Chanticleer Book Reviews

Category: Reviews

  • SUMMER THUNDER: Magic at Myers Beach Book 1 by Alan B. Gibson – Small Town Romance, Urban Fantasy, Fairy Romance

     

    Lily struggles to keep her business, her son, and her home. But in Summer Thunder, first book of the Magic at Myers Beach series by Alan B. Gibson, Lily’s luck begins to turn as she connects with the enigmatic beach king Theos.

    With the help of her friend and fellow business owner Greta “the Witch,” Lily tries to revitalize her fairy-themed decoration and figurine store. Her divorce from her abusive ex-husband Kelly is pending, and she must present a calm and reliable home to ensure full custody of her son Jamie. But when her kindly landlord, Ms. Coffey, passes away, she’s confronted with two options: lose her prime business location and upstairs apartment, or somehow make enough money to buy the building herself.

    Enter Theos, a kitesurfing champion with adoring fans. He shows true appreciation for Lily’s fairy figurines, bringing her many more sales. But more importantly, Theos becomes deeply interested in Lily herself. Their romance begins on rocky footing, as Theos has a strange air about him and seems to vanish whenever a storm comes into town. But when he begins modelling for a new fairy figurine– aptly named Theos, the King– the two are drawn inevitably closer.

    Though she succeeds at turns, Lily confronts ever-growing problems, testing her determination.

    She must keep Kelly from influencing her son and jeopardizing Lily’s chance at a happy family. And as Theos becomes a more serious figure in her life, Lily will have to decide how much of a leap of faith she’s willing to take–who she’ll end up becoming.

    Meanwhile, the town of Myers Beach is facing change of its own.

    This story keeps a tongue-in-cheek attitude as it tackles real-world issues. Powerful national banks sweep up local institutions, bullies wield the term ‘fairy’ against boys like Jamie who don’t follow their standards of masculinity, and the lives of people like Lily risk being seriously upended for the sake of someone else’s real-estate investments. While Summer Thunder keeps a lighter tone, it doesn’t shy away from serious topics.

    The two perspectives, Lily and Theos, create an engaging balance of information for the reader.

    While Lily tries to shape her own life, Theos shoulders an even more dire burden–the lives of his people. As crown prince of a true fairy kingdom, Theos deals with the aftermath of their most vital resource­–fairy dust–being poisoned. He must find a new source of its core components, but thankfully, he’s already noticed a few in Myers Beach.

    He works to set up a home for sick fairies around the town, while courting Lily and debating when–and how–to reveal his true nature. Often, readers will see the disconnect in Theos and Lily’s understanding of the world. Neither fully knows the other, especially as Theos presents such a larger-than-life persona, giving space for conflict to grow between them. Will they be able to overcome their differences, and truly connect as themselves?

    This story shines with a charming setting and lively cast of characters.

    Gibson’s descriptions place readers in the cool spray of kitesurfing and the quaint boardwalk of Myers Beach. Lily lives in a town of friendships and rivalries, with vibrant and unique characters to flesh out the story around her. While the prose sometimes explains more than it should, and dramatic threads don’t always have enough time spent building tension, the characters are driven and will pull readers easily into their schemes.

    For those interested in urban fantasy, beach-side romance, and the adventures of plucky local fairies, Summer Thunder will be a strong opening to the Magic at Myers Beach series.

     

    Chanticleer Book Reviews 4 star silver foil book sticker

  • PARALLEL SECRETS by ML Barrs – Murder Mystery, Small Town Mystery, Amateur Sleuths

     

    In the small Missouri town of Walkers Corner, it seems everyone has a dark secret. In Parallel Secrets by ML Barrs, a TV journalist comes to town to do a magazine piece on a missing girl and begins uncovering many of those hidden stories.

    Motivated by feelings of guilt for not following up on a previous unsolved case, Vicky Robeson’s joins the search for the missing child. She’s tenacious in her investigation. As a TV station journalist currently between jobs, she has well-honed investigative skills, specifically in her ability to wheedle stories from even the most reluctant people. She’s familiar with Walkers Corner; and  as a reporter for a St. Louis TV station, she covered the case of a never-identified mystery girl. She believes the two cases are connected. The similarities that link these cases to her own experiences as a child make her unable to let this new story go.

    Safe to say, her investigating is not welcomed by most of the locals in this close-knit town.

    But one by one, Vicky finds ways to pull details about both cases from virtually everyone, using her eye for detail to wedge people out of silence. Vicky’s quest is not without personal danger, however, as she finds long-buried secrets, crimes that some are willing to kill to keep buried.

    In the midst of her reporting, Vicky finds her relationship with Pete, her new love interest who has traveled with her in his RV, to be both a blessing and another challenge.

    Pete keeps wanting a deeper relationship, while Vicky is reluctant. In addition, she’s considering taking a TV job in Texas that would put an additional strain on the couple. Even though Pete is perfect for her now, she’s not sure he’s perfect when it comes to her future.

    Parallel Secrets is a literary jigsaw puzzle, the kind that remains unclear until the final piece is put in place. This is an enthralling read for anyone who enjoys a good-to-the-last-drop mystery.

     

  • ONE Of FOUR: World War One Through the Eyes of an Unknown Soldier by Travis Davis – Historical Fiction, WWI, Family Relationships

     

    One of Four: World War One Through the Eyes of an Unknown Soldier by Travis Davis is a compassionate and intimate portrait of the tenuous and unforgiving First World War, as shown through the eyes of an American soldier on France’s front lines.

    Based on real people and events in 1918 France, One of Four begins with a young French girl, Camille, who stumbles upon a diary lying next to an unknown American soldier. He was killed among his comrades in a German ambush near the banks of the Aire River, as he tried to protect his fellow soldiers. When Camille comes of age, she leaves her hometown to seek a better life in Paris. There, she is killed after joining a German resistance group. But before her death, she tucked the soldier’s diary in her Bible and hid it in a local bookstore.

    Decades later, a man by the name of Walter travels to France with his son, Alex, to whom he’d become estranged after the painful divorce from Alex’s mother. He hopes this will be a journey of healing and exploration and that their time together will revive their shaky relationship. While there, Alex purchases the Bible left by Camille many years ago. By reading the hidden diary entries of the soldier together, Alex and Walter’s relationships takes an unexpected turn.

    One of Four deftly alternates between Walter and Alex’s story—detailing their growth, reflections, musings, and dialogues—and the soldier’s diary records of his experiences in France.

    The unknown soldier is among the first American to leave the United States to fight in Europe, and his diary entries recounts the excitement and joy that he and his comrades felt upon boarding the ship for France—even as an air of uncertainty casts a long shadow over their lives.

    His narrations relay the enthusiastic reception the US military received in France, but the entries take on a more somber tone as he details the vivid brutality of the war amidst harsh weather conditions. Hiding in desolate muddy trenches, the soldier is worn down by the constant sound of cannons, rigorous combat training and drills, and the sorrowful deaths of his friends from disease and shell fire alike. The author presents these experiences to readers in a succinct and often fervent manner. His wish was to return home, and although his wish was not granted, his thoughts and feelings live on in the diary, even as his remains are laid to rest in the Tomb of The Unknown Soldier back in his home country.

    Davis asserts, “Kindness can be found even in the worst conditions known to man; you don’t have to look far. The compassion that lies in a man’s heart is, at times, overwhelming, and those same hearts are trained to kill their fellow man.”

    The text demonstrates this idea impeccably, with readers retracing the steps of the unknown soldier in the period between 1917-1918, through the bloodshed for which the war was infamous. Yet, his narrations provide an unwaveringly honest panorama of his dedication and loyalty to his fellow soldiers in the face of tremendous challenge.

    This powerfully told tribute to a brave American soldier is not only emotionally resonant but also a worthy demonstration of the resilience of the human spirit in the face of insurmountable tragedy. Here, literary fiction and historical threads are woven together expertly, as the writer whisks us back to a bleak era, one that implores us to reflect and learn as we draw strength from those who came before us. Ultimately, One of Four by Travis Davis is a page-turner whose payoff upon its conclusion is well worth a read.

     

  • THE SILVER WATERFALL: A Novel of the Battle of Midway by Kevin Miller – WWII Historical Fiction, Battle of Midway, Military History

     

    In The Silver Waterfall, author retired U.S. Navy Captain Kevin Miller reveals the intricate and deadly turns of the Battle of Midway, a combat shaped by transforming warfare, and one that would in turn shape the rest of WWII’s Pacific Theater.

    After their surprise attack on Pearl Harbor, the Japanese Navy seeks to draw American aircraft carriers into an ambush, to secure Japanese power over the Pacific. In a time of great upheaval for warfare technology, aircraft carriers dominated both sea and sky. So, to destroy the USS Enterprise, Yorktown, and Hornet, Chūichi Nagumo— commander of the Japanese First Air Fleet— brings to bear his own four carriers, HIJMS Akagi, Hiryū, Kaga, and Soryu.

    But the Americans had cracked the Japanese communication codes, so as the First Air Fleet launches their provoking attack against the Midway Islands, the American carriers are already steaming into position. From June 4th to June 6th of 1942, planes filled the skies above the remote Pacific waters, both American and Japanese pilots dashing back and forth, knowing that either they sink the enemy’s carriers, or they’ll have none of their own to return to.

    Author Miller, author of the highly-rated Raven One trilogy of contemporary carrier aviation, draws on his experience as a former carrier-based fighter pilot to place the readers into the shoes of commanders, strategists, pilots, and gunners alike.

    Readers get a glimpse into the intricate planning and communication involved with this sort of naval warfare, as each character struggles to glean the information vital to their own success— and survival. This is a warfare of radio, fuel tank ranges, hand-drawn plotting boards, and cloud cover. Characters clash over the right move, knowing that any mistake could cost their lives and more.

    Amidst all this detailed information, however, The Silver Waterfall takes time to shown the humanity of its characters. Though specific moments and personal dynamics are fictional, each character was a real person in the Battle of Midway. Their little conflicts with each other, their moments of bonding, and the lives that they hope against the odds to return to, become palpable. And every bit of personal charm lives under the shadow of their next flight.

    From the bunks of the aircraft carriers to the cockpit of a Devastator torpedo plane, neither characters nor readers can escape an imposing sense of danger, the ever-present possibility that someone’s unique, full life will be snuffed out in a cloud of black smoke.

    The Silver Waterfall takes on a massive amount of information, given the complex nature of real naval warfare.

    Readers will have to pay close attention to understand the events of the battle, as planes take flight time and time again. Thankfully, Miller provides a list of commanders and naval jargon/acronyms, so those unfamiliar with this specific setting will be able to grasp the details. As well, a few helpful diagrams throughout the book keep locations clear— a luxury not afforded to those in the battle itself.

    Though each side pores over their plans, information is precious and incomplete. The Japanese strategist Genda argues with his superiors as they wait for confirmation on the presence of enemy carriers, just as John Waldron— Commanding Officer of Torpedo Eight— pleads for a fighter escort, knowing that death awaits his pilots without one. But even solid plans have fractures and crack apart amidst tracer rounds and enemy pursuit.

    The dynamics between different groups of pilots stand out amongst the chaos, with torpedo planes (“torpeckers”) and bombing squadrons relying on scouts and fighters to bring them into— and more importantly out of— enemy fire. Tensions rise with every miscommunication and bad decision, as everyone must grapple with the fact that they hold someone else’s life in their hands.

    The Battle of Midway is filled with personal weight. Characters on both sides become easy to empathize with.

    The Japanese pilots are much like the American ones— sent to kill and die for the sake of their country. They share the fear of death, the thirst for vengeance as their comrades fall out of the sky or into the flames of a dying carrier, and heartbreaking moments of grief— all the more horrible for the fact that they can’t take but a moment away from the fight.

    Knowing these characters at a personal level makes each flight gripping. Will Taisuke Maruyama somehow escape the storm of anti-aircraft fire from the American ships? Is Bill Evans really going to follow his CO Waldron to his death? Will Lloyd Childers ever get to pay Darce the money he owes him? Or, will these young men be lost? Readers will feel the importance of each answer they receive.

    More than anything, The Silver Waterfall confronts the horrific impact this battle has on the people who wage it.

    Grief turns to rage, the flames fanned by racism, national supremacy, and the unrelenting, unpredictable chance of death. Miller shows that for every kill made in the name of a fallen warrior, a soldier on the other side etches another name into their memory. But to speak of rage and revenge alone wouldn’t do these pilots and gunners justice.

    It takes monumental feats of bravery for these soldiers to get in their planes and fly into danger. Readers sit with them in those terrible seconds of watching a compatriot go down, and the true comradery of the pilots looking out for one another. They yearn for the glory of a hit on an enemy carrier. They act for their cause despite death all around them. And in an ocean of violence and terror, their humanity, their compassion reminds the reader that these are not just soldiers— they’re boys, some no older than nineteen.

    But this story saves its deepest sorrows until the quiet after the battle, as the characters themselves must do the same.

    With pathos and intricate detail, The Silver Waterfall makes for a fulfilling read.

    Fans of historical fiction will appreciate the clear amount of research that went into this novel, which illuminates the back and forth aircraft carrier warfare in one of its earliest and most impactful forms. Readers of all sorts will end the book with a greater understanding of one of WWII’s most pivotal battles— an understanding both factual and emotional.

    The Silver Waterfall by Kevin Miller won Grand Prize in the 2023 CIBA Hemingway Awards for 20th Century Wartime Fiction.

     

  • APOCALYPSE In OUR TIME: The Accountant’s Apprentice Book 3 by Dennis M. Clausen – Paranormal, Metaphysical Fiction, Contemporary Social Issues

     

    In The Accountant’s Apprentice III: Apocalypse In Our Time by Dennis M. Clausen, the director of a homeless shelter sees subtle changes in the community around him, changes that are both worrisome and bizarre—portending a change to the world beyond human understanding.

    The story of Justin Moore, director of a homeless shelter in San Diego, continues. In the previous books in the series, he has met individuals who seem to be not quite of this world. A.C., a mysterious man in a wheelchair who played an important role earlier in the trilogy, is gone as of the third book, but his wheelchair is now being used by another man— seemingly catatonic and with no name. This man is known only as “Levi” by the staff at the bus depot where he was found, but Justin finds there is something more to him beneath the surface. Levi seems to have certain things in common with A.C., but with unique abilities. Justin is warned by a woman that the man he knows as Levi may be dangerous, but is he? And who is she, anyway?

    So many questions are raised, and Justin has few if any answers. In the previous book, he saw a demonic army gathering on the horizon. Was that real? A.C. had given Justin a limited ability to see the future, and a horrifying promise of things to come:

    “No one else saw what I saw that day. They only saw the huge, monstrous tsunami wave approaching from the west and engulfing the Mission Beach Pier. They did not see the demonic army forming on the horizon and threatening every living thing on the shore.

    “… A. C. did what he said he would do. He used me as his camera to see present events—but also future possibilities. What I saw on the pier was not only a vision of the tidal wave that was approaching from the west. It was a vision of the future and the demonic forces of pure evil that were aligned against all life on the planet Earth.”

    Apocalypse in Our Time gives us a peek into the future— or perhaps a peek into our own minds. A story of the world coming of age, so to speak, with menace on the horizon and possible salvation, if such a thing can exist.

    As this story continues, the narrative becomes deeply intriguing. The beginning reintroduces readers to the setting and characters, and once this final part of the series begins in earnest it gives us a sense of wonder and mystery, while at the same time the alarming scenario escalates around Justin. The intensifying plot echoes through well-fleshed-out characters like Angelina, a young girl living in the homeless shelter, fascinated by Shakespeare and his works, who explores her own unique abilities—and connection with Levi.

    End of the world, or something more? That is left to the reader to decide. Certainly, after the events that the characters see and experience, the world—and they—will never be the same. Dennis Clausen’s third work in his trilogy is both ephemeral and thoughtful, making the reader wonder about the end of the world well after the end of the book.

     

  • R&R: A Feast of Words by Maria Giuseppa – Contemporary Fiction, Friendships & Relationships, Covid-19 Fiction

     

    In R&R: A Feast of Words by Maria Giuseppa, two life-long friends, Rachele and Raffaele, connect through letters and emails during the early stages of COVID quarantine.

    Their conversations–fusing with each other and evolving rapidly through life stages–culminate in a long-overdue reunion and a trip to Portugal and Italy. Through the loss of a spouse, divorce, parenting struggles, and the apocalyptic reality of COVID-19, two real-as-life characters–oft-neglected in their daily lives–share their thoughts with one another across an intimate distance.

    Simple and elegant, Giuseppa’s heartrending storytelling will inspire readers to live with intention and purpose–and perhaps, to cook more delicious food and write more meaningful letters.

    R&R is a small, close story. With only two active characters, readers come to inhabit their daily monotony and to crave adventure and companionship alongside them. Despite each letter’s lack of timestamps, the current of time is constantly pressing forward in the background. Holidays come and go, tragedies break and are healed, even as some days feel never-ending.

    At first, Rachele’s and Raffi’s confined spaces are palpably claustrophobic. “I think the world as we knew it no longer exists,” Rachele admits. But as time moves on and they realize there is more to their friendship than meets the eye, the world opens for them in both exciting and dangerous ways. Despite how long they’ve known each other and the correspondence that connects them, they realize that there is no end to the newness they uncover in one another.

    In the end, their submission to vulnerability leaves them raw and at the mercy of their instincts, freeing them to live unabashed in their tenderness for one another.

    While an undercurrent of romance keeps Rachele and Raffi drifting ever closer, this novella transcends any superficial sort of tale.

    This is a story of two people who belong with each other no matter what form their belonging takes. Although hints of “long lost love” appear, the reader feels that no romance is necessary for a satisfying ending. As Raffaele admits to Rachele, “For the first time in my life, I am longing for something other than a lover. I want a true friend. You are the one.” This insistence on friendship continues throughout the novella, despite the romance that threatens their close connection.

    They support each other through hardship, coach each other through difficult decisions, and love ceaseless despite mistakes and wrongs. With their letters, the characters create space for vulnerability and cultivate a communal understanding of selfhood despite the physical and social barriers that inhibit their ability to share their lives together.

    R&R will linger in readers’ hearts for a lifetime, urging them to intentionally reflect on their own intimate details, including relationships, adventures, faith, regrets, secrets, loss, politics, trauma, travel, parenthood, and so much more.

    The form of letters allows the characters, as well as readers, to “strip away boundaries and…share” the most vulnerable parts of their lives. Giuseppa weaves together the intricacies of the characters seamlessly into a world all their own. When readers reach the final page and leave Rachele and Raffi behind to finish their glorious adventure, they’ll be moved to feast on their own blessings as well, moving toward openness and belonging.

     

  • THE SOWER Of BLACK FIELD by Katherine Koch – Historical Fiction, WWII, Religion & Community

     

    In The Sower of Black Field, Katherine Koch’s historical fiction novel, Father Viktor Koch— a 67-year-old Catholic priest— presides over a monastery in a small German village, as the Nazi regime sweeps through the country.

    The time is April, 1941. Fr. Viktor’s order, the U.S.-based Passionists, built the monastery eight years prior, providing employment for most of the villagers and remaining a symbol of their faith.

    Fr. Viktor has lived in Europe for over 20 years, but balances his love of Germany, its land, its mysticism, with his American roots. He will need all his personal and religious resources over the next four years as the Nazis take hold in the village and, later, the Americans come to “de-Nazify” the town and hold its people responsible for the horrors of the Holocaust.

    The village is far more Catholic than Nazi, even as the regime does its best to turn its citizens away from their faith.

    They take over the monastery despite Fr. Viktor’s strenuous efforts to hold onto it. Their next major push is to remove crosses from the schools. That measure is met with a petition from the villagers, a move that threatens to land them in prison.

    We get to meet several villagers who personify the conflict between their way of life and Nazi fanaticism.

    Norbert and his wife and family run the local bakery, a central food supply to the villagers. His anti-Nazi stance threatens his life as well as destroying this important community resource. Helene, a woman who lost her husband who served in Hitler’s army, will do anything to protect her two sons from their forced enrollment in the Nazi youth corps.

    Klaus, her oldest son, endures his militarist, cult-like corps training. Hans, the youngest, remains true to his Catholic faith. This look into the indoctrination of Germany’s children remains one of the most powerful aspects of this novel.

    Among the Nazis, the party official Seiz becomes the lens through which we see even the most dedicated member recoil when he finds out first-hand the horror of the Holocaust— as it reaches deep into the village in a horrifying, unexpected way.

    Faith in God, and the testing of that faith, is interwoven throughout the novel.

    As Nazi horrors close in on the village, the heavily religious community finds itself questioning how a just and merciful God can allow these acts to happen. Even Fr. Viktor must dig deeply into his faith to answer the unknowable “framework” of God’s plan.

    When the war nears its end, the town becomes flooded with refugees from other parts of Germany. Stories of Russian atrocities and rumors of American “gangsters” flood the small, outlying town. When liberty finally comes, the conquerors impose their own set of rigors on the people, further testing the faith of adults and children alike. Fr. Viktor is stressed to his limit as he becomes the village’s voice.

    The Sower of Black Field shows us everyday Germans as peace-loving people of faith trying to survive during WWII, a side of that terrible conflict not often shown.

    A picture emerges from this novel of people caught up in a conflict not of their making, resisting as they can from its evils, and finding strength in the courageous example of their pastor.

     

  • TO PLEDGE ALLEGIANCE: A WW1 Windy City Novel by Robert W. Smith – Historical Fiction, WWI, Chicago History

     

    In To Pledge Allegiance: A WWI Windy City Novel by Robert W. Smith, Conor Dolon, a defense lawyer, investigates the suspicious death of his friend, and ends up unearthing horrifying family secrets as well as deeply ingrained espionage activities.

    Conor, Irish-American living in Chicago, receives shocking news. His wife Maureen has been abducted by a bunch of vigilantes walking the streets of the city and sporting flag armbands. The previous evening, Maureen had agreed that her outspoken support of the IRB (Irish Republican Brotherhood) in Ireland and her neutrality actions were becoming risky given the unpredictability of the current political climate.

    Even when she eventually returns unharmed, the police officer who found her did not detain the kidnappers despite their evident presence. As Conor subsequently discovers, his wife’s captors questioned her attitude toward the Kaiser, involvement in Irish groups, and allegiance in the case of war.

    When a friend is shot during a warehouse burglary, Conor is once more taken aback. He later finds out from a nurse that, despite the hospital saving his life, he unexpectedly passed away from an infection.

    This friend had not previously suffered fever symptoms, so the nurse finds that stated cause strange. Conor goes out to look into his friend’s death, and bumps into a woman he’d saved earlier from hooligans pestering her during a peaceful demonstration. She turns out to be the daughter of one of his primary suspects, a ruthless and vindictive man who leads a prominent gang. But her elegant sense of style rapidly wins Conor over, almost shattering his marriage to his wife.

    And as information about the affair surfaces, Conor’s wife reveals a fifteen year old secret about her involvement with one of Conor’s close friends from his early years in Chicago—the man who had helped him navigate the quagmire of the city’s politics.

    The events of World War I in Europe in 1917 serve as the backdrop, instilling this story with real historical elements such as the Department of Justice approving a group of criminals and even giving them badges to carry out their violence.

    An immigrant family of well-known Irish Republicans—the Clan-na-Gael—has also been well depicted. The author carefully shows the role that many organizations played in Chicago, a city which has been at the epicenter of powerful movements opposing the nation’s war policy. Readers fascinated with history and World War politics will appreciate the richness of material in this book, including details on the largest-ever patriotic group’s endeavor, fully backed by the US government, to suppress opposition and foster nationalism.

    Robert W. Smith’s book To Pledge Allegiance: A WWI Windy City Novel is a story propelled by likable characters who remain true to their era.

    It weaves action, romance, mistrust, familial insecurities, and war-related themes into a narrative that will hold the reader’s attention from beginning to end. An engaging, judicious and well-written work!

     

  • GUARDED HEARTS by T.K. Conklin – Romance, Western, Suspense

    The 2022 Laramie Grand Prize Badge for Guarded Hearts by T.K. ConklinGuarded Hearts by T K Conklin is a sensual romance in the Wild West, with all the passion and excitement natural to the setting.

    Sparks fly between a man with an outlaw past and a woman with a terrifying gift to heal or harm. Strykes is a man haunted both by a violent childhood and his time in an outlaw gang. But he has found a place in Rimrock, where he met LaRisa, an auburn-haired woman whom the townspeople have labeled a “witch” due to her healing herbs and rumors of her “powers”.

    LaRisa has kept her distance from people, afraid of her gift of healing touch that can turn dangerous, even deadly. But, when she comes to town to deliver her medicinal herbs, she makes her way to the livery with tasks for Strykes such as shoeing her horse or fixing a spring in her wagon. He is only too happy to oblige the auburn-haired beauty. The attraction between them is instantaneous, yet they both are hesitant to act on it, fearing they would hurt the other– he from his violent past, and she from her “witch” power.

    But when Strykes arrives at her isolated cabin, riddled with bullets, LaRisa knows she must use her healing touch to save him.

    During his time recovering, they discover passion and love in each other’s arms until  Strykes’ past catches up to him and  they both must run for their lives together. If they survive this threat, can they overcome their fears about hurting each other?

    This romance is fast-paced and riveting, with the reader easily captured by the growing relationship between the two leads, both wounded by their past and yet desperately in love, hoping for a future with the one they can’t live without.

    Guarded Hearts is the second book in the Wild Love series but can stand strong as its own title. There are a few references to events in the first book, but nothing that takes away from this one.

    Guarded Hearts by T.K. Conklin won Grand Prize in the 2022 CIBA Laramie Awards for Americana Fiction.

     

    Gold Foil Laramie Grand Prize Book Sticker

    5 Star Best Book Chanticleer Reviews round silver sticker

  • AKASH And MILA And The BIG JUMP by Anthony C. Delauney – Children’s Books, Self-Respect & Determination, Gymnastics

     

    In Akash and Mila and the Big Jump by Anthony C. Delauney, best friends Akash and Mila excitedly start their first class together at TRIumph Gymnastics.

    They enter a building full of athletes of all ages, shapes and sizes. But they also see captivating trophies, banners, and prizes that gymnasts from the school have won over the years, and hope to eventually have their own trophies, too– that they’ll be winners.

    Though excited to learn today during this special event the school is holding, they’re both nervous to start because they both have never had any gymnastic training.

    A fellow friend, Dash, does the springboard and lands with a perfect pose. Akash tries the same, but lands flat on his belly. He’s worried what the others will say of his first attempt. Mila decides to take a pass on her turn until she feels more comfortable and confident.

    Dash learns that Akash and Mila are scared to try because they don’t want to be made fun of by the others. He has the perfect solution. Dash introduces them to his friend and fellow gymnast, Lulu, and he explains that he felt the exact same way when he started doing gymnastics, but Lulu helped him learn to succeed at the floor exercises.

    Akash and Mila, feeling a bit more adventurous, both try to do the springboard this time.

    The bright and vibrant illustrations allow readers to get fully engrossed in this wonderful children’s story.

    Without a doubt, readers will be cheering Akash and Mila on as they make their attempts at learning the springboard. This book teaches children that, if at first you don’t succeed, you should keep trying until you get it right– even if you’re worried what others might say or think of you. Be your own individual and just know that you tried and gave it your all.

    The author wrote this as book 5 in the Owning the Dash series, which skillfully teaches children that it’s important to have confidence in yourself because you can achieve anything you set your mind to.

    Akash and Mila and the Big Jump is a compelling and effective learning tool for children, without making the learning process to obvious.

    The characters were very believable and fun to get to know, allowing children to want to become friends with Akash, Mila, and the other gymnasts at the school. Akash and Mila and the Big Jump was written for ages 4-8 years and fits perfectly for children within that age range.