Thrillers Rock Twitter will not be reviewing or working actively until further notice. Summer takes precedent and the authors and bloggers and support staff need to get a tan!
Saturday, August 4, 2012
Friday, July 20, 2012
Our Friday Review - July 20th - A Mind Man
THE MIND MAN
by PD Richmond
The Mind Man by PD Richmond catches hold of you from the start. Immediately you are introduced to the main character and his unfortunate way of school and home life and you instantly sympathize with him.
Although the characters throughout the book have an inkling of what the main character is doing the book leaves you hanging wondering whether there is more to it and if the other characters are reading into it more than they should. Its only further into the book where you realise that this type of situation could be destructive and could actually cause major disruption to mankind. The story line keeps you guessing right the way through.
To start it’s a major ‘the baddy gets his comeuppance’ but it quickly moves onto something else with fast-paced developments in the story line.
When you get to the ending, the whole story unravels and you start to question your own intentions. You start with sympathising with the main character, then you begin to resent him and then back to feeling for him and maybe feel sorry that you changed your own opinion of him.
There are many aspects aside of the main story line throughout this book that you can relate to in your own life and enables you to think how you would feel should you be in the situation.
From start to finish I couldn't put the book down and found that it was very easy to pick up from where I left off.
I did find that there maybe a few unnecessary characters that were brought into the story line and I started to feel that I may lose track of the plot, however these characters, although they play a big part in the story line only have a small appearance in the book. I also found that the plot would go from A-Z very quickly but as quick as this would happen, the story would make sense and fit together well.
Overall 4.5 stars and definitely worth a read.
The Mind Man by PD Richmond catches hold of you from the start. Immediately you are introduced to the main character and his unfortunate way of school and home life and you instantly sympathize with him.
Although the characters throughout the book have an inkling of what the main character is doing the book leaves you hanging wondering whether there is more to it and if the other characters are reading into it more than they should. Its only further into the book where you realise that this type of situation could be destructive and could actually cause major disruption to mankind. The story line keeps you guessing right the way through.
To start it’s a major ‘the baddy gets his comeuppance’ but it quickly moves onto something else with fast-paced developments in the story line.
When you get to the ending, the whole story unravels and you start to question your own intentions. You start with sympathising with the main character, then you begin to resent him and then back to feeling for him and maybe feel sorry that you changed your own opinion of him.
There are many aspects aside of the main story line throughout this book that you can relate to in your own life and enables you to think how you would feel should you be in the situation.
From start to finish I couldn't put the book down and found that it was very easy to pick up from where I left off.
I did find that there maybe a few unnecessary characters that were brought into the story line and I started to feel that I may lose track of the plot, however these characters, although they play a big part in the story line only have a small appearance in the book. I also found that the plot would go from A-Z very quickly but as quick as this would happen, the story would make sense and fit together well.
Overall 4.5 stars and definitely worth a read.
Friday, July 13, 2012
Our Friday Review - July 13th - CIty of Broken Glass
The fourth book in a series of historical thrillers, A City of Broken Glass by Rebecca Cantrell is a blend of the mystery/intrigue and noir genres. It is a well written story that takes place in what many (myself included) consider the darkest period in the modern western world.
Set in Nazi Germany in 1938, the story follows Hannah Vogel, a journalist sent by the Swiss newspaper she works for to cover a fluff piece about pastries during a festival in Poland. But soon after she and her son Anton arrive in Poland, Hannah discovers a real story to cover: the deportation of Jews from Germany. The Jewish refugees Hannah finds are housed in a stable under deplorable conditions and guarded by Polish soldiers as if they are prisoners. When Hannah recognizes one of the refugees as the wife of a former lover, Hannah goes to her and sees that the woman is about to give birth. The woman begs Hannah to ensure the safety of her two year old daughter who has been hidden in a cupboard in the woman's home in Berlin. As Hannah agrees to help, she faces not just the mystery of why the toddler was left alone or where she is but also Hannah's very own mystery - how she herself becomes trapped in Berlin with her son and how it all ties together with her past. The suspense is built carefully through both the fictional events created and the actual historical events leading to the Holocaust and World War II.
The story is told in first person from Hannah's point of view and in that respect it's very well done. The writing is a little on the colder side but almost exactly what the reader would imagine to be written by a journalist. It also fits well with the bleakness of the time period. Although there is a lot of internal dialogue and self criticism (for not doing enough to fight the Nazis) within Hannah and surrounding the other characters, the characters themselves still struck me as a little cold. Most of the emotion I felt arose from the events rather than the characters - even though the author does a good job of making the main characters a little more likeable towards the end (and they are probably realistic for the time).
As I mentioned earlier, this is the fourth book in the Hannah Vogel mystery series but it can easily be read as a stand alone thriller. There is a lot of historical information behind it and the author even provides additional information from her research at the end.
For a suspense thriller, it's a very good story. It also has an interesting but very disturbing setting. So it's probably just me, but I did feel a little discomfort when I read the novel. Yes, I know there were German citizens who did stand up against the Nazi Regime and their inhuman laws. The author even points this out at the end with real examples. However, as history tells us there were so many who didn't. It gives the reader a lot to think about. I think if the storyline was in a different setting and the characters just a little different, it would have been an easier novel to like.
More about the author:
Find Rebecca Cantrell books here:
On Amazon
Tuesday, July 3, 2012
New Fiction Engine Network
Hello
Thriller fans and book lovers in general. Shannon Mayer of TRT has
graciously offered this
guest spot for me to tell you about a new book blog called New
Fiction Engine, and most
importantly about a new Network of book reviewers we’re building
and hoping some
of you might like to join.
First,
the idea behind New Fiction Engine is simple and written at the very
top of our home
page: “We Find Great Fiction from Under Six Bucks to Free.”
Books
need readers like stuffed animals need kids to love them. The
absolute best way to
help match a book to a reader who will love it is Word-of-Mouth from
other readers who
love it already.
We
do feature posts on one book a day, something we’ve vetted and know
is really good,
and we tell people about it. We do other fun stuff too, but that’s
the heart of it.
Many
under 6 dollar books are Indie books. We love Indie books, but as you
know many
of those are unknown quantities. No way we can read them all. What we
need then,
is vetted content. Indie or Traditional, we just need to know when
there’s a really good
book out there. Obviously no one knows and loves books more than book bloggers,
and there are really no opinions we’d rather cite.
With
that in mind, then, we came up with a pretty cool idea we think is a
win/win for everybody.
It’s
the NFE Network - Reviews We Trust With Our Very Lives.
The
idea is simple:
Our
goal is to create a Network of book blogs with trusted reviews we can
link to, sending
new traffic their way in exchange for giving our readers a heads-up
on great books.
When you find and review a good book under six bucks, we’ll send
readers to you
so you can tell them all about it.
The
relationship is very simple and you wouldn’t have to do much of
anything besides read
and blog as usual. When we see a 4 Star or better review of an under
6 dollar book
on a Network blog, we just want to link to it. We’ll post the book
cover, your logo (if applicable)
a teaser of your review's opening lines, and LINK it directly to your
blog.
All
of your content will be fully credited to you (in fact we’re very
proud to have you and
will
make a big deal out of it) and only a snippet of the review will be
posted here as a teaser.
We will link you and only you in that post.
Then
we’ll tweet and promote as hard as we can (we are small because we
literally started
last week - but so far people really like the site and we are growing
fast!) Our readers
continue getting a great service, and the result should be extra
readers for you.
We
also would like to make the relationship official, make some noise
about it, and get people
curious.
Join
us and we’ll announce the relationship, proudly display your logo
in our side bar as part
of our Network of Reviews We Trust With Our Very lives, and whenever
you review an
Under Six Buck book for your blog with a recommendation of 4 Stars or
more, we’ll do
our best to send people your way.
Thrillers
Rock Twitter was the first to join, an their logo looks terrific on
our site. But they
look lonely at the moment and we’d love to see a few more there!
Thanks
for this opportunity Shannon, thanks TRT, and thanks everybody,
Stephen
T. Harper
Check
us out and see at www.newfictionengine.blogspot.com
Tweet
us @newfictionengin
Or
contact us directly at newfictionengine@gmail.com
Friday, June 22, 2012
Our Friday Review - June 22nd CIty Under the Moon
"Bioweapon catastrophes, government conspiracies, military sieges, historical revelations, psychological warfare and werewolves. You want more thrill from a thriller?" – Seth Green
City Under the Moon by Hugh Sterbakov
Assisted by a horror blogger and a squad of elite commandos, Tildascow must hunt Valenkov across the globe and uncover the sinister secret of the curse threatening mankind. Tens of thousands are infected. Time is running out.
I really never imagined I'd be writing this in a review: It's the werewolf apocalypse! This story is a very unique thriller that returns the werewolf firmly to the role of monster. For me, this was a welcome change from the recent trend in popular fiction where the werewolf is cast as more of a tortured romantic hero, doomed or otherwise. I also enjoyed the shake up from the hordes of undead leading us to our peril thing - although humanity meeting its end at the shredding hands (claws) of a hairy wolf-like human might not be much of a step up.
From start to finish, the werewolf infection in this story is terrifying. The creatures are nothing but driven killers, cannibals really, controlled by a single leader. They live to eat, kill and spread the infection. To become a werewolf is a fate worse than death.
And of course, that is the fate facing New York city.
As the potential doom of mankind - the werewolf plague - descends on the city; it soon becomes clear that options are limited.The madman behind the plague is demanding a cure from the U.S. government. But is a cure even possible? Will the government attempt to find a cure or will it take far more drastic measures? The author does a remarkable job of creating suspense throughout the novel, particularly at the end. There are a number of possible outcomes for the reader to guess at that pop up along the way.
For many thriller fans, this will be a great read. There are plenty of heart racing action sequences to keep the reader glued to the pages. There is a variety of character types - from a geeky young werewolf expert to an atypical FBI anti-terrorism specialist that is something of a science experiment herself. The novel even takes on different sub genres: at times it can be anything from medical to political thriller, science fiction and horror suspense to historical fiction.
I think this thriller will be a five star book for many action horror fans. For me however, there were some very significant things holding me back. I did find myself having to go over a couple of passages to re-read some of the action, and I did get a little lost in the middle. It could just be me and other readers might not experience this. My other, more subjective stumbling block was the writing style. Course language can be used effectively and in the case of this novel it's used well with humor. But for me, less is often more and it did take away from my overall enjoyment of the book. Although, I think it would work well as a movie.
Assisted by a horror blogger and a squad of elite commandos, Tildascow must hunt Valenkov across the globe and uncover the sinister secret of the curse threatening mankind. Tens of thousands are infected. Time is running out.
I really never imagined I'd be writing this in a review: It's the werewolf apocalypse! This story is a very unique thriller that returns the werewolf firmly to the role of monster. For me, this was a welcome change from the recent trend in popular fiction where the werewolf is cast as more of a tortured romantic hero, doomed or otherwise. I also enjoyed the shake up from the hordes of undead leading us to our peril thing - although humanity meeting its end at the shredding hands (claws) of a hairy wolf-like human might not be much of a step up.
From start to finish, the werewolf infection in this story is terrifying. The creatures are nothing but driven killers, cannibals really, controlled by a single leader. They live to eat, kill and spread the infection. To become a werewolf is a fate worse than death.
And of course, that is the fate facing New York city.
As the potential doom of mankind - the werewolf plague - descends on the city; it soon becomes clear that options are limited.The madman behind the plague is demanding a cure from the U.S. government. But is a cure even possible? Will the government attempt to find a cure or will it take far more drastic measures? The author does a remarkable job of creating suspense throughout the novel, particularly at the end. There are a number of possible outcomes for the reader to guess at that pop up along the way.
For many thriller fans, this will be a great read. There are plenty of heart racing action sequences to keep the reader glued to the pages. There is a variety of character types - from a geeky young werewolf expert to an atypical FBI anti-terrorism specialist that is something of a science experiment herself. The novel even takes on different sub genres: at times it can be anything from medical to political thriller, science fiction and horror suspense to historical fiction.
I think this thriller will be a five star book for many action horror fans. For me however, there were some very significant things holding me back. I did find myself having to go over a couple of passages to re-read some of the action, and I did get a little lost in the middle. It could just be me and other readers might not experience this. My other, more subjective stumbling block was the writing style. Course language can be used effectively and in the case of this novel it's used well with humor. But for me, less is often more and it did take away from my overall enjoyment of the book. Although, I think it would work well as a movie.
Wednesday, June 20, 2012
Today Thrillers ROCK Twitter presents an interview with author, Rick Chesler, author of the thrillers, Tara Shores, novels full of action, adventure, intrigue, and suspense intermingled with cutting edge science and technology!
TRT - Where are you from? Tell us a little bit about yourself!
RC = I currently live in Los Angeles, where I grew up, but have also lived in different places around the country including Hawaii and the Florida Keys. I have a degree in marine biology and have always been fascinated by the natural world, the ocean in particular.
TRT - Do you have a day job as well?
RC = Yes, right now I work as a research project manager at a major university.
TRT - As a child, what did you want to do when you grew up?
RC = Be a marine biologist and explorer.
TRT - What do you do when you are not writing?
RC = Spend time with my family. I also enjoy boating, scuba diving, going to the beach and, of course, reading.
TRT - Tell us your latest news.
RC = My newest novel, BLOOD HARBOR, about a small seaside town thrust into terror, has just been crowd-funded on Kickstarter, and will be published in February 2013.
TRT - When and why did you begin writing?
RC = I first started in my late 20s, influenced and inspired by the works of Michael Crichton and Clive Cussler, as well as my own studies of and experiences with nature.
TRT - How has your environment/upbringing colored your writing?
RC = I’ve lived in some different parts of the country, done a bit of travelling, so that exposure to different cultures and areas I’m sure has shaped my views on things. My degree in marine biology, scuba diving and boating experiences also play a role.
TRT - How did you come up with the title for your book(s)?
RC = The Tara Shores series books tend to be pretty high concept, where the title is usually known to me before I start writing. The forthcoming SOLAR ISLAND, for example, is about events that take place on a floating solar energy installation. Wired Kingdom is a play on the classic television nature show, about a whale tagged with a webcam that broadcasts a murder at sea. So the titles, so far at least, have naturally followed the underlying premises.
TRT - Is there a message in your novel that you want readers to grasp?
RC = I can’t say there’s an intended message, other than there are a lot of remarkable topics out there to explore, many involving science, technology and nature, and the ways humans interact with their world. First and foremost, though, the novels are meant to be thought provoking entertainment, hopefully the kind of books that are perfect for the beach or a long plane ride, but that also get the reader thinking.
TRT - Are your works based on someone you know or events in your life?
RC =No, the novels are purely fiction, but people I’ve known or have come across throughout my life may influence my characters in the little personality traits and quirks they have, or things they say.
RC =Do you ever suffer from writer's block? If so, what do you do about it?
TRT - Not really, no. I only have a set amount of time to write each night, and I know that whatever I’m going to write, it has to get done during that time, so I can’t afford to waste it. Outlining helps in that regard. If all else fails, skipping ahead to write the next scene I am sure of will eventually “unlock” the previous section I was uncertain about. The key is to keep moving forward somehow, putting words on paper and pausing occasionally to evaluate them critically.
TRT - Who is your favorite author and why?
RC = Michael Crichton, for astonishing premises crisply executed.
TRT - How long does it take you to write a book?
RC = The first one took longer, but now I can comfortably write one novel per year working part time on it, outside of a full-time day job.
TRT - What would you say is your interesting writing quirk?
RC = I don’t know how interesting it is, but I write usually late night by dim light—one of those blue or green colored party bulbs in a desk lamp and that’s it, and lots of times with headphones on playing music.
TRT - If you had to do it all over again, would you change anything in any of your books?
RC = Only very minor details that don’t affect the overall tone and spirit of the story experience. I’m happy with the novels I’ve released so far. I think any book length work can always be improved at least a little bit, but at some point you have to say enough is enough, and for me that point is reached once they’re published. I look forward rather than back.
TRT - Hypothetical question #1: You’re going to be stranded on a desert island but are allowed to bring one book. What book do you bring?
RC = Desert Island Survival and Rescue Tactics
TRT -Tell us 3 interesting/crazy things about you
TRT - Do you have cops or others in a field of expertise who read your stories before you publish them?
TRT - Is there anything additional you would like to share with your readers?
RC = The third Tara Shores thriller, SOLAR ISLAND, will be published this December (2012) from Seven Realms Publishing. Then, in February 2013, my first standalone suspense novel, BLOOD HARBOR will be released.
--Thanks very much for having me as a guest on the always awesome Thrillers Rock!
Happy reading,
Rick Chesler
Rick Chesler holds a Bachelor of Science in marine biology and has had a life-long interest in the ocean and its creatures. When not at work as a research project manager, he can be found scuba diving or traveling to research his next thriller idea. Author of kiDNApped and Wired Kingdom, he currently lives in Los Angeles, California with his wife, son, and some fish. 
A priceless biotechnology, an FBI agent, and an unspeakable act of familial betrayal collide in a tropical kidnapping more twisted than a DNA double helix. When a renowned scientist with a solution for global warming is kidnapped at sea, FBI Special Agent Tara Shores must unravel a high-tech trail of S.O.S. messages encoded into the DNA of living cells. As each decoded message brings Tara nearer to the missing genius, it also takes her farther from help than she ever thought possible.
_________________________________
When a blue whale tagged with a web-cam designed with stolen defense technology broadcasts a brutal murder at sea as part of a television nature program, Special Agent Tara Shores finds herself navigating an ocean of manipulation and deceit in a deadly race to reach the 100-ton creature roaming the Pacific before an unknown killer can destroy the digital evidence it carries.
As Shores dives deeper into the case, what she initially dismisses as a publicity stunt for the glitzy reality series soon sweeps her out to sea in a riptide of greed, intrigue, and high-tech crime.
Carmen Caine is the member of Thrillers Rock Twitter where she is happy to coordinate author interviews in between writing Scottish Medieval Romances such as "The Bedeviled Heart". For more on Carmen Caine, please visit: www.CarmenCaine.com
Friday, June 15, 2012
Our Friday Review for June 15th - Sundered
Sundered by Shannon Mayer
A miracle drug, Nevermore, spreads like wildfire throughout the world allowing people to eat what they want, no matter how unhealthy it is and yet still lose weight. It is everything the human population has ever dreamed of and Mara is no different. Only a simple twist of fate stops her from taking the drug.
As the weeks roll by, it becomes apparent that Nevermore is not the miracle it claimed. A true to life nightmare, the drug steals the very essence that makes up humanity and unleashes a new and deadly species on the world, a species bent on filling its belly. Locked down within their small farm home, Mara and her husband Sebastian struggle against increasingly bad odds, fighting off marauders and monsters alike.
But Sebastian carries a dark secret, one that more than threatens to tear them apart, it threatens to destroy them both and the love they have for each other.
THE REVIEW:The secret forces Mara to make the ultimate choice. Will she live for love, or will she live to survive?
This is going to be a fun series to read! I ended up starting and finishing book one in an evening. I did not read any reviews on this so had no clue just what kind of zombies I would be dealing with. I was pleased with Shannon's take on what caused the people to turn. I also like how they are not all mindless drones screaming for brains. This is a love story, a story of survival and a story of new beginnings. Pretty hard to surprise me when it comes to zombie stories, but Shannon did. It is well written and the characters well fleshed out for as short of a read it is.
Though not a social commentary outright on the desperation behind today's easy fix it thinking, it definitely was loud and clear that people, when desperate and lazy enough will do anything even blindly going along with the masses, to fix the flaws they perceive themselves having. Need to lose a little weight? Oh pop a pill, or in this case get a shot! If the doctor gives it to us it MUST be OK right? Tell that to our protagonist Mara who was lucky she was allergic to this quick fix. Remember everyone, if nothing is ever as easy as it looks and if it looks to good to be true, it most likely is!
This zombie apocalypse is just starting to get rolling in the first of this series. I am moving on to the next on "Bound" to find out! Edgar Allen Poe had it right... Nevermore!
______________
Interview by Kriss, the Cabin Goddess
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