Full Moon in December

Full Moon in December

Ebook © 2009 by Lisa Rusczyk

ISBN: 978-1-897532-84-3

Publisher: Club Lighthouse Publishing

151 pp.

About the book: “Kayla was so young when her new mom took her. Now she is sixteen and wants to have a real man in the basement. Her new mom, who tells her she can call her Elle now that she's sixteen, says she can pick the next one to collect. Sam was not the one she wanted. She wanted Kelly, the handsome football star. He was something to think about, and Kayla does. All the time. If only she could convince Sam to tell her more about Kelly. Kayla knows that Sam doesn't want to be in the basement, but she also knows that what Elle is doing is important. Kayla doesn't want Elle to die, but what can she do? Elle is changed. She is special. Kayla doesn't want to be changed, but she doesn't want to lose Elle either. All she wants is to know the world. She'd never even seen a highway until a week ago. That was when she had to bury the bad man Mike in the earth with the roots of the plants. Elle and the Aunties and Uncle Bingo all say her abilities with the earth are unique. Kayla doesn't know what that means. In this second book of the night person series, Sam must face his fears and his strength. Will he ever again find the peace of the moonlight? Will his captors ever let him go? What does this "changed" person want from him anyway? He only has time to figure all this out. Kelly, the young night person he instructed so long ago, may still come to his rescue without him having to do anything he doesn't want to. But if circumstances change, what decisions will he make?”

This book picks up a few years after Sam the Night Person ended. It has some wonderfully interesting characters and plots but it took awhile for the story pieces to come together. Dall, Jeffrey, and Rose are in Montana, Sam and Kelly in North Carolina, and others elsewhere with different story lines that are seemingly unrelated until late in the book. Everything is explained and everyone gets together eventually but it’s a twisty tale to get there. Good book for fantasy lovers. I do recommend you read Sam the Night Person first.  It really helped to understand this one.

I was provided with an ebook copy by Lisa Rusczyk.

Dino Vicelli, Private Eye in a World of Evils

Dino Vicelli,

Private Eye in a World of Evils

© 2009 by Lori Weiner

ISBN: 978-1-4349-0294-8

Publisher: Dorrance Publishing Co., Inc.

SRP: $10.00

91 pp.

About the book: “This story transports the reader to an alternate-reality version of New York City, in which talking dogs interact regularly with humans. The hero, Dino Vicelli, is a private investigator who just happens to be a sharply dressed Italian greyhound with a great fondness for cigars. He takes on what initially appears to be a routine missing person case but soon finds himself in the midst of a sinister plot that involves kidnapping, murder, and bizarre scientific experiments aimed at controlling the world. As he investigates this strange case, Dino repeatedly encounters mortal danger, while also finding romance with a beautiful blonde Afghan dog.

With its unusual twists on the traditional detective story genre, this book blends elements of humor, suspense, and fantasy.”

This was definitely a different book. I’m not sure who the intended audience is, but I suspect teens or a little younger as I found the book rather juvenile and it has several illustrations. Some of the characters are dogs and others are humans and sometimes it was hard to remember who was who. The plot was good but the story skipped around a bit. If you like fantasy stories with a different twist, you may like this. It wasn’t one of my favorites.....but then again, I'm a cat person.

This book was provided to me for review by Carol Fass Publicity and Public Relations.

Sam the Night Person

Sam the Night Person
© 2009 by Lisa Rusczyk

A Club Lighthouse Publishing E-Book
177 pp.

About the book: "Sam stays up all night, drinks coffee without pause, chain smokes cigarettes and secretly talks to the moon. Azzy knows it, but doesn’t know why or how.

Azzy has been having a series of obsessive daydreams about a young man named Sam. He seems to be a magician of sorts. All she knows is that she can’t eat, sleep, drive or work. All she can do is think of Sam. She is in love, and she must find him.

She follows a daydream to a Colorado lodge where she has seen Sam in her mind. To her astonishment, he appears there the very next day. He doesn’t believe her, but who would? Is she crazy?

Sam and Azzy have a connection. Where did it come from? And who is behind it all? Of course, there’s always a reason for everything. Azzy’s daydreams were no accident.

Will they be able to withstand the man behind the torment? After years being apart, they find themselves facing the most destructive man of water magic they have ever known. He threatens their love. Together in heart and apart by necessity, they must find a way to stop him."

I have to admit I was hesitant to read this. The title suggests yet another vampire story and I am NOT into vamps. I was pleasantly surprised to find a hero and heroine of a completely different nature. Yes, Sam is a night person, but he draws his supernatural abilities from the moon, not from the blood of innocent victims. He’s one of a small race of people who live under the radar. There are others who are day people and derive their powers from the sun, and water and earth people. Although not necessarily friends, they co-exist peacefully for the most part. Azzy is a special kind of psychic who can get into the minds of these people but she doesn’t realize it yet. All she knows is she’s going crazy because all she does is daydream about the unknown Sam. The daydreams she has don’t make any sense to her and yet she’s fallen in love with him. She travels to Colorado, meets him, and finds out her daydreams are true. But does he believe her and return her feelings? And why did someone make her dream about him in the first place? I can’t say too much more without giving away the plot but I did enjoy the story. The characters are interesting with lots of good dialogue, the plot different, and the ending dramatic. I’m looking forward to reading more in Lisa’s next story, Full Moon in December.

I was provided with an ebook to review by Lisa Rusczyk

Books I've read this week - Legacy

Legacy © 2008 by Cayla Kluver, Re-released by Amazon Encore 2009

About the book: “As a dark rivalry between two kingdoms threatens to erupt into war, a willful princess must decide between duty and desire.

Obligated to wed her father’s choice in successor to the throne, seventeen-year-old Princess Alera of Hytanica believes that she is being forced into the worst of all possible fates – a marriage to the arrogant and hot-tempered Steldor. When the attractive and mysterious Narian arrives from enemy lands bearing secrets and different ideas about women’s roles in the world, Alera’s private desires threaten to destroy the kingdom. The discovery of Narian’s shocking past plunges Alera into a shadowy world of palace intrigue and ancient blood feuds, leaving her unsure of what to believe in, or whom to trust.

Legacy introduces sixteen-year-old novelist Cayla Kluver. Marked by sharp dialogue and dramatic complexity the belie the writer’s age, this memorable page-turner brings a fresh, new sensibility to age-old questions of duty and inheritance, and a young heroine’s quest to find her own voice.”

First, I have to say, all the time I was reading the book, one thought kept going through my mind, “A girl wrote this when she was just 14!” I find that amazing as the story line, characters, and dialogue are well developed and would rival any other book I’ve read. The heroine in only 17 so I’m sure that helped give the author an edge even though the story takes place at a much earlier, medieval time. Her descriptions of people, places, customs, foods, and clothing are very complete.

I think this is a very good YA fantasy romance that teen girls will find easy to relate to. The story centers on just-turned-17 Princess Alera. It’s the custom in her country that she must pick a husband by her 18th birthday. It’s also the custom that women can’t rule so whomever she chooses will become king and she’ll just be their consort. Her father has already decided Lord Steldor would be the best ruler based on his military experience, family, wealth, etc., but she doesn’t like him because he’s a braggart and condescending. When the young stranger Narian comes into their lives, she’s very taken by him even though no one else approves or trusts him. In his world, the women rule and he respects that. She has to decide to follow her heart or her father’s wishes.

There were several things that aren’t explained in the story such as what happened when Alera’s bodyguard, London, was a prisoner of the Cokyrians and how he escaped. I hope the sequel fills in some of the blanks. The book ends on a somewhat abrupt and sad note making you want more. The story continues in Kluver’s next book, Allegiance, due out later this year. Legacy will be released by Amazon Encore on August 18th.