Her long blonde hair, and her intense blue eyes. She is rocking that lion on top of her head, making Lady Gaga look like a dress up doll! Luna Lovegood definitely has power! I mean seriously, she is odd, she is weird, she survived the war, she fought Bellatrix and survived. Plus did I mention how she's odd. Yes, I have a thing for the odd ones. And she is just -smiles-. I will marry her one day, you all hear that?! Evanna Lynch, you are mine!


Hermione Granger. Hermione, Hermione, Hermione. How you grew from a cute little girl, to a magnificent woman. You are superb, beautiful, powerful, smart, wise, cunning, brave, courageous, loyal and the list goes on and on. No one does it like Hermione does. Just look at that look on her face. She looks scared and hurt and alone yet she's ready to kick anyone's ass that gets in her way. And that red dress, definitely working for you. Emma Watson has grown before our very eyes. I will marry her too. She's mine!


Arya, you powerful female elf. Your grace and style is amazing. The way you kick Orc ass and beyond me. And let me mention how you don't need a man to do it either! -actually non of the women here need men to help them kick ass- Bella take note. Arya, you are like the chocolate to my milk. The chip to my chocolate. Although you are not my favorite, I still love you too. Sienna Guillory is spectacular, let me tell you. Or I kind of already did. O.o


Kahlan Amnell, Oh My God! I love you so much! You have no idea how much this chick can kick your fucking ass! She is beautiful, sexy, spectacular, I will not do this again! She is everything a man wants! Just look at her right there getting ready to kick your fucking ass! I would lay down my life for this woman. She is epic in the novels and amazing in the show. You have no idea. She makes me shudder with excitement whenever I read or see her. Bridget Regan is my dream woman. She is the one that I want to marry, truthfully. No man or woman can resist her beauty and they shouldn't. It should be a crime to resist her. Wrong with you people, don't look at me that way. Marry me Bridget Regan? Now? Seriously, I'm not even joking. I can share a bed with you and the next person.



CARA! This is Veronica's favorite chick and I have to agree wit her. Just look at this lips and those shoulders. She is not afraid to do nude scenes, although we don't see anything people! Family television! And a vision of side-boobs. Cara is not any type of girl. She will make you scream bloody hell, curl your toes and make you want more. Both in sex and in torture. Not even joking you. She will get her red, um, Agiel, and make you experience both pain and pleasure at the same time. Cara is the type of person that if any of these girls ever met, she would kick everyone's ass, except for Kahlan. And then she would take Kahlan and make sweet love to her because she can do that. I bet you anything Tabrett Bethell would do the same exact thing too. I wouldn't mind cheating on Kahlan with her. Only because Kahlan wouldn't mind either.

Now, this is a bit short, but I will definitely keep bringing the Hottest Female Characters back once in a while. Guys need to come on the blogs too! So let's go and follow me! No really, click follow on the side to follow me... =D

If any of these girls are hot enough to make you comment, then please go ahead and comment. If they're not hot enough then comment with which characters are. Do it now...

Book Challenge (2)

So I'm back with the book Challenge. And apparently I don't know what the f*ck I did. Some how I got 12,500 pages. I have no idea where THAT came from. Because in fact I read, 7,471 pages in 13 novels. So I don't know what the fu*k I did there. My calculator probably broke. But here we go with the update.

  1. The Lovely Bones -372 Pages
  2. Incarceron - 442 Pages
  3. The Hunger Games - 374 Pages
  4. Catching Fire - 391 Pages
  5. Bogus To Bubbly - 196 Pages
  6. Wizard's First Rule - 836 Pages
  7. Stone of Tears - 979 Pages
  8. Blood of the Fold - 623 Pages
  9. Temple of the Winds - 822 Pages
  10. Soul of the Fire - 788 Pages
  11. Faith of the Fallen - 785 Pages
  12. The Pillars of Creation - 725 Pages
  13. The Girl on the Dock - 132 Pages
  14. The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner - 192 Pages
  15. Lodestone Book One: The Sea of Storms - 290 Pages
  16. Buffy the Vampire Slayer 1 - 678 Pages
Now before I add them all up together, let me just add; this is not the order I read them in. If it were in order Wizard's First Rule would be first while the top novels would be towards the bottom. Next year I'll start a list in order =D

So here we go, in total from last time. I went from
13 books and 7,471 pages
to
16 books and 8,631 pages.

Not bad but it would've been better with the 12,500 pages which I seriously don't know what I did. But I have many books to read and hopefully I'll finish them soon to add up here. Let's see if I can finish a couple this week. Psh yea right... =D

Monday's Novel Talk (5)

Hello again. It's actually Tuesday but who cares haha. I was too lazy to put this up so yes I'm a bad blogger. Plus I'm super thirsty but the drinks are downstairs in the basement and yea. I don't go to the basement at night time for multiple reasons. If you've ever slept over my house you would know why.

Anyway on to talking novels! I finished Buffy the Vampire Slayer 1, Sunday morning around 4:30. Thought I had to wake up at 6:00 to go to the beach but we didn't even go. -__- So I got to sleep in on Sunday. Epic, I know.

So anyway, I've haven't started reading Naked Empire again just yet. I actually started Bitten by Kelley Armstrong so that I can finish before the 27th and send the review over. =D You know who you are -high fives-!

I'm kind of on the fence about this one actually. Which hasn't happened in a while. I mean I love the whole she's a werewolf thing and I love they way Kelley writes the experience as a wolf. It's so free and wild and exotic. Makes me want to be a werewolf also. And I don't mean the silly morphing whenever I want to ah this is so cool werewolf. I mean excruciating pain and suffering. Torment as my body goes through these changes and then finally a wolf. A wolf who wants to hunt and feed on people. Mess with my prey before I attack them.

That's a wolf right there. Although I'm still all about the full moon thing, this is a bit close.

The reason I'm on the fence about this right now is because when the main character is a human she's so... blah. I don't know she's just a mature version of Bella. Don't get me wrong, no one will ever be like Bella -shudders-. She's just the Bella of the story. Shes all like ugh, my life sucked. I WANT TO BE A WOLF! Ugh I hate the pack. She just complains about certain things and I'm all like shut up!

But maybe she'll get better! Who knows? But yea, I'm about to go and keep reading this. And maybe I'll gather some courage to go downstairs and get the 7 UP or the Iced Tea, Brisk. Decisions, decisions....

If anyone can read this, help me. Veronica is holding me hostage and is making me post. I repeat, send in help. The army, the navy, the marines, whoever! Just send help ASAP! Oh crap, here she comes. Heeeey...... -silence-

Monday, July 19, 2010

Heavens of Fire

What exactly is Heavens of Fire? To put it short, it's my novel. Sad thing, I've been working on it since January 5, 2006! In my defense, I've re-written it a few times. I want it to be perfect. So the story.

Long ago the Five Gods of Elements granted a gift and a curse to the land of Aydest. They granted the people good and evil. In the power of Elements. Every 100 years, two Elementals are born. One is good and the other is evil. They have no control over which side they choose, it is their fate and it can not be changed. Many Elementals have come and gone. Many important people have died along with them. One important man, elemental and king alike, has disappeared. With him went the string of Elementals. For 2,000 years there was no sight of them anywhere. Until a man comes out of the shadows, claiming he is descendant of ancient kings and with him comes proof. With him comes Elementals.

Faith is an 18 year old girl. Works on a farm with her mother, father and adoptive brother Angel who is 20. Their life is pretty much the ordinary until one day, while fishing, soldiers come for Faith. She barely escapes only to find her parents dead in a fire in their home. Or so she thinks. With the help of Dyami, she discovers that her parents were kidnapped and they know for a fact that the King is using them as bait to get Faith. But why?

The only way to gather more information is to let the soldiers capture her. Taking her to their prisons. In the prisons she finds not only a friend but who she truly is. In a moment of danger, Faith uses a ball of fire to protect herself. She is an Elemental.

Wanting nothing to do with her powers, Faith only wants to save her parents but must force herself to be who she really is or else she is dead. For not only does the King want to control her, others want her dead. On this journey to find her parents, she must find who she really is and learn to accept that others need her help just as much as she needs theirs.

With many enemies, she must fight her way to survival. Because has four other powers to learn before she can truly do what she must do. But she must caution herself, for another Elemental stalks her from its comfort. She thinks she has it under control, but can she control herself when she finds out who the other Elemental is?



Heavens of Fire is set in the land of Aydest. Aydest has 5 different regions. One for every power. Faith must travel to each region, with many side-quests in the middle. So I have to talk about one character. She's an elf and she has a lot of secrets and stuff. Veronica created her and her name is Siofra. She's pretty epic and can kick ass and all that. Oh and she has a little something something going on with Angel. Haha.

Well I actually have some chapters up online if you guys want to read it. But I'll only put the link up if I see that people do want to read it. Oh and tell me what you guys think about it. Does it sound interesting? Boring? Cliché? Just tell me stuff haha. I'm feeling the inspiration to write right now too so I'll be off and try to at least finish it haha.

Oh by the way, thank you Leonor for making the image up top.

So, comment with what you think about it like your opinion, and if you'd like to read it. I'll send you guys the link. Thanks =D

Saturday, July 17, 2010

Amazon Anyone?

So um, I was just wondering if anyone on here has amazon? Like an account on amazon? (haha my mom is complaining in the background about I don't know what. Oh something about a lightbulb and stuff. Mwuahahahaha it wasn't me.) So anyway, http://www.amazon.com/gp/cdp/member-reviews/A2IZWA8BGW54Y1/ref=cm_pdp_rev_all?ie=UTF8&sort_by=MostRecentReview

Those are my reviews, you guys should click Yes on each review. Or no. Whichever is better for you. But just click it so that I can get ranked and be cool. Oh and um add me as a friend on there so I can be extra cool. So yea, if you have an account just go ahead and I'll give you all a cookie of your choice.

Who do you write like?

So I found this site over at Confessions of a Bookworm where you enter text from like, an unfinished chapter, a blog, a journal, a review or whatever and it deciphers which author you write like. So I went ahead and put in my recent review. And got Neil Gaiman. I was like oh cool. So then I decided to get a Chapter from my novel. The Prologue to be exact.

I write like
Neil Gaiman

I Write Like by Mémoires, Mac journal software. Analyze your writing!


How epic is that. My writing is like Neil Gaiman's. I feel epic. So yea, check out this site. http://iwl.me/ enter a text and tell me in the comments who you got. Now I'm gonna enter everything else I can get my hands on to see if I keep getting him. Mwuahahah.

So I entered the Chapters I have so far. I got;

Prologue: Neil Gaiman
Chapter 1: Stephen King
Chapter 2: Stephen King
Chapter 3: J.K. Rowling (this is actually my favorite chapter)
Chapter 4: Dan Brown (it does get mysterious here)
Chapter 5: H.G. Wells (xD)
Chapter 6: William Shakespeare (lmfao!) btw this chapter is unfinished....

Friday, July 16, 2010

Book Review: Lodestone Book One: The Sea of Storms

I present to you, my longest and most thought-out review. Why is it that way? Because this book was just amazing! One of the best books that I have read in the longest. And no, I am not just saying this to make the author feel good. I truly mean it.

Author: Mark Whiteway
Pages: 290
Rating: O for Outstanding
Review: When something is strange to you, your instinct makes you take caution. When entering a strange land, you automatically go into defense mode. A strange world can make you scared, excited and anxious to learn all of its secrets. But sometimes that strange world disappoints you. Perhaps it is too strange. Perhaps the secrets it holds aren’t that exciting. Perhaps the strange world is intolerable. Perhaps this strange world just makes you want to shout out loud about how stupid it is.

This strange world of Kelanni is the exact opposite. It makes you want to explore the whole land. Learn the secrets that it holds. Devour every piece of information that is available and makes you want to beg for more.

I dove into the book with extreme caution. From the synopsis only, I knew that it would be an interesting book but I didn’t know how the writing, characters and the world would be. When I began, my interest grew, but I must admit that I was a bit wary of reading it. I mean, I wasn’t going to stop reading it. I promised myself that I would finish it regardless of how bad it was. But, it wasn’t bad! As the pages went on, I began to understand more of this different land. I began to get these feelings for the characters that showed how much I cared for them. And when the villains were introduced, I began to hate them just like our heroes did.

The Sea of Storms holds many stories in one. It’s a book where five main lives get together. Shann is a simple village girl working day in and day out with her “adoptive” parents. Keris is a Keltar working for the Prophet and is beginning to question what is right and what is wrong. Lyall is a man who is trying to fix what is in his past by changing the future. Alondo is a humble, yet dangerous man, who is a friend of Lyall and an ally in the future quest. And a Chandara named Boxx, the only creature, who has powers to save them all.


What exactly makes this odd group come together? The answer is the past. A strange technology allows a lady from the past to come into contact with the group, letting them know that the one who everyone thinks is right, is not what it seems. And so with this message, the five set off on a quest across dangerous lands, against vicious creatures and meeting questioning people. With a future that seems dubious, they must try to make everything better, hoping that the world they know can be saved and peaceful.

Only telling a little bit of the story is possible. Giving any more information might make one’s head explode with anxiousness to buy the book. What I can tell you more is that every character, from major to minor, is so cleverly written and wisely interwoven, that you begin to think that if someone who was only mentioned once in the background may have a future story at all.

Mark Whiteway’s writing is almost indescribable. It’s simple for children and teens, yet complex so that an adult may love it. The way he writes his characters make you grow emotions for them. His lands makes you want to explore them. He never gives anything up too easy, leaving some of the things up to your imagination. Which is one of the best parts.

He doesn’t say, “this is this and only this!”. He says “this is this but can be this unless you add this… then what happens?” One example is Lodestones. Lodestones are these, rocks I guess it’s safe to say, that there are different kinds and they all do different things. And if you pair two up of different qualities, you get amazing results. But he doesn’t tell you all of the results. He will tell you what each rock does, and sometimes he’ll make you guess what the results would be if pairing two up. Sometimes when you guess it, it is when a character is about to experiment and it proves if you were right or wrong.

But aside from Lodestones, which play an important part in the story, “Lodestone Book One: The Sea of Storms” is a rich and amazing story all in all. The love and passion for writing, all of his emotions, shows in every word of every sentence of every paragraph. I couldn’t help but fall in love with it in the end. It became an instant favorite with an ending that will make you want to buy the next installment, there’s only one thing I can say.

You’re missing out if you haven’t read this book. And for a debut author, that’s pretty epic!


So that was my longest review and I actually love it. Please comment on it and look for another post! It'll have a surprise in it =D Which you all better love or I'm kicking some ass no lie! =D

Thursday, July 15, 2010

Author Interview - Mark Whiteway

This week I won't be doing the Author Spotlight, because I have something even greater and better. So Favorite Author - Number 1 will be revealed next week! Although you should already know who it is. Mwuahahaha. This week I'll be giving you guys my first ever Author Interview! I've had the pleasure of reading and reviewing this great, debut author's novel and getting the chance to ask him some questions.


So before I present you guys the interview, I just have to say that this man is an extremely talented writer. He wrote Lodestone Book One: The Sea of Storms which was an amazing read. You HAVE to go buy his book because it is amazing! So yea, tomorrow you guys will see my review on it and then a surprise. =D Here we go!

The Author

Who exactly is Mark Whiteway?
An ordinary guy? A fellow traveller on the rocky road of life? A dreamer? All of the above, I guess. I am fortunate to live with my wife here in a beautiful and historic part of West Sussex, England, that provides inspiration for my stories.

What inspired you to start writing?

The Lodestone Series sprang from an idea that I had had for a little while. Einstein's relativity theory predicts the existence of negative matter. Although we have never found any, we know it would have some pretty weird properties, like negative inertia and negative gravity. I started to think, what would happen to a society where this stuff existed?

The idea of two female leads also appealed to me - characters who were opposed to each other, but who had to come together to save their world. It's their conflict that really drives the story forward in Book One.


Who do you write for?
Anyone that enjoys an enthralling tale! I really enjoy it when someone tells me how much they love my work, or that they got lost in the characters or the world I created. If I can entertain people and lift their spirits, then it makes all of the effort worthwhile!

If you could write about anything else, aside from your recent work, what would you write about?

I have a growing file of ideas for short stories that I haven't had time to write. For example, one, entitled "A Picnic in the Crystal Forest" has to do with quantum entanglement. A family, experiencing a planet-wide natural disaster in complete safety through their shadowy quantum alter-egos are suddenly thrust into the midst of the destruction and are forced to fight for their lives with dire consequences to themselves and their view of life.

Another has a world with subterranean layers, each of which is a separate world in itself. A kind of "Alice in Wonderland meets Journey to the Centre of the Earth." Some of these could become full fledged novels in time. My ideas always come faster than my writing. There's never enough time to do justice to them all!


What are some of your favorite authors and have you kept any in mind while writing?

Wells, Verne, Asimov and Heinlein were my childhhood friends. In later life, I have grown to love Stephen Donaldson and Stephen Baxter. I guess it's as if all of them are standing over my shoulder when I write, if that doesn't sound too corny!

I am currently waiting for the third installment of Paul Kearney's "Sea Beggars" trilogy. He is not the most consistent writer, but when he's good, he's absolutely brilliant.


Where do your ideas come from?
Life's experiences. Plus I love to read science journals like "New Scientist" to keep up to date with what we are learning about ourselves and the universe around us. Humanity is really no more than a little child, looking out over an immense playground. We have no idea what's out there. To me, the most exciting words in the English language are "What if...?"


Lodestone Book One: The Sea of Storms

How hard was it to think of your first novel and what it would be about?

As I said before, I had had the basic idea for Lodestone for some considerable time. When I started, I read several books on the craft of writing. I started to plot everything out on cards like you're supposed to. What I found was that that technique was a bit of a straightjacket. I, as author wanted my characters to do one thing, but they wanted to do another. And the funny thing was that the character was invariably right!

Now I just have a few "line notes" giving the general direction of the story and I let my characters "live" and tell me how they're going to cope with the various situations that come up. For example, in a scene in the third book, the party is deciding who is going to go on a particular mission. As I was writing it, one of the female characters I hadn't considered put up her hand and said "I'll go." When I thought about it, she was absolutely right! She needed to go along because the story would be much stronger as a result!

Some will say that doing it that way gives you problems in plot and development, but I found that dealing with those "problems" actually produces some of the best results. In the first book for example, Keris has to enter the Fortress of Gort to do a number of important tasks. But I had teamed her up with Boxx, so that left the problem of what to do with the Chandara? She couldn't take it with her as it would detract from what she was doing, but she couldn't leave it out in the desert either. That led to the scene where Boxx is attacked by youths and the whole concept of the Chandara risking everything to help the Kelanni, yet still being on the receiving end of Kelanni prejudice. It's an especially poignant moment when Boxx reflects Keris' own words back to her - "Kelanni Fear What They Do Not Understand."


What do you honestly think of your finished novel?
You know Mike, there are times when I am writing the Third instalment when I need to refer back to the first or second book. I will look up the passage and start reading and then suddenly realise that half an hour has gone by. I have gotten caught up in my own story all over again! I think that says it all.

What was the first thing that popped into your head when you finished writing the novel?
Getting into the second instalment! In the first book, I deliberately left a lot of loose ends. Who is the Prophet? What is the "Key"? I was told by some people that that wasn't the traditional way to write a series, but I wanted to create a strong hook into the second volume. By the time I reached the end of the first book, I couldn't wait to get started on the next phase of the story!

How many ideas did you scratch away before you came up with the one today? Could you name one or two?
Honestly, it didn't work that way. I didn't think, "I want to be a writer, what shall I write...? Hmmm. Star Trek? Star Wars? No, it's been done before. What then...?" I had the idea for the story already. The only question then was, did I have the ability to tell my story in a way that people would enjoy? I wrote a novella when I was in middle school that received high praise (I still have it - hand-written in a huge ledger), but I hadn't written anything since. After doing two weeks of research, getting the main ideas worked out in my head, I finally got down to writing.

Are you happy with how the novel turned out in the end?
I remember my editor and author friend Linda, after she had read the part where one of the major characters is dragged down to the depths by the Kharthrun Serpent, storming up to me and saying "I never saw that coming! How could you do that to me?" I think when you get that kind of a strong reaction from your readers, then you know you've "got it right".


Future Novels

So Book Two is about to be published. What are your thoughts on that?
I hope others get as much pleasure from reading it as I had in writing it!

Are you also happy with the way it turned out in the end?

I think when you finish a book and put it "out there", there is always a feeling of trepidation. You feel you have done the best work you can, but there is no way to be certain how others will recieve it. When I put the book out for pre-publication reviews, I was anxious to see what the reaction would be. Last week, I received the first of those reviews:-

“Once again, Whiteway creates a whole new world for us to revel in. The author hits his stride in terms of plot development and continuous action. In Book Two, Whiteway takes the time, (and wonderfully), to give each of the major characters a distinct personality, and develops intricate relationships and conflicts between them all.

I can honestly say that Book Two is better than the first, and that is quite an accomplishment. This is an absolute must read. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED” Gregg J. Haugland, Allbooks Reviews


How many books do you plan on writing about the Kelanni world? Any other worlds you plan to create?

The main story arc for the Lodestone series will be completed by the end of the third book. However, Book Three will end with a hook into a possible fourth - a mystery surrounding Annata's last message from the past. I am already playing out scenes from the fourth book in my imagination. However, whether the fourth book gets written or not will depend on the reaction to the series as a whole. The fourth book would take place in the Lodestone universe, but would strike out in a whole new direction.

On the other hand, I have been thinking a lot about my multi-layered world. The main characters would be younger I think - nothing sees wonder quite like the eyes of a child. However, the science behind it would need some work to make it believable, not to mention the purpose behind those who built it. A lot of my ideas are like that. They swim around like fish just beneath the surface of a pond. Occassionally they break the surface, and I get to see them for what they really are.


Before we finish this awesome interview and let these readers rush out to buy your novel, for they must, any advice or last words to readers of your novels and future authors?
"First you jump off the cliff; then you build wings on the way down."
Ray Bradbury

I would say that those were the perfect words for readers and future authors. First off I would like to thank Mr. Mark Whiteway again for taking some of his time to answer my questions and for giving me the opportunity to read his novel! Tomorrow I will put up the review of the novel, mention the second, and a surprise. Again thank you so much and guys, go check this author's novel out now. So I really can't wait for tomorrow! I'll post up details of the book up too instead of in this post. See ya =D




Wednesday, July 14, 2010

Guess That Novel (7)

You guys love the new button?! Leonor did it! Yes Leonor from the last post. THANK YOU! And for the posting too. I was too lazy so I really didn't feel like posting at all haha.

Anyway, last week's Guess That Novel, let's remind ourselves what it was.

Suddenly a pack of wild animals burst from one of the side yards and loped to a stop in front of [name]. With a startled howl, the mustachioed hero sprang backward and scurried toward [name]. While her friends fell in line behind the [title], the pack completed a lazy circle around them. Their actions reminded [name] of a pack of hyenas she had once encountered at the zoo, but they looked more like dogs.

So to starts of here's the names and titles. Buffy, Xander, Slayer, Buffy. If that didn't give you what the answer was, BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER!

I'm not seeing many fans of them on here so you all suck. Just kidding you don't. Maybe a little. Only two people guessed at the answer. No Ky, it's not Bree Tanner. So Leonor! Got it right!

Buffy fan right there. Yes the answer was Coyote Moon from Buffy the Vampire Slayer 1!

For that, follow her blog here because she has deep, deep posts. http://openthechapter.blogspot.com/

So yea, follow, and post. And check out her new Twisted Fairytale story. Short chapters that pack a punch.

Now let's go on to this week's Guess That Novel!

"He used initials for the name. RRB. But it's a 212 area code. That's New York City, so it could still be the Edison Group, using a local contact for the job."

There ya go. It's really short! So I hope people get it. All you have to do is just guess the novel. You guys want a hint? I still haven't read the book. -hint hint-

So yea get guessing, if you figured out the hint, you'll get to have a choice of novels to choose. Haha, see ya next week with the answer and winner! =D


Tuesday's -Late- Novel Spotlight (3) - Leonor's Edition

Hey Everyone, my name is Leonor and you are all probably wondering why am I doing the Tuesday Novel Spotlight and more importantly why I'm doing it on a Wednesday, well it's actually Thursday for me because I'm in Portugal, time differences...sheesh. Well long-story-short...I bail Michael out sometimes! Today I shall be talking about a book (that although I consider an easy read) has been a favorite of mine for a few years now.






Ladies and Gents, I present to you "Welcome to the ARK" by Stephanie S. Tolan. *Hears Applause in the Background*

I probably read "Welcome to Ark" back when I was in the 7th grade and I remember instantly falling in love. I think one of the great things I loved about this book, and believe me I was bit cautious at first because I wasn't sure if I'd like this, was the author's ability to switch from first person to third. Now this might seem weird, confusing and out of place but Tolan really manages to nail it. She gets her story across clearly switching easily and fluently between the story she's telling, the emails sent, the reports written and the diaries of the characters involved.

"When you disappeared from the lodge I thought you'd gone home.
No such luck. Did you miss me?
It's lonely at midnight in the nuthouse, remember?
I remember.
So tell me what this group home is all about.
I don't know much yet, except that we are supposed to be a family.
Anyway, it's better here than at the lodge.
I still have my ankle bracelet.
It's still a nuthouse.
(Excerpt taken from Cover)

"In a world of terrorist attacks, random bombings and multiplying militias..."
Welcome to the ark revolves around four misfit youngsters, Taryn is a poetry prodigy labeled schizophrenic and is a healer who is able to communicate with other life forms. Elijah an "autistic" child hears the growl of violence when it happens around him. Miranda, is a world-known baby genius known mostly from her mother's best-selling book "Phenom in the Family", and finally Doug a math whiz that turns the violence he sees in his family against himself.

The four are sent to a Private mental hospital labeled "the Lodge" and are then picked by two of the psychologists there, Noah and Abigail. Together they are thrown into a house they dub "the Ark" and learn about themselves, the link between their minds and their supposed "powers". Together they learn to communicate with other 'misfit children' around the world. As they begin to learn the real power of their connection they realize that there is great hope for the world and danger.

Not only must these four learn if they are strong enough to stop the violence that is engulfing the world they must also fight against forces inside their own sanctuary (the lodge/ark) that are threatening to break their connection.

"Doug understood the world, all right. It was a place where guns won out over knives and knives over tire irons and tire irons over fists and fists over minds. You could accept that and find a place there, or you could let it roll over you, take you out. Noah had asked him what he'd been feeling the night he'd done it. He'd had the right answer, but it wasn't pain. Rage."
(Excerpt taken from book)

I absolutely loved this book, I think the author works the story so well that she keeps you gripped to the end. It's a small book, won't take more than a few days to read it. I read it in a day...a very long boring summer day. -___-

Still I think the book really gets you thinking, about issues going on in the world and what the power of our minds can do (whether realistically or in this fictional connection shown in the book).

Now what really got to me was that after I read this book I went to search for more things on the author and I found this excerpt, I have it written down on a paper inside my book, because I thought it was amazing!

"Welcome to the Ark is a work of fiction and Miranda, Doug, Elijah, and Taryn are invented characters. However, they are based on real people. In working with a group of extremely bright children, I was able to observe the sort of "thinking together" that the children of the Ark begin to do. I know someone who is able to "read" a book merely by holding it in her hands. I can't explain these abilities, but like Noah and Abigail, I know because of my own experience that they exist." Copyright 1997 by Stephanie S. Tolan

So my question is, have any of you read this book or any other book my Stephanie Tolan? What do you think about the power of our mind and if you think we can use it to rid world of violence and create a better living.

Till next time Kiddos!
xoxo
Lee

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