Book Review and Tour of Ni’il: The Awakening by James Boyle

Monday 19 July, 2010 By 3 Comments

Title: Ni’il:The Awakening
Author: James Boyle
Publisher: IUniverse
Publication Date: December 2, 2008
Paperback: 216 pages
ISBN: 978-1440108679
Genre: Fiction

About the Book:

When several people are brutally killed in the town of Placerton, on the isolated Oregon coast, most locals think a rogue bear or cougar is roaming the forested hills near town. Police Chief Dan Connor is not so sure. He has witnessed some very strange things lately, such as disembodied voices, muttering a strange foreign language and an old Indian man who seems to be near every crime scene, but disappears before he can be questioned.

Dan’s investigation takes him to the local Sihketunnai Indians and their legend of the Ni’il, magical shamans charged with maintaining the balance between humans and the natural world. According to the elders, one of the Ni’il is responsible for the murders and intends to kill everyone in the community. It is Dan’s job to stop it.

It sounds unbelievable, but is the only explanation that fit the facts.

As a violent Pacific storm crashes ashore, cutting the town off from the outside world, Dan finds himself entering a strange world of myth and magic that was not covered in his police training. He must use all his wits and new-found powers to save himself and his community from the Ni’il.

My Review:

Ni’il: The Awakening is the first in James Boyle’s trilogy. Someone or something is terrorizing the small coastal town of Placerton, Oregon. Police chief Dan O’Connor first thought the biggest worry in the town was the strange occurrence of dogs missing, until he learns their relatively quiet coastal town is about to be hit with a potentially dangerous storm and bodies start appearing with not one shred of evidence as to who or what is killing them. The Sihketunnai Indian elders inform Dan that it is the Ni’il seeking revenge. Boyle writes an intriguing story line of small town life, strange disappearances, murders and the added twist of mystical forces in the form of the Ni’il. Boyle’s storyline moves rather quickly and the characters are fairly well rounded. It was easy to relate to Dan and Stephanie from the sheriff’s department and the usual tension between the sheriff’s office and the Mayor’s office. For his first novel, Ni’il: The Awakening is an engaging, fast paced novel filled with ancient lore and suspicion. Ni’il: The Awakening makes for an intriguing twist for mystery fans as well as those who enjoy mystical thrillers.

About the Author:

James has published both poetry and short fiction and is an organizer for the South Coast (Oregon) Writer’s Conference. This is his first novel. A student of Native culture, he used this background to create the ni’il. He lives in Gold Beach, Oregon, with a pacifist black lab named Mikey.


James Boyle’s NI’IL THE AWAKENING VIRTUAL BLOG TOUR ‘10 will officially begin on July 6 and end on July 30. You can visit James blog stops at www.virtualbooktours.wordpress.com during the month of July to find out more about this great book and talented author!

I received a complimentary copy of Ni’il: The Awakening by James Boyle from Pump Up Your Book Promotion as part of the tour. Receiving a copy in no way reflected my review of aforementioned novel.

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Book Review: Size Eight In A Size Zero World by Meredith Cagen

Tuesday 30 March, 2010 By 3 Comments

Title: Size Eight In A Size Zero World
Author: Meredith Cagen
Publisher: iUniverse
Publication Date: November 23, 2009
Paperback: 340 pages
ISBN: 978-1440169748
Genre: Fiction/Chick-Lit

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From the Publisher:

Meet Lindsay Chandler—a 32 year-old New York working wife and mother with old-fashioned values who thinks she’s living a fairy tale life (she’s not). Then an unexpected friendship with her upstairs neighbor (he is smart, successful, sophisticated and sexy— she’s not) unleashes her passion and re-ignites her sparkle. This liaison causes her to question the way she lives her life. Yearning for a storybook ending, she decides to make changes in her life, embarking on a quest for self re-invention in this hilarious, witty, touching story. Guaranteed entertaining and fun!!

My Review:

Size Eight In a Size Zero World is the debut novel of author Meredith Cagen. The novel takes place amongst the upper echelon of Manhattan, with the central character being 32-year old Lindsay Chandler. From the outside, Lindsay has it all: She is a mother to two children, Kristen and Jake, has a career she enjoys, and is married to Grant, a successful divorce attorney, yet being one for old-fashioned values, Lindsay chose to have neither a nanny nor housekeeper; which makes her almost an outcast in her upper echelon society. Lindsay’s husband verbally abuses her, is paranoid, monitors her movements and is emotionally shut off as a husband and father, yet she makes excuses for him. Meanwhile Lindsay has a crush on a man she meets in the elevator and in no time he begins asking for her advise. The more she speaks with “elevator guy” the more she thinks she needs to remake herself in what she refers to as “Operation S.I.” Is “elevator guy” an illusion, a fantasy or the answer to her problems? As Lindsay struggles to find out who she is, she is surrounded with self-doubt and differing opinions. Her friends’ lives are colourful and they do try to have interventions with Lindsay. Cagen’s writing style is witty, fluid and quite descriptive. Unfortunately being completely unable to identify with the main character made this a difficult read for me. Lindsay at times is extremely witty, and I realise the ending would not be what it is if not for the journey in life Lindsay takes, however, this novel was not for me, I do not know women like this and I am quite thankful I do not. If you are looking for a witty novel filled with superficial people, infidelity, and creative writing that will at times make you laugh, then you may want to give this novel a try.

About the Author:

Accidental author Meredith Cagen, a New York City resident, has drawn on a storehouse
of personal experience in writing this exciting, unpredictable, and yet believable,
adventure in romance.

I received a complimentary copy of Size Eight In A Size Zero World by Meredith Cagen from Bostick Communications to review. Receiving a complimentary copy of this novel in no way reflected my review of aforementioned novel.

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Book Tour & Review: Corrigans’ Pool by Dot Ryan

Wednesday 13 January, 2010 By 4 Comments

Title: Corrigans’ Pool
Author: Dot Ryan
Publisher: iUniverse
Publication Date: April 28, 2009
Paperback: 424 pages
ISBN: 978-0595487417
Genre: Historical Fiction

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About the Book:

Bitter with thoughts of the darkly handsome stranger who promised to marry her and then left town without a word, Ella Corrigan hastily weds a neighboring planter—a man whose cold indifference is merely a disguise for cunning insanity. His cruelty to his slaves horrifies her and, even though her family has owned slaves for generations, she questions the concept of human bondage for the first time while desperately missing her cherished Greenpoole plantation and Corrigan’s Pool … a beautiful phenomenon of nature that the slaves call “Conjuring Pool” for reasons they cannot explain when asked.

The South is embroiled in a bitter Civil War by the time Ella Corrigan discovers that Corrigans’ Pool is much more than the exquisitely beautiful pond she had thought it to be all her life. But by the time she learns its dangerous secret she is deeply entangled in a secret of her own … one that has made her a virtual prisoner, hopelessly trapped in a world dreadfully different from her previous existence as mistress of her gentle father’s palatial plantation home along the Savannah River. Stunned by what she sees, she must harden herself to her new surroundings or perish … along with the cowed and scarred Negroes who toil in her husband’s rice swamps and cotton fields. Always in the back of her mind, are memories of the man who loved her and left her, the man she has long blamed for her misery.

My Review:

As I shed tears of joy, exasperation, grief, injustice, and faith while reading this magnificent novel, I kept thinking how Corrigans’ Pool is an absolute must read novel. Until approached to host a tour for Corrigans’ Pool, I had neither heard of the novel nor the author, which was my loss and I am ever so grateful I was introduced to this stunningly beautiful, historical novel which takes place in the Civil War era. Unlike some Civil War books, this novel focuses primarily of the lives of those who live at Greenpoole and the inhabitants of Moss Green and the disparity between the two. Interspersed throughout the novel, the reader’s attention is divided between Savannah, Georgia, Green Poole and Moss Green. In Corrigan’s Pool, Ryan has the reader view the Civil War as the country prepares, enters, and ends the war, through the eyes and strength of mainly the women and their ever-faithful servants. There is so much I want to write about Ella and Honoria Corrigan, their husbands, the Matriarch Beatrice, Hannah, Baker Ben, Cricket as well as those who helped and those who betrayed them along they way. However, I shall refrain as I do not want to give too much of the story away. The Corrigan’s have lived at Greenpoole for generations, known for their kindness, compassion and kind treatment of the servants. Sadly, this was not the case of all plantations, especially Moss Creek and the tyrannical Victor Faircloth. Corrigans’ Pool is about love, family, redemption, emancipation and the struggles faced before, during, and after the Civil War. The reader, upon reading the first page, will immediately be transported to 1860s Georgia through detailed and beautiful prose, dialogue, and history. Corrigan’s Pool, Greenpool’s treasure, is a turning point in the novel and one of true beauty. Without hesitation I recommend Corrigans’ Pool and believe it would be such a wonderful book for book groups to discuss, as Ryan has filled every page with poignant moments that linger with the reader.

About the Author:

Dot Ryan, born and raised in Bee County in South Texas, makes her home in “the sparkling city by the sea,” Corpus Christi, Texas, with husband, Sam. Corrigans’ Pool is Dot’s first novel. She is busy writing her second and third works of fiction. To learn more, please visit herwebsite.


Dot Ryan’s CORRIGANS’ POOL VIRTUAL BOOK TOUR ‘09 will officially begin on Dec. 1st and end on Jan. 30. You can visit Dot’s blog stops at www.virtualbooktours.wordpress.com to discover more about this great book and its talented author.

I received a copy of Corrigans’ Pool by Dot Ryan from Pump Up Your Book Promotion as part of the tour. Receiving a copy in no way reflected my review of aforementioned novel.

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Deadly Codes by JP O’Donnell: A Book Review

Tuesday 29 December, 2009 By Leave a Comment

Title: Deadly Codes
Author: JP O’Donnell
Publisher: iUniverse
Publication Date: February 17, 2009
Paperback: 206 pages
ISBN: 978-0595514113
Genre: Suspense/Thriller

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About the Novel:

In the thriller, Deadly Codes, Daniel Cormac Gallagher, Jr., a Boston private eye, is hired to investigate the death of Jennifer Clark, tragically killed in a car bombing in her own driveway.

Gallagher has been commissioned by Jeanne Campbell, Jennifer’s twin sister, to find a mysterious woman—Jennifer’s secret lesbian lover who vanished immediately after the bombing. While the authorities continue to pursue their suspicions that the terrorist act may have been intended for Jennifer’s husband, Bill, who holds a top-secret position in the counter-intelligence division of the National Security Agency, Jeanne reveals intricate details to Gallagher that intrigue him enough to take on the case. While Gallagher begins searching for the missing woman, he has no idea that a bounty has been placed on his own head—two hired gunmen are plotting to kill him. Gallagher’s search takes him to Washington DC, where he discovers that the car bombing is only a backdrop to a complex, treasonous scheme to sell code-breaking formulas to a hostile enemy nation.

As the violent mystery unravels, Gallagher finds himself under deadly attack from two shocking but powerful forces—one he knows and another he never expects.

My Review:

Deadly Codes is the second novel in JP O’Donnell’s Gallagher series. I have not as of yet had the pleasure of reading his first novel, Fatal Gamble, yet was able to follow the story line rather well. As a relatively new author I was amazed at how well this novel was written and the vast attention to details, including foreign affairs. While reading the novel I was rather excited to be reading so much about my main college degree and was surprised to learn JP O’Donnell was not in foreign relations but instead he was a pediatric dentist. Gallagher, recently married is closing his private detective agency for a safer job in business, yet Gallagher cannot resist this one last case, where the client’s sister was killed in a car bomb. Jennifer’s sister wants to hire Gallagher to discover who planted the car bomb, and to determine who killed her twin sister and why. I found his novel to be a well-woven thriller filled with plot twists, treason, espionage, subversion, and betrayal. Deadly Codes is an excellent novel to curl up with if one is looking for a fantastic suspenseful thriller.

About the Author:

JP O’Donnell is a board-certified pediatric dentist with more than thiry-five years of experience in clinical practice and dental education. Dr. O’Donnell holds degrees from the University of Pittsburgh and Tufts University. He and his wife reside in Bedford, Massachusetts. He is also the author of Fatal Gamble. For more information, please visit the author’s website.

I would live to thank AME, Inc. for supplying me with a copy of this book. My review was in no part influenced by my receiving a free review copy.

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