Chanticleer Book Reviews

Author: kbrown

Grand Prize Winners Who Were Recognized at the 2014 Chanticleer Awards Gala
Congratulations to the Grand Prize Award Winners who were recognized at the 2014 Chanticleer Authors Conference Awards Gala!

How does the Chanticleer Blue Ribbon International Writing Competitions for BEST BOOKS work?
- Each work submitted enters into one of ten specific genre competitions:
  1. The CYGNUS Awards for SciFi, Speculative Fiction, Fantasy
  2. The JOURNEY Awards for Narrative Non-Fiction
  3. The M&Ms Awards for Mystery & Mayhem Novels
  4. The DANTE ROSSETTI Awards for YA and New Adult Fiction
  5. The CHAUCER Awards for Historical Fiction
  6. The LARAMIE Awards for Western, Pioneer, & Civil War Fiction
  7. The CHATELAINE Awards for Women’s & Romantic Fiction
  8. The CLUE Awards for Mystery, Thriller, Suspense Novels
  9. The PARANORMAL Awards for Paranormal and Supernatural Powers Fiction
  10. The SOMERSET Awards for Literary, Mainstream, & Contemporary Fiction
- These contests rotate throughout the year in order to facilitate the rounds of judging required for the competition
- Each work competed to be listed as a FINALIST within the genre competition (Finalists withstood 3 rounds of slush pile reading, a minimum of sixty pages for a work to move forward)
- Finalists are then announced in Chanticleer’s social media postings as results come in
- The OFFICIAL LIST of FINALISTS are posted on CBR’s website once all results are in
- Finalists then compete for FIRST IN CATEGORY positions within the genre competition
  - Works continue to drop out as “saggy middles,” plots begin to wander, poor dialog creeps in, and other telltale signs begin to show
  - An internal list of all works that were completely read by the judges and found to be of merit is made
- All completely read books are then evaluated by the all the genre competitions’ judges and individually ranked by best in category
- Works then compete for First in Category Positions for each genre
- Results are tallied and then announced in Chanticleer’s social media postings
- The OFFICIAL Listing of FIRST in CATEGORY titles and authors are then posted on the Chanticleer website
- The FIRST in CATEGORY works compete for the genre’s grand prize position
A combined team of CBR judges, librarians, editors, booksellers, and other publishing professionals select the GENRE GRAND PRIZE Award Winners and the OVERALL GRAND PRIZE Award Winner for the year. These works are recognized at the annual Chanticleer Authors Conference Awards Gala.

And now to recognize the works that were awarded the CHANTICLEER GRAND PRIZE BLUE RIBBONS in 2014!

Each of these works competed in the 2013 Chanticleer Blue Ribbon International Writing Competitions that were held in 2013.
- VIRTUES OF WAR by Bennett Coles took home the CYGNUS Grand Prize
- MORE FASTER BACKWARDS, REBUILDING DAVID B by Christine Smith to home the JOURNEY Grand Prize
- FATAL INDUCTION by Bernadette Pajer to home the M&M Grand Prize
- THE BOREALIS GENOME by Thomas P. Wise and Nancy Wise took home the DANTE ROSSETTI Grand Prize
- PROPOSITUM by Sean Curley took home the CHAUCER Grand Prize
- UNBROKE HORSES by Dale B. Jackson took home the LARAMIE Grand Prize
- CHOICES by Kate Vale took home the CHATELAINE Grand Prize
- RAGGEDY MAN by Clyde Curley took home the CLUE Grand Prize
- THE WATCHER by Lisa Voisin took home the PARANORMAL Grand Prize
- INDIVIDUALLY WRAPPED by Jeremy Bullian took home the SOMERSET Grand Prize
and (drumroll, please)
- THE PRODIGAL by Michael Hurley took home the OVERALL Grand Prize for Best Book
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Michael Hurley

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Chaucer Awards

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Christine Smith and Kiffer Brown

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Bernadette Pajer and WIlliam Dietrich

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Ben Coles accepting an award from Chanticleers founder Kiffer Brown

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Thomas P. Wise and Nancy Wise with Kiffer Brown

To SUBMIT YOUR WORK TO COMPETE IN THE CHANTICLEER BLUE RIBBON AWARDS FOR BEST BOOKS, click here!

You know that you want a CBR BLUE RIBBON!

All photos are compliments of Elaine Dillon. All rights reserved.[/fusion_builder_column][/fusion_builder_row][/fusion_builder_container]
January 1, 2015
The Prestigious NAACP 46th Awards Nominates “Remedy for a Broken Angel” by Toni Ann Johnson

Remedy for a Broken Angel by Toni Ann Johnson has been nominated for a prestigious 46th NAACP Image Award for 2014. The NAACP Image Awards is the nation’s premier event celebrating the outstanding achievements and performances of people of color in the arts, as well as those individuals or groups who promote social justice through their creative endeavors. Please click here for a direct link to the Official List of Nominees.

Ms. Johnson recently contacted us about the nomination and credited Chanticleer’s review for its helpful role in getting the work noticed and nominated. We are proud and honored to play a small part in her nomination for this coveted award.

The nominees were announced on December 9th at press conference in Beverly Hills, Calif. Ms.
Johnson’s work was nominated as an Outstanding Literary Work by a Debut Author in NAACP Awards Literary Division. Her work will compete with four other nominated works by debut authors for the trophy for Best Outstanding Literary Work by a Debut Author. Winners will be announced during the two-hour star-studded event which will broadcast LIVE on Friday, February 6, 2015 at 9pm/8c as a two-hour special. A one-hour pre-show will air live from the red carpet at 8pm/7c. http://www.naacpimageawards.net/

We are excited for Toni Ann Johnson and wish her the very best of luck for the recognition of her literary work that is an

“intense examination of the troubled personal histories of two beautiful and talented women of color. Their stories are told in alternating chapters which reveal the mother’s and her daughter’s attempts to reclaim and understand their broken pasts. Each chapter is a revelation into the pain and damage caused by unknown family secrets. Both women struggle with a legacy of shame and self-blame for the price they’re paying for never hearing the truth. Each must learn the lessons found in past years of failure to communicate.”

Johnson writes with authority about the world in which the characters in her novel live as they endure an endless struggle for the truth. She deftly exposes the many faces of patterns of abuse and how the “unseen hand” perpetuates and feeds the demons within in this literary work of contemporary women’s fiction from Nortia Press.

We will be standing by, watching and waiting, on February 6th, 2015 in hopes that Ms. Johnson will take home the coveted trophy!

To read Chanticleer’s review of “Remedy of a Broken Angel,” please click here.

To visit Toni Ann Johnson’s website, please click here.

Toni’s Red Carpet photo-op at the NAACP Awards Ceremony.

December 31, 2014
CBR Celebrates Movie Deal of Grand Prize Winner — “The Prodigal” by Michael Hurley

Michael Hurley, the author of The Prodigal, was presented with the $1,000 Grand Prize purse at the Chanticleer Awards Gala in September that was held in Bellingham, Washington. The awards gala is a part of the annual Chanticleer Authors Conference. Hurley was awarded the cash prize along with a custom embossed blue ribbon as the grand finale of the CBR Awards Ceremony. The ceremony recognizes CBR’s best book discoveries of the year.

CBR uses Editorial Reviews and International Writing Competitions to Discover Today’s Best Books.

The evening before, Diane Isaacs, an Emmy-nominated executive film producer, announced at the conference’s cocktail soiree that she had recently contracted The Prodigal for film rights. She explained that announcing the event at a cocktail party was apropos since it was at a cocktail party that she first heard about The Prodigal. Diane Isaacs met Kathryn Brown, the founder and president of Chanticleer Book Reviews, at a cocktail party at Brown’s home this past February. It was here when Diane asked Kathryn if she had read any good books lately. Kathryn told her about The Prodigal and promised to send her link to Chanticleer’s review of it. At the time, Kathryn didn’t know that Diane was an executive film producer and Diane didn’t know that Kathryn was a scout for media professionals. Luckily, the two hit it off and stayed in contact. They are currently working together on several projects.

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Dianne Isaacs

Diane Isaacs is an Emmy-nominated Hollywood producer and former head of Green Moon Productions for Antonio Banderas and Melanie Griffiths. She trained at NYU Film School and found her first job on The David Letterman Show; she later became associate producer of Miami Vice. She was head of Don Johnson Productions at Universal/ Paramount Studios before going to work for Banderas and Griffiths. She has produced several critically acclaimed films, including Imagining Argentina, starring Banderas and Emma Thompson, and Crazy in Alabama, starring Griffiths.

Isaacs said, “Chanticleer’s review is compelling. It got my attention and is a game-changer for The Prodigal by Michael Hurley.” After reading Chanticleer’s review, she immediately read Hurley’s work and was enthralled with it as was Brown. Six months later, an agreement was entered into by Hurley, Isaacs, and Brown.

A little statistical information about the film and publishing industry: only one percent of all novels are ever optioned for film. And only one percent of all books optioned ever make it out of development onto the silver screen. But as Hurley wrote about in his blog about “Tinseltown dreams:”

It’s a great honor to have a novel optioned for film….But when your dream is shared by people who are in the dream-making business, well, that’s really something…But dreams are funny things. They appear from nothing, refuse to die, and have the strangest habit of coming true at the darkest hour, when all seems lost. Sounds like a novel I know.”

To read Chanticleer’s review of The Prodigal by Michael Hurley, click here.

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Micheal Hurley

To visit Michael Hurley’s website, click here. [/fusion_builder_column][/fusion_builder_row][/fusion_builder_container]

December 30, 2014
An Editorial Review of “The Shelburne Escape Line” by Réanne Hemingway-Douglass

December 21, 2014
An Editorial Review of “Prepare to Come About” by Christine Wallace

Christine Wallace writes with great clarity and honesty–and at times, with humor–about weathering the highs and lows of navigating family, career, and love in her gripping memoir Prepare to Come About.

Wallace chronicles her wildly successful perinatal business that brought her accolades and awards for business achievement, along with celebrity radio and TV interviews, and other accouterments that come with the lifestyle. As the business garnered awards, it began assuming a life of its own.

Christine’s professional life skyrockets, while her family life plummets. Christine’s confesses to her readers that her children were often left to fend without their own mother as she worked to help other women become one and the conflict that she internalized. She unflinching shares the other not-so-bright sides that sometimes accompany commercial professional achievement: teenage children in crisis, endless exhausting days, family pressures, work demands, and, seemingly, black holes of chaos.

Her full-throttle lifestyle comes to a grinding halt at the zenith of her success beginning with the day she received an award at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Summit from President George W. Bush. The sharp contrasts between motherhood and professional accomplishment culminate during the awards ceremony in Washington, D.C. —thousands of miles away, one of her children must be admitted to the emergency room.

As the economic tides turn, uncontrollable events broadside her business causing a devastating professional aftershock that amplifies her personal heartaches. Christine and her family struggle with a loss of control of everything in their lives. Christine struggles with her loss of identity as a successful professional, a role model, a caring mother, and a supportive spouse while she battles with the economic recession, personal depression, and, worst of all, her own loss of trust in herself and her capabilities.

The fractured family makes an unorthodox choice that pivots them all into unfamiliar waters. Their lifeline comes in the form of a tall ship named Zodiac and its enigmatic captain. Life or death challenges and unforeseen moments of wonder and awe await Christine and her family. As they venture forth together in this new venture, the family members reconnect and rebuild their lives.

This memoir illuminates the struggles and chaotic lives that many contemporary families are challenged with and then goes further. It inspires readers to look beyond society’s conventional solutions and rationalizations to plot their own course.

Prepare to Come About by Christine Wallace is a story that restores faith in the strength and love of a family and will reaffirm your belief that a life lived on one’s own terms is the truest meaning of “achievement.”

December 5, 2014
An Editorial Review of “His Father’s Eyes, His Mother’s Manners” by Kenneth Stokes

In 2003, an inaugural flight took off from Kuala Lumpur International Airport, Malaysia, bound for Los Angeles. On board was a group of passengers who had nothing in common except that they were on a doomed flight. Few survived the crash on a remote island, but those who did would face the greatest challenge of their lives. His Father’s Eyes, His Mother’s Manners by Kenneth Stokes explores the nature of survival and the theme of inheritance in this literary work.

The details of the crash and the reasons for it are never revealed to the reader, because they aren’t important to the story. Why the downing of the flight isn’t immediately detected by search and rescue teams, and why, after days, no help has arrived, are inconsequential questions. Rather, the author uses the crash to examine in depth the aspects of each character’s personality characteristics along with revealing past events and experiences. Stokes explores the impact they have on the ability of each character to survive when faced with catastrophic events.

In the face of such extreme adversity, each character’s personality, their reactions to the situation in which they find themselves, affects the safety and survival of the entire group. Skills that are revered by a modern society are useless in this situation. People who have been led to believe that they are successful and deserving of the accolades they have earned in a more material, commercial society are now virtually helpless.

Stokes has chosen as his main character Glen Reyes, a man who travels the world in search of rare plants and understands how to survive without the trappings and conveniences of modern society. Reyes is a teacher and a seer, capable of leading others. His constant companion is a small boy who has lost both parents—his father prior to the crash, and his mother as a victim of the crash itself.

The boy sat next to Reyes during the flight, and from the beginning, he was thrilled to find in Reyes a man patient enough to answer the boy’s questions and to tell him stories from his family’s history. Once orphaned by the crash, he quickly comes to trust Reyes and then entreats Reyes to adopt him once they are rescued.

Through Reyes’ work to create shelter and sustenance, and to teach the other stranded victims survival skills, he helps them face their own weaknesses and turn them into strengths. As time passes and no one comes to rescue them, those who haven’t learned to assimilate and work together become more at risk, as well as more of a risk to the others.

The author presents a unique perspective on what might have been a more typical disaster story, weaving together truths taught from the harsh conditions the characters face, and from lessons learned from Reyes’ re-telling of ancient myths and historical events. Through his diverse cast of characters, Stokes reveals truths certain to resonate with his readers in “His Father’s Eyes, His Mother’s Manners.”

November 21, 2014
What is an Editorial Review? And How is It Different from a Review?
After the post The ABC’s of Making Book Reviews Work Harder at Promoting Your Book, we received several questions about what exactly are “Editorial Book Reviews” and how do they differ from “reviews.”

You asked. We answer.

There several types of reviews and reviewers:
- peer reviews by peer reviewers (other authors)
- editorial reviews by professional reviewers in the publishing industry
- manuscript overviews – pre-publication editorial reviews
- consumer reviews by individual consumers (readers)
An author requires all four to make a professional impression on potential readers because each type of review has its own targeted audience and its own aim. And since there are many shades of gray (no pun intended), authors will benefit from having reviews from all four categories.

Editorial Reviews

Editorial reviews tend to focus on the technical aspects (grammar, formatting, spelling, consistency, punctuation, POV, etc.) of a work along with the writing craft of the author by an editing professional. Other publishing or media professionals use these assessments when evaluating for works purchasing decisions or for distribution purposes.

Chanticleer Editorial Reviews:

Here at Chanticleer Book Reviews, our reviews combine an editorial assessment of a work: plot, structure, dialogue, characters, story development, along with grammar and punctuation with the readability of a work. The assessment is written by a professional editor after reading and evaluating the particular work.

Our review team is comprised of experienced editors selected for their expertise in specific genres and blended genres. It is extremely important that the person reviewing the work understands the genre of the work and what the readers of that particular genre are looking for in a “good read.” Thriller fans will be bored with cozy mysteries. Cozy mystery fans will be annoyed with the rapid fire of situations found in thrillers. Romance readers typically don’t enjoy the angst of many literary works that are known for not having “satisfactory or happy” endings. Some works overlap and blend genres which would go against the grain of some genre purists. Even though a professional editor can see merit or if there are problems in a work out of their expertise, we try to select the very best fit between a work and the reviewer.

Chanticleer Book Reviewers uphold the time-honored publishing traditions that readers have come to appreciate and expect from published works while maintaining an open-mindedness for emergent ideas, talent and creativity in the field of literature, media and publishing.

Manuscript Overviews

Editorial Reviews may also be manuscript overviews. Manuscript overviews are to help the author evaluate his work on a broad spectrum on the following issues before getting a line by line edit.

Manuscript Overviews editors look for:
- consistency in story
- POV
- grammatical errors
- style sheet issues
- character development
- dialogue issues
- plotting, plot holes
- pace of story
- theme consistency
- does the work need tightening or is it too staccato
I always like to ask the manuscript reviewers, “Does the work have a ‘beat to it?’ Does the story move along? Are the characters memorable?”

A manuscript overview can answer these questions in an objective and unbiased manner. The goal is to help the author work out issues before she has it line edited and proofed for publication.

On another note, a work can be technically correct, but a horridly boring read. We know, we’ve read them! Then there are works that are compelling to read even if they are bungled with grammatical and writing craft errors. The decisive point is that while an editor can correct errors in grammar, punctuation, POV, etc., they cannot “correct” a boring story. Creativity and Content are King and Queen. However, lack of editing or just bad editing can cause the reader to “stumble” over the text and put it down in favor of trying another read, another author. An intriguing storyline can benefit from a developmental editor – the most difficult level of editing. Most works can benefit enormously from a correct dose of developmental editing.

Remember: The editor sees what the author cannot. The story lives in the author’s mind. The editor sees the gaps between the author’s mind and the words on the page. It is almost impossible to “see” your own gaps because your mind automatically fills them in.

Peer Reviews by Peer Reviewers

For most fiction authors, this would be a review by another author who writes in the same genre. The most beneficial type of Peer Review would be an “endorsement” from an author in the next tier of sales above you—an author who can validate that your work is worthy of his/her endorsement. This type of review generally bespeaks, “If you like my novels, you will like this author’s work. Give this book a try.” The author making the “endorsement” is putting her reputation on the line for you. Request author endorsements judiciously and respect the author’s right to pass on the opportunity.

Consumer Reviews by Individual Consumers

Translation: Readers are Consumers! Authors create content. Readers consume content. Thank goodness!

The reviews posted on Amazon, or on Goodreads, or on websites are precious! These reviews are from individual readers who (hopefully) enjoy reading your works. Readers, on the whole, write very few reviews for many reasons: too busy, not really knowing the specifics of why they like the work, not having the background (read vocabulary) to discuss the work, or it is just too much trouble.

Authors need to make it easy as possible for readers to recommend their books by:
- creating links
- making use of editorial (read: professional) reviews that will give recreational readers the vocabulary from which to discuss and share their thoughts about their works
- thanking the busy reader for any feedback, LIKEs, +1’s etc.
- Post, comment, LIKE, and +1 on the reviewer’s social media posts and blog-posts.
Consumer Reviews are instrumental in creating BUZZ! You, the author, should endeavor to do anything that will make it easier for your readers to spread the word about your work.

Visit examples of how to use the different types of reviews on your author platform’s website.

Great sites to emulate are: Michael Hurley’s website and Alan Brenham’s website.

You will notice that they list peer reviewers (other authors), professional editorial reviews (Kirkus, Chanticleer, Foreword), and readers’ reviews together making it easy to scan for the preferred reviewer(s).

Please look for the next article from Chanticleer Book Reviews on Mastering Book Discovery Tools and Methods.
November 11, 2014
The ABCs of Making Book Reviews Work Harder at Promoting Your Book
Editorial book reviews are one of the most powerful tools available to authors for getting their books before the eyes of readers and media professionals.

Most authors do not take advantage of the opportunities that a book review presents to them–especially Editorial Reviews. Maybe they will read them, maybe they will acknowledge the reviewer, but rarely do they make full use of them. As an editorial book reviewer, I find this frustrating. So, here are my tips to make your book reviews work harder for you!

So, just what should an author do with reviews, especially editorial reviews?

If it is an Editorial Review, the very first thing to do is this:

A. Post an excerpt of the Editorial Review in the Editorial section on the title’s Amazon page.

You can do this through Amazon Author Central. Only the author or the publisher can post to the Editorial Reviews section.

Why should you post in the Editorial Section?

1) Having an Editorial Review in the Amazon section gives the title a little more “Amazon” awesomeness with Amazon search algorithms. And is there an author who couldn’t use a little more Amazon love?

2) Some readers only read “editorial reviews.” They do not put any credence into “customer reviewers” because they think that the authors friends and relatives posted the “customer reviews.” Some readers do not read “editorial reviews,” but at least this way you’ve got your bases covered.

3) Booksellers (indie bookstores) and librarians read the editorial reviews before they make a buying decision. Most professional purchasing agents and buyers do not read “customer reviews” for decision making purposes.

4) Post excerpts from your title’s positive (hopefully) editorial review in as many on-line places as you can: Barnes & Noble, BAM, Chapters, Smashwords, Kobo, etc. and definitely on Amazon–the world’s largest bookseller.

B. Post the entire review on your website (remember, you can post an except and then have the excerpt link to the full review). Then link to:

1. The reviewer’s website (for street cred) and for extra SEO (search engine optimization, i.e. Google ranking) goodness–if possible

2. Then post an excerpt on Google+ with a link back to your website’s full review
3. Post excerpt of the review on Facebook, Twitter, etc. with links back to your website’s review

C. Group your Editorial Reviews together on your website
- This will make it easier and faster for publishing professionals to find. Never forget that the first thing that a publishing professional (read: interviewer, librarian, agent, bookseller, etc.) will do is check out your website for information about you and your title. Make it easy for them! A good example of this is Michael Hurley’s website: http://www.mchurley.com/reviews/
D. Editorial Reviews increase Reader/Customer reviews
- Authors have told us is that Editorial reviews give their readers the language and vocabulary to discuss their works. Editorial reviews also help to set the tone of reader interaction.
- Authors have reported back to us that they noticed that after our reviews are posted that their number of their Reader/Customer reviews dramatically increase. Remember writing and crafting a review is hard work. You want to make writing a review for your work as effortless as possible.
- Authors have noticed that they receive more more comments and social media interaction when they have editorial reviews posted and published. Posted Editorial Reviews allow for busy readers to Tweet, Share, Link, and Comment on their favorite Editorial Reviews of titles.
- Editorial Reviews give authors something to post, blog, and chat about with their works that someone else has said. Authors can easily re-tweet, share, like, and comment on their Editorial Reviews without sounding “self-promoting.”
In a nutshell:

Editorial Reviews provide marketing collateral to authors and publishers, generate press releases, create content for social media posts, enhance author platforms, and drive promotional efforts.

Please look for our next Chanticleer Book Discovery article – coming to your email inbox soon!
November 7, 2014
Autumn News Update from Chanticleer Book Reviews

What an exciting fall here at Chanticleer!

We have so much good news that it is hard to know where to start!

Website CBR News

A new CBR Events Calendar

Check out our new “Where is Chanticleer?” Events Calendar on the homepage. It will list all the conferences, conventions, and book fairs where you can find Chanticleer. The Events Calendar will also have an ongoing listing of any classes or workshops that we are offering or presenting.

Did you know that you can find Chanticleer at ECWC conference, SiWC conference, and the Northwest Book Fair in October and the first weekend in November? Check the CBR Events Calendar for more information!

Featured Book Review on the CBR Homepage

Take a peek at this awesome new promotional tool that takes advantage of Chanticleer’s ever increasing web traffic. It features an enlarged graphic of the book cover , a short “bite” of the review with a direct link to the full CBR review−all on the home page of the Chanticleer website. The CBR review has links to sites where the book may be purchased and a link to the author’s or publisher’s website.

Featured Author on the CBR Homepage

Author platform branding can now benefit from a new enhancement tool that is featured on the homepage of Chanticleer’s website. Each Featured Author’s post will include the author’s branding photo, a link to the author’s website, and the link to CBR’s full review that has direct links to online booksellers.

CBR Blue Ribbon Grand Winners announced

Click on this link to see the titles and authors who were awarded the Chanticleer Blue Ribbon Grand Prize Awards for 2013. Each genre’s grand prize winner links to the First in Category winners! All award winning titles and authors were announced and recognized (if in attendance) at the Chanticleer Authors Conference and Awards Banquet held on Saturday, September 20th, 2014.

https://www.chantireviews.com/2014/09/23/the-official-list-of-the-chanticleer-2013-grand-prize-winners/

We are asking that the Members of the Chanticleer Community of Writers and Readers share and post the link. We want to create as much buzz as possible for the CBR award winning authors through collaboration and networking!

We will have photos of the event posted soon on the Conference section of the website.

Chanticleer Reviews Online Magazine – First Issue is Now LIVE!

We are excited about all the new opportunities that this magazine to CBR International Community of Authors and Readers!

The Chanticleer Reviews magazine will provide useful information along with inspiration by listing award winning authors and their titles along with CBR’s top reviews to make them easily accessible to publishing professionals, booksellers, literary agents, publishing houses, distributors, and to potential new readers.

The platform that we are utilizing for our online magazine is ISSUU known for its ease of “sharability” on social media and a widely utilized within the global internet community.

ISSUU offers an exciting new way to engage with others with its ISSUU Clip tool. Now you can easily share and comment on any part of the Chanticleer Reviews publication that inspires you. Click the blue outlines to interact with clips published in Chanticleer Reviews online magazine. Click the PLUS sign to see clips made by fellow readers or create your own. Sharing reviews or author spotlights is easy. All you have to do is open the magazine, go to the page you want, and select share from the current page. You can then tweet, pin, and post to your hearts’ content on any social media platform you’d like. Directions are easy to follow and to “close”the magazine, simply click your “escape” key.

It is easy to share your favorite reviews and articles with the ISSUU CLIP. Now you can share and comment on any part of the Chanticleer Reviews magazine that inspires you.

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October 16, 2014
An Editorial Review of “An Ex to Grind in Deadwood” by Ann Charles

The Deadwood Mysteries by Ann Charles is a wickedly funny paranormal mystery romance series that takes place in its namesake city in South Dakota.

Meet Violet “Spooky” Parker, a sassy single-mom real estate agent who is earning a reputation for selling haunted houses and finding dead bodies. And, now her agency’s boss is advertising that “she’ll show you a magic place that you’ll love…” on an interstate billboard. He also has her lined up to appear in a reality TV show featuring ghosts.

But, Vi has more than her reputation to worry about when she gets a unsettling call from a mysterious women insisting that they meet immediately. When she and her sidekick Harvey arrive at the appointed place, all they find are ticking clocks, a shrunken head, and yet another dead body.

Vi swears not to get involved especially after she is warned to keep out of the way by the police detectives on the case. She especially swears off the case when her ex decides to make a reappearance in her life. However, when she finds evidence that links her young son to the victim, all bets are off now that her child maybe in mortal danger.

The Deadwood Mysteries offer a welcomed new twist for cozy mystery lovers! Fresh writing, lovable quirky characters, a good dose of randiness, peculiar situations (I have no idea how Ann Charles comes up with this stuff, but it makes for an entertaining read), and clever surprises at every twist and turn. An Ex to Grind keeps the laughs coming or the suspense building. Get ready for another hilarious and spooky suspenseful read from Ann Charles.

[Reviewer’s Note: I LOVE the ending.]

August 29, 2014