NaNoWriMo begins November 1. Dust off your writing skills and have a good time with it. That’s what I plan to do. You don’t have to write the novel of the century to participate. All you have to do is enjoy yourself and write about whatever your heart desires.
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All posts for the month October, 2015
Science opens the door for humans to reach God-like powers of creation and destruction.
A secret Russian mind research laboratory erupts, annihilating thousands and leaving a monstrous, one-mile deep crater in its wake. Beau Walker, a psychologist and reluctant empath, is coerced into joining a research project, code-named SHIVA, to investigate the catastrophe. An ordinary scientific investigation leads Walker and the research team into alternate realities.
Walker struggles against political and military deceptions, deadly superhuman adversaries, and personal demons to unlock the riddle of the SHIVA syndrome, risking his life and the very existence of humankind.
The SHIVA Syndrome offers a dizzying ride into extraordinary human abilities. Prepare to alter what you believed was reality.
Review 3 of 5 Stars
I was provided with a copy of this book by the author in exchange for an honest review.
The beginning of this story drew me in right away with its intrigue and secret places. It was interesting and the writing was tight. Portions of the story were excellent and I had every hope it would continue that way. In my opinion, it didn’t. I can’t remember the first time in the book that I was jerked out of the suspension of disbelief, but I do recall at approximately the 82% mark on the e-file that things became far too simple, intelligent people all of a sudden didn’t think of the consequences of their actions, etc. I read to the end of the book, but it really lost me at that point.
The first half or so of the story was interesting and it was apparent that the author is educated, had done his research and was knowledgeable about his topics. It was the plot devices that threw me and made it hard to finish the book or care what happened to the characters in the end. Plenty of science, but a bit too much religion for my taste. I did learn a lot about Santeria, both from the book and my own research into it afterward. I was curious to see an academic explanation of the religion aside from just the fictional one as I knew nothing about it.
There were some interesting elements in this story. I was very interested in the actual science portion of the story and was even in for the psychic powers that various characters exhibited, but all of it wrapped together with religion was a bit disappointing. I guess I was hoping for a more scientific explanation in the end. I did come across some minor editing errors, but not too many. The writing was well done and I hope to see other stories from this author in the future.
When a fatal fever nearly wipes out the entire world’s population, the survivors of what became known as “the Dying” believe the worst is in the past. Little do they know…
In the aftermath of the Dying, survivor Jessica Monroe searches for sanctuary in a world unlike any she’s ever known before. As fear and isolation envelop her, Jessica encounters the sensitive and helpful Jace, who she believes is another survivor. But Jace has a past and secrets of his own that’s he not ready to disclose. Soon Jessica realizes that the destruction of humanity might actually be the first step in a larger, more complicated plan — a plan that may very well involve her. Struggling to discover her role in a terrifying new world where everything has changed, she must decide who she can trust. But is the price for that trust just too high?
Review 2 of 5 Stars
This is the first book in the Demons & Djinn collection of novels. It was an impulse buy. There are 13 novels in the collection, but I’ve only read the one so far and it might be quite a while before I read another. The post-apocalyptic part is what initially grabbed my interest. There were times when it seemed like the story was going somewhere and then it would putter around, losing the tension that had been built.
In a lot of ways this story just wasn’t for me. I’m a little weary of teenage romances. As a grown woman I’d like to see more mature characters so that I can relate to them better. Of course, that’s not to say there isn’t a market for this type of story. I’m just not the market that was targeted.
Some of the survival skill things were well done. Other things made me laugh a little.This wasn’t an awful book by any means, but it certainly wasn’t my cup of tea as they say. Nevertheless, the author wrote her story well even if it was too slow for my liking. Portions of it were pretty interesting. The author’s initial descriptions of “the Dying” and Jessica’s experiences were what made the book worth reviewing in my opinion. For me, the story kind of slumped in the middle. There was really nothing about a djinn until way late in the book. By that point I had kind of lost interest and was just pushing through to the end.
Although they seem to be concerned with various themes, there are certain passions that run through them. What is the nature of reality; digital and corporeal? Is there more to the world than we can see? How far can we trust our senses?
The anthology includes the following stories:
- “Infinite Waters“: A woman seeks her future at a carnival. She discovers more than she expected.
- “The Things We Do for Lust“: Beware of time travelers bearing gifts.
- “James’ Life“: A man with nothing to look forward to but oblivion, discovers it’s not that easy to escape his life.
- “Two’s a Crowd“: Blood runs thicker than water. Especially when you spill it.
- “What’s in a Name?“: A trip to the tropics has an unexpected ending.
- “The Lucky Bastard“: How far will the luckiest man alive go to escape his luck?
- “A Twist of the Tail“: A confused woman meanders through a sleepy town. But not all is as it seems.
- “Is There a Doctor in the House?“: A high school student just loves to experiment.
- “Sex and Dinner“: A timeless combination. Or is it?
- “Would You Like Flies With That?“: Nothing’s scarier than a supermarket.
- “The Hand of God“: Nothing has prepared a grizzly veteran for this meeting *.
(* first published in The Power of Six)
Review 4 of 5 Stars
This was an interesting collection of stories. I was originally provided with a copy of this to beta read, but I really fell short of the mark there due to some things in my personal life. Nevertheless, I enjoyed the last collection of short stories I read by this author (The Power of Six) and finally found some time to hunker down with Infinite Waters. The actual story, Infinite Waters, runs throughout the book and is the glue that binds together the collection of short stories into a somewhat larger story. I enjoyed the stories in this collection and found it to be a good read that I could put down and pick back up while I was busy. The stories aren’t very long, but I really enjoyed several of them. I also liked the way the author tied them together. I’ve seen this done in other short story collections and I think it makes the stories more cohesive.