Sunday, May 5, 2024
#bookreview of Wyvern's Plague: From the Annals of Dorophin by A.K. Bryce
#bookreview of Quiet Quit and Fully Live by Matthew Hess
#AuthorInterview with Stephen Wedlock and Steve Dean
Thursday, May 2, 2024
May's Book Giveaway #freebook #winabook
Wednesday, May 1, 2024
#Bookreview of The Magic Sea Turtle
#Bookreview of Scoundrels: The League of Maritime Adventurers, Book Three
#Bookreview of Nephilim by Marc Arginteanu
#Bookreview of Kent and Katcha
Kent and Katcha: Espionage, Spycraft, Romance
By: Larry and Rosemary Mild
Publisher: Magic Island Literary Works
Publication Date: March 28, 2024
ISBN: 979-8-9863864-0-9
Reviewed by: Kathy Stickles
Review Date: April 28, 2024
Kent and Katcha: Espionage, Spycraft, Romance is an excellent new story by authors Larry and Rosemary Mild that is filled with intrigue and excitement and a good dose of romance.
The story is set in the year 1992 - the Soviet Union has fallen apart, but the danger is still out there and very, very real. Enter Kent Brukner, a newly qualified spy from America who lands himself in Moscow for his first assignment. Kent is supposed to enter a Russian Federation Army location and plant a bug so that the Americans will know more about what is going on. At first, Kent’s mission appears to be going well, but then everything spirals out of control, and Kent is arrested and sent to a prison far from civilization. He quickly learns that he needs to use his skills to find a way out of prison and back to the real world so that he can report on what has happened to him and find out if any part of his plan was successful.
When Kent finds a way to escape, he runs as fast as he can and ends up in a café in a small village where he meets Katcha and her mother. Katcha’s mother is from Great Britain, and her father is a Russian who is currently in prison for daring to speak out against the government. As Kent and Katcha find themselves falling in love and Katcha’s mother finds a way for her daughter to escape the life that she is leading, the two new lovers head out on a journey that, on its best day, looks daunting and nearly impossible. As they try to make it out of Russia and to somewhere safe, they are followed by Major Dimitri Federov, who is determined to catch the two and send them off to a Russian prison. As Kent and Katcha run and Dimitri fights to catch them, this story and the adventure take off and never stop.
Larry and Rosemary Mild have created a thrilling spy novel filled with great characters, lots of twists and turns, and plenty of romance thrown in to keep the reader on the edge of their seat. The book is well-written, and the characters are extremely well-developed, which makes it perfect. Kent and especially Katcha are excellent protagonists who are strong and intelligent and a perfect foil for each other. The secondary characters in the story such as Dimitri and Sasha, a cruel and very intelligent agent working with Dimitri, add a lot to an already excellent story. The writing and the dialogue are both well done and keep the story moving from page to page without ever seeming unbelievable or boring. Kent and Katcha packs a whole lot of excitement and fun into its pages.
Quill says: Kent and Katcha is a lot of fun to read, and one cannot say that about a lot of books. It is interesting, exciting, and well-researched in terms of the spy aspect. I could see this one on the big screen, and it would be well worth it.
For more information on Kent and Katcha: Espionage, Spycraft, Romance, please visit the authors' website at: www.magicile.com/
Monday, April 29, 2024
#AuthorInterview with Clint Adams, author of LIve & Learn
Today, Feathered Quill reviewer Ellen Feld is talking with Clint Adams, author of Live & Learn: A Retiree's Guide to Keep Going.
FQ: Tell our readers a little about yourself. Your background, your interests, and how this led to writing a book?
ADAMS: Well, I’ve been around a while. So have others. I’m hoping they (near-retirees, retirees, seniors) will be able to embrace their worth, their purpose after their careers have come to an end. Live & Learn: A Retiree’s Guide to Keep Going is written for them.
These last 30+ years of my life have been lived exclusively to learn, accept and be grateful. In 1991, I had a life-changing event that altered my life dramatically. These years were/are my university and have provided me with the authority to share my knowledge and wisdom with you, the reader.
Life’s lessons learned lend credibility. At 66, I unequivocally believe lessons learned are our life’s purpose.
FQ: Tell us a little about your book – a brief synopsis and what makes your book unique.
ADAMS: Live & Learn is about the infinite power of lessons learned. Several of my lessons (tests, obstacles, etc.) are shared for the purpose of you reflecting on your own. Optional exercises exist at the end of every chapter for you to recognize and appreciate what you've intentionally learned from them.
Written for people of ALL ages because personal development (of any kind) adds meaning to life. Whether you're younger or more mature, if you're always on the go or slowing down, your soul's stopwatch remains perpetually active.
Genre: Spiritual self-help for seniors; mid-life management; motivational.
Different because it’s a spiritual book that refers to no set, established spiritual practice or religion. All about learning from life itself. Period.
FQ: What was the impetus for writing your book?
ADAMS: Through observation and research, I discovered a colossal need right in my own backyard. At a gym in Silicon Valley, California, the land of über-achievers. These are folks I admire completely, but what about when their careers come to an end? All that built-up ambition and desire to achieve? What’s next for them when they face retirement? This is when many ask, “Why?” “Why did I live this life?” “What does it mean?” “Why am I here?”
Live & Learn provides the answer. It’s meant to keep them going. Not to achieve but to learn from the life they’ve lived and continue to live. Lessons learned = life’s true purpose. Accepting this provides much needed value for those who wonder what’s next.
FQ: Where do you think you’ve improved the most in your writing process and ability and how do you think you have evolved?
ADAMS: Easy, one of the lessons that was provided to me I chose to learn from: compassion for others. I spent most of my early life being quite self-involved and I feel that my awareness of others now is reflected in my current writing.
Live & Learn is mostly written in the second person (you). Many self-help books are. All about the reader. Non-fiction pure and simple. No story, no plot or character development. The reader is the protagonist, and the story is theirs.
I love switching genres, but writing this book seems to have been the most natural. Grateful to have had the opportunity to write it. After having previously written in first and third, second person is my favorite.
FQ: How do you approach a new story and when you set pen to paper, is there a specific process you follow (or do you just write and let your story take the lead to where it must go)?
ADAMS: Another adage: Mostly every reader (when reading) sees themselves within the story, whether fact or fiction. They are ghost protagonists. The content presented in Live & Learn is cumulative. One tip builds upon the previous. The reader is asked to draw upon their own experiences and lessons.
My hope is that the reader will want to remain engaged, because motivation grows as much as each page is turned. Whether they participate in the (optional) exercises that exist at the end of every chapter or not, they, should conceivably be wiser at THE END than they were on the first page of Chapter 1.
FQ: If you were to teach a class on the art of writing, what is the one item you would be sure to share with your students and how would you inspire them to get started?
ADAMS: One? How about one thousand? OK, one that should be new to no one: “Write what you know.” This is a staple in every Creative Writing 101 class, but it’s true. It’s true because there’s nothing more powerful than the truth. And, in my opinion, truth is indeed more interesting than fiction.
A synonym for truth: authenticity. Even when writing creatively, fiction works best when it’s believable. Nothing more potent than that.
FQ: How did you approach the need to keep readers engaged and tuned in to keep turning those pages?
ADAMS: Another adage: Mostly every reader (when reading) sees themselves within the story, whether fact or fiction. They are ghost protagonists. The content presented in Live & Learn is cumulative. One tip builds upon the previous. The reader is asked to draw upon their own experiences and lessons.
My hope is that the reader will want to remain engaged, because motivation grows as much as each page is turned. Whether they participate in the (optional) exercises that exist at the end of every chapter or not, they, should conceivably be wiser at THE END than they were on the first page of Chapter 1.
FQ: Why did you decide to write this book? Did you see a need?
ADAMS: To a certain extent, this question has already been answered, but let’s get real. Honest. At 65, last year, when looking back at my life (as many others do at this age), I saw failure. Or to be most precise, by societal standards, I have been a massive failure. Not many of my goals were attained, I achieved little success until I realized that accomplishing and achieving have nothing at all to do with our true life’s purpose.
My life over the past 30+ years has revolved around all things spiritual. When I look back from a more enlightened perspective, I chose to learn from circumstances I never would have chosen. Now, I am thankful for them all merely because I learned from them. My life, looking back, is filled with value and worth because of what I’ve chosen to learn from it. (No ego, but...) My life has been hugely successful. I hope readers see their lives the same way.
FQ: How much research went into writing your book?
ADAMS: Like I already said, my research has been my ability to look back to my own experiences. But, I know, that’s not sufficient. In the 200+ pages of Live & Learn, I cite about forty-five sources, articles from highly credible sources (The Washington Post, Boston School of Medicine, Yahoo! Finance, and more). Statistics, accumulated data, studies, interviews all available to the reader via live links (in all ebook editions of Live & Learn). Links are also listed in the Notes section of the print editions.
Now, research continues as I make my best effort to match up the content of this book with its target market (near-retirees, retirees). Market research is never ending.
FQ: Tell us about your research process? Where did you go, how much time you spent, travel to other parts of the country, world, etc.
ADAMS: The most valuable tool available to any writer: the Internet. In many instances, I added these citations after the fact. I had already written the content, then to add authenticity, credibility to any notion I’d already come up with, I wanted to bolster proof, validation. So, I did. My goal was to add at least two professional sources to every chapter. It makes a difference, especially to those that may question my authority.
On a side note, related to travel, having lived in different countries added to my perspective. In 2004, I became an Italian citizen. I kept my American passport as well, but I learned so much from becoming acquainted with other ways of life. From 2004-2011, I lived in Italy, Denmark, Germany, Spain, and England.
Right off the back, Italians reminded me that, “We work to live. You Americans live to work.” Yikes! Italians are the second longest-living population on Earth. Maybe for a reason.
FQ: What was the most difficult part of writing this book?
ADAMS: Saying “goodbye” to the reader. Written in second person like I’d said, I saw this whole creative writing experience as a conversation. A back and forth. I took the readers’ needs as seriously as my own. No difference between my needs and those reading my words. We’re in this together. If I have the capacity to help one reader via the creation and publication of this book, LIVE & LEARN is a tremendous success.
For more information on Live & Learn: A Retiree's Guide to Keep Going, please visit the author's website at: www.clintadams.com/