Chanticleer Book Reviews

Tag: Short Story

  • A WILD REGION: Tales and Stories from the Heartland by Robin Lee Lovelace – Contemporary American Gothic, Short Story Collections, Weird Fiction

     

    A Wild Region: Tales and Stories from the Heartland by Robin Lee Lovelace is a wonderful collection of Weird fiction (emphasis on Weird), showcasing the oddities and fantastic adventures which hide among the everyday people of the midwestern United States.

    Lovelace opens with ‘Virgie’s Headless Chicken’, setting the tone for the full collection as Virgie attempts to reproduce a circus sideshow act. Lovelace shares her familial inspiration for this story in a fascinating preface.

    From there she gifts readers with the award-winning novella, Savonne, Not Vonny, a coming-of-age story of a little girl involving brothels, voodoo, and displaced gods. Savonne faces trial after trial as she grows up in different environments, all while she tries to understand her place in the world. This setting is particularly well-developed, leaving readers wanting more from even the secondary characters. Readers who loved Neil Gaiman’s American Gods will enjoy every page of Savonne’s adventures.

    Varying in emotion and impact, all of these tales will grab a reader’s attention. In every story of A Wild Region, fully-realized characters deal with important problems, approaching them with their own strange solutions.

    A Wild Region, as a whole, deals with themes of belonging. Some stories explore belonging to a family, be it blood or found. Others in relation to society. No matter how strange and fantastic the setting and circumstances, the characters drive each story. Even the most bizarre elements are secondary to the characters, enhancing their journey. Readers will feel for each protagonist, rooting for them to the end.

    This collection will help readers see their own surroundings with a new curiosity.

    Every one of these stories takes place in the mundane, real world, tucked away somewhere at the edges of daily life with ties to the South and Midwest United states. From a southern Indiana farmhouse in the 1940s on to an abandoned mansion in a virus-ravaged Memphis in 2041, readers will look twice at roadside attractions and dusty drives which lead into the unmitigated wilds of this continent, questioning their hidden mysteries.

    Lovelace is a strong voice in contemporary Weird and Southern Gothic fiction whom readers should continue to watch for. Hopefully, she has many more fantastic scenarios and characters yet to share with the world.

    Included in this collection, Uncle won the 2021 Marguerite McGlinn short story competition and Savonne, Not Vonny by Robin Lee Lovelace won Grand Prize in the 2020 CIBA Shorts Awards for Short Stories, Novellas, and Collections.

     

    5 Star Best Book Chanticleer Reviews round silver sticker

  • SAVONNE, NOT VONNY by Robin Lee Lovelace – Southern Literature, Myths & Legends, 1960’s

    Shorts Grand Prize for Short Stories, Novelettes, & Novellas Savonne, Not Vonny by Robin Lee LovelaceRobin Lee Lovelace evokes a world in which the mystical intertwines with the everyday in Savonne, Not Vonny, a coming-of-age story set in rural Louisiana.

    Nine-year-old Savonne lives in a small room at the back of Mama Gwen’s whorehouse, in Indianapolis in the ’60s. Her mama is one of the working girls, and her father is Mama Gwen’s own son. Savonne’s daddy dotes on her, and Mama Gwen loves Savonne like the daughter she never had; the two of them together make a loving home for Savonne, in the midst of their raucous brothel.

    By contrast, Savonne’s birth mother rarely pays her any mind. A “crazy-ass woman” with a temper “as hot as a Mississippi afternoon,” Coco is not at all opposed to beating the bejesus out of someone. In a fury one night, she does something that cannot be undone, and in her headlong flight out of town, she takes Savonne with her.

    And so it is that Savonne is forced from the only home she’s ever known and left in the care of her mysterious and reclusive great-grandfather, Pompey.

    With Pompey, Savonne enters another world, one of casual acquaintance with hoodoo and root work, a world where Papa Legba guards the crossroads and serves as an intermediary between the human and the spirit world, a world where an enemy might cast a subtle spell or command the serpents, or shapeshift into another form himself. However, as long as Pompey is there to guard her, Savonne is safe. She takes after her great-grandfather, and he recognizes that she too has the gift, the ability to conjure, “the natural.”

    But the day will come when Savonne is left to face the forces that would undo her, with only Leatha, Pompey’s old black dog all gone now to gray and stiff-boned, by her side. Before her journey home is over, Savonne must outwit an enemy far more powerful than she — and rely on help from the most unlikely of allies.

    Robin Lee Lovelace has conjured a world in which the seen and the unseen alike direct our days, in which the divine intermingles with the mundane, with characters so rich and fully realized they fairly leap off the page.

    Pick this story up for the delicious experience of diving headlong into a landscape reminiscent of those spun by the finest Southern writers in the American canon.

    Readers may find themselves racing through this novella to see how it all comes out for Savonne in the end, and likely wanting more of Savonne and her world (and maybe those allies too) in her full short story collection, A Wild Region, is available now!

    Savonne, Not Vonny by Robin Lee Lovelace won Grand Prize in the 2020 CIBA Shorts Awards for Short Stories.

     

    5 Stars! Best Book Chanticleer Book Reviews

  • WISHES, SINS, and the WISSAHICKON CREEK by PJ Devlin – Contemporary Fiction, Americana, Short Stories

    Blue and Gold Somerset First Place Winner Badge for Best in Category

    Wishes, Sins, and the Wissahickon Creek by PJ Devlin emulates the lives of fictional characters brimming with hope and promise yet living a truthful life of existence in the gorgeous setting of Pennsylvania’s Wissahickon Creek.

    The book encompasses ten short stories making it a complete work of fiction. Devlin creates characters which are rich in both experience and struggle. Not only do they live in a real world created by Devlin, but her characters, a mix of children and adults, both struggle with daily, real-world issues most Americans deal with. The stories are all relatable in this sense, which makes the text come alive, page after page.

    The first story, I Wish It Every Day, exists in the premise of a lasting, pseudo friendship between two women, Mary and Julia. The two past high school friends reminisce at a coffee shop one fine day, yet the meeting exists only because of a chance. The reader learns of the ladies’ lack of real friendship since the time regrettably passes without daily correspondence. Piece Man, the second in the group of short stories, creates a picture from an art piece in an art gallery. A child and an adult realize the importance of time and the fleeting speed of life. Devlin’s third story, Original Sin, captures the lives of a family devastated by death and the sins of a priest. The irony of this story exists in the mother’s wish for her son.

    Wishes, Sins, and the Wissahickon Creek continues with beautiful settings and attention to detail in the depiction of every scene.

    Devlin’s attention to detail and superb storytelling acumen invites readers to live in these ten short stories, as if they are truly part of the text. Each story represents new characters and new dilemmas. The unique tie to the ten stories is the setting of Pennsylvania and the eastern United States. The strong and determined people of Wissahickon may suffer, yet they pick themselves up and move on, much like the determination and perseverance of middle-class Americans. Devlin skillfully captures the true spirit of twenty-first century middle Americana.

    Readers whose interests lie in middle America or Americana contemporary literature will enjoy this award-winning collection of short stories. Understanding the human dilemma as told by one who lives in the Wissahickon Creek area brings authenticity that readers will surely appreciate.

    Wishes, Sins, and the Wissahickon River by PJ Devlin won 1st Place in the 2018 CIBA Somerset Book Awards for Contemporary, Literary, and Satire Fiction.

     

     

    Somerset Literary and Contemporary Chanticleer International Book Awards 1st Place Winner oval Gold Foil sticker

    5 Stars! Best Book Chanticleer Book Reviews

     

  • HOW to INCREASE ONLINE BOOK SALES – Part 3 – Kiffer Brown

    HOW to INCREASE ONLINE BOOK SALES – Part 3 – Kiffer Brown

    Tips to Selling More Books Online from Kiffer Brown

    Part Three

    • Keep on Writing! You need a back list of books to in order to do real promotion efforts such as using BookBub or Book Funnel where you give away (or for 99 cents) the first in a series to get readers hooked into your series and your works. These platforms do a lot of marketing and have subscribers that do email blasts promoting books that they accept along with an active web presence along with professional search engine algorithms (Google, Bing, Firefox, etc.).
    • Published a short story or novella to give away on Bookbub or Book Funnel– a prequel perhaps to get readers hooked. Robert Dugoni did this with The Academy  that comes in at 44 pages. This is a great way to hook readers into your character. Or Hugh Howey’s Wool that came in at 12,000 words (60 pages). Make sure that the cover is strong and compelling.

    • Yet another short story that launched an author’s career is The Witcher, a short story by Polish author Andrzegj Sapkowski in the late 1980s. Fast forward to 2020 to see his works turned into the The Witcher TV series on  Netflix. The company said the series with its 76 million households was the most watched television series on Netflix. I will not even go into Fire in the Hole short story series  by Elmore Leonard launching the Justified TV series.
    Geralt of Rivia – The Witcher
    • Ann Charles, USA Today Bestselling author, supplements her five (at my last count) novel series with short stories. Some are seasonal (winter holidays, Halloween, summer reads). Ann says that it is a great way to hook new readers.
    Ann Charles with her famous violet boots!
    • ALL social media posts, Tweets (Oh how I despise clicking on a tweet to just ending up on an Amazon selling page!– How rude!) guest blog-posts, emails, ads, marketing materials should direct readers to your website –NOT to the Amazon page where your book is for sell. Or let me put it this way: Your Website is Your Internet Business Portal.  Amazon is not.
    • Meanwhile, get your books out on as many platforms as possible and create links on your website to each selling platform. Give your readers a choice of where to purchase your work.
      • Bookchain.ca — securely sell ebooks directly from your website and receive the largest amount of royalties possible. Funded by Canada Media.
      • PublishDrive – E-book, audio, print books. To reach global markets and the Asian markets. REMEMBER that there are more Asians who speak English than North Americans or United Kingdom people who speak English. PublishDrive is based out of Budapest, Hungary. They have a great relationship with CCP’s (China) Amazon equivalent. They also coordinate with Amazon and GooglePlay. They have worked out many of the bugs that they had early on.
      • LuLu.com – retail distribution to 40,000 retailers, schools, and libraries. Based in North Carolina. They restructured and reorganized. May 19, 2019 LULU sent out a press release stating that they have paid out more than $100 million US dollars in royalties to authors.
      • Ingram – based in Nashville, TN Ingram Content Group has the publishing industry’s largest active book inventory and Ingram is the world’s largest wholesale distributor of books.
      • Scribd – Online subscription base — the Netflix of ebooks and audio-books
      • Google Play – Billions of Users ( Don’t overlook this market)
      • Amazon – Kindle (nuff said)
      • KOBO – ebooks and audiobooks to reach markets outside of North America such as Europe, Japan, — based in Japan and Canada.
      • Barnes & Noble 
      • Smashwords.com – one of the first platforms for selling self-published books – 2008
      • Payhip.com – based in London, U.K. integrates blogs, ebooks, merchandise
      • Books.Apple.com
      • Audible.com for audio books
      • tolino – mytolino.com – German based with Global Reach. PublishDrive lists Tolino as one of their selling platforms that they coordinate with.
    • The exception to this is if your book is participating in Amazon’s KDP Select program. This program grants Amazon exclusivity to the books that are enrolled in it.

    Interesting to Note:  Beyond being the world’s preferred common language, English is also an Asian language in both a demographic and an official sense. Asia has approximately 800 million English speakers, which in effect means it has far more English speakers than the entire Anglosphere. ABC News Australia 

    • Make sure that each one of your selling platforms’ book pages’ information  is current and compelling to read.
    • Pay attention to BISAC codes, meta-data, tagging, and other digital information describes your work on the Internet. Each code does matter! Link below.
    • The COVER! Again — the cover must compel your targeted reader to click on it in less than three seconds. Make sure it is powerful! And BookBub is ALL ABOUT the COVER. If you want to get considered for their program, make sure that your cover is in tip-top form. Good enough will not do.

    WEBSITE Housekeeping

    • Make sure that all the platforms where your books are for sale have working links.

    Below is a copy and paste of how award-winning author of fantasy fiction, Susan Faw, does this:

    Or USA Today Bestselling Author Ann Charles 

    Or international bestselling author J.D. Barker’s website’s

    • 2. Have you updated your website with your latest awards, book blurbs, reviews, honors, and accolades and happenings?

    • 3. Are you keeping your website current with what you are working on—your work in progress? Your own contests events and the winners? Your book club appearances? Your ZOOM events? Your working links to your social media pages? IS your SUBSCRIBE to AUTHOR’S  NEWSLETTER easy to use or does it ask for to much (I run into this all the time–then I pass on subscribing).
    • 4. Have you included and listed where and when you have been interviewed, blogged? podcasted? ZOOM chats/rooms? Facebook events?
    • 5. Do you have a section that allows your readers to become acquainted with you? Do you like board games? Do you paint? Do you grow lavender? Do paint action figures? Do you love to bake? Are you a photography buff? Does your photo and your bio description reinforce your author branding?

    KIFFER’s advice:  Remember that you can sell a short story or novella for 99 cents or a full-fledged novel for 99 cents.

    Think about what kind of backstory that is in your novels that you could turn into a short story to use as another prong of your marketing and promotion strategy. Potential readers may be more apt to spend time reading a short story to try out a new author than committing to a novel...just something to thing about.  Click here to read more on Short Stores and having an author career. 

    Click here to find out more about Chanticleer’s Book Awards for Short Stories, Novellas, and Novelettes. 

    Please stay tuned for Part Four of How to Increase Online Book Sales by Kiffer Brown

    HANDY LINKS – Chanticleer Reviews Tool Box Series 

    Below are links to blog posts on the Chanticleer website that have more information on the above points: 

    How to Increase Book Sales Online – Part One

    How to Increase Book Sales Online – Part Two

    BISAC CODES – Not Just Alphabet Soup

    Book Reviews – 4 Types and Why You Need All Four

    Social Media and Creating and Keeping Top of Mind Association with Readers

    Chanticleer Writer’s Toolbox

    Thank you for reading this Chanticleer Writer’s Toolbox post on Marketing and Book Promotion to Increase Online Book Sales.

    Part 4 in the How to Increase Online Book Sales series will address Hashtags and Social Media.

    Also, we will continue to post the 2019 CIBA Finalists, so please stay tuned.

    And, we will have new writing craft posts from top editors coming your way to keep you writing and editing during these unprecedented times.

    We encourage you to stay in contact with each other and with us  during this stint of practicing physical distancing to prevent the spread of COVID-19.

    Let us know how you are doing, what is going on where you live, how are you progressing on your writing projects.

    I invite each of you to join us at The Roost – a private online Chanticleer Community for writers and authors and publishing professionals. You are welcome to email me for more info also.

    We are active on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. You can find us by using our social media handle @ChantiReviews

    Minimize physical contact! Maximize social connecting!

    Here are our contact emails:  

    General information:  Chanticleer@ChantiReviews.com

    Editorial:  BookEditor@ChantiReviews.com

    Reviews: Sanderson@ChantiReviews.com

    Me:  KBrown@ChantiReviews.com

    Take care, be safe.

    Keep writing and creating magic! 

    Kiffer and Sharon & Entire Team Chanticleer 

     

  • GOD FACTOR SAGA SERIES by J. Nell Brown, a historical paranormal series

    GOD FACTOR SAGA SERIES by J. Nell Brown, a historical paranormal series

    NOTE ABOUT REVIEWS: While Chanticleer typically does one book review post per book, we chose to have reviews for these short stories and book in this series all together on one webpage. We felt they all complement each other and deserve to be read together to give a greater perspective to the series. All reviews were written by K. Patterson.

    Review of FROZEN PRAYERS by J. Nell Brown: Book 1 of the God Factor Saga

    Readers caFrozen Prayers by J. Nell Brownn expect a superb blend of genres in J. Nell Brown’s Frozen Prayers: Book 1 of the God Factor Saga. This novel is a suspenseful biblical fantasy that weaves love and the paranormal into the lives of two individuals. This is not only a perfect read for someone wanting an enduring love story, but for anyone wanting to explore profound ideas about spirituality and God.

     

    In 1977, Cillian Finn is born of his mother Mary Finn, entering the world in a dank, dark shack on a    remote island off the Antrim Coast of Ireland. He is the child of rape and unwanted by his mother. That same year, Daniela Cavanaugh is born to missionary parents Austin and Jeanette, in a hospital in Gainesville, Florida. Though she is deeply loved and wanted by her parents, she is a black child growing up in the South, during a time of rampant discrimination. Growing up thousands of miles apart, Daniela and Cillian’s lives will nevertheless become deeply intertwined.

    Shy, young Daniela dreams of a normal life, her days spent playing with a best friend and kindred spirit rather than dealing with the cruelty of reality. However, Daniela possesses a gift—the ability to see far into the past and into the future when she dreams. Her prayers, encouraged by her father, have the power to unlock the mysteries of the world, to bring about wars, and to protect the life of the lonely boy Cillian, living an ocean away in Manchester, England. If Daniela quits dreaming and praying about her kindred spirit, Cillian, what will be the impact on his life?

    At its simplest, this is a novel combining spiritual and paranormal elements in a love story about a young girl who possesses the power of prophecy. It is also the tale of an epic battle between mortals and immortals and of unlocking the mysteries God intended for the world.

    However, J. Nell Brown uses this story to reveal deeper questions about spirituality and how we conduct our lives. Exactly what can one accomplish through the power of prayer? And if you knew how your life would end, would you choose to live it differently? In this deeply spiritual first novel in the God Factor Saga, J. Nell Brown has crafted a heartwarming, sometimes heart-wrenching, and always suspenseful novel that is sure to linger in the minds of readers long after they read the final pages.

    Review of HOUSE GUEST by J. Nell Brown, a prequel short story to the God Factor Saga series

    House Guest by J. Nell Brown  A prequel short story to J. Nell Brown’s God Factor Saga series, House Guest, is an excellent read for   anyone who loves a story that immerses a historical setting into the realm of the paranormal.        Readers of the God Factor Saga will also be thrilled for this new addition to the spiritual and heart-  wrenching series.  

      House Guest tells the tale of the demon Nomed, sent out of the underworld to accomplish a mission    for Lucifer in return for a greatly desired job promotion. Nomed’s assignment is to kill two eight-year-old children, Cillian Finn and Daniela Cavanaugh. Lucifer considers these children to be agents of his enemy, Elohim, who must be stopped before they can achieve their destinies.

    Set in the early days of World War II, House Guest blends rich historical detail with spiritual, paranormal, and horror elements, providing a gripping and entertaining read. 

    Review of A GENERATION OF LIGHTED EVERGREENS by J. Nell Brown: First  Novella in The God Factor Saga series

    A Generation of Lighted Evergreens by J. Nell BrownThe first novella in the God Factor Saga, A Generation of Lighted Evergreens brings readers of the series more spiritual journeys and deeper connections with its minor characters.

    This is the story of Austin Cavanaugh, ten years prior the birth of his daughter Daniela. Austin toils  away in the sugar cane fields of South Florida, drowning out the harsh, grinding reality of his life by  dreaming of the day when he will meet and marry his kindred spirit. He dreams of a future in which  his little girl will lead the life he always envisioned for himself.

    Will Austin’s deep spirituality and belief in God bring him through the trials of his life, to a time in which he will see his dreams realized? As with all of the God Factor Saga stories, J. Nell Brown spins a tale of spirituality that asks important questions about the power of religion and prayer, and enlightens readers with ideas that go beyond the natural world.