Pale Highway by Nicholas Conley

Blurb:

Gabriel Schist is spending his remaining years at Bright New Day, a nursing home. He once won the Nobel Prize for inventing a vaccine for AIDS. But now, he has Alzheimer’s, and his mind is slowly slipping away. When one of the residents comes down with a horrific virus, Gabriel realizes he is the only one who can find a cure. Encouraged by Victor, an odd stranger, he convinces the administrator to allow him to study the virus. Soon, reality begins to shift, and Gabriel’s hallucinations interfere with his work. As the death count mounts, Gabriel is in a race against the clock and his own mind. Can he find a cure before his brain deteriorates past the point of no return?

About the Author:

Nicholas Conley's passion for storytelling began at an early age, prompted by a love of science fiction novels, comic books and horror movies. When not busy writing, Nicholas spends his time reading, traveling to new places, and indulging in a lifelong coffee habit. In order to better establish himself on the planet Earth, Nicholas currently makes his home in New Hampshire. To learn more about him, take a stroll over to http://www.NicholasConley.com.

Review by Rochelle:

Pale Highway was a fascinating look at Gabriel Schist, a brilliant man losing his faculties to Alzheimer’s. It’s not an easy book to read, though, and if you have difficulty keeping up with books that go back and forth between the past and present, reality and delusion, then you might want to try something more straight-forward. But if you can bridge the gaps of a mind riddled with the Swiss-cheese holes of a disease that robs even our highest intellects of the ability to process the simplest thoughts, then Pale Highway is definitely a must-read.

A few years ago when I had more money and I was still able to pay my Mensa dues, I attended the Annual Gathering for both the US and Canada. There were thousands of us, and researchers gave a presentation on Alzheimer’s. Good thing the Fire Marshalls weren’t around, because we squeezed into that room like sardines. For us (as for anyone, really), Pale Highway is the ultimate horror story.

I’ve worked in a nursing home. Can you imagine Einstein in diapers having pureed mush shoveled into his mouth as fast as he can swallow it because the aid has nine other patients to feed before the trays go back? Can you imagine him being there and having lucid moments when he knows that’s what’s happening to him? Add the mystery of his friends dying around him, he knows he’s the only one who can stop it, and he knows he’s running out of time. Because his lucid moments are coming fewer and farther between. There you have the makings of a doozy of a book—Pale Highway.

Author Website:  http://www.NicholasConley.com

Heat Rating:  PG-13

Length:  317 Pages

Prices:

Print:  $11.99

Digital:  $5.99

Buy Links:

Print:  http://redadeptpublishing.com/#!/Pale-Highway/p/51236016

Digital:  http://www.amazon.com/Pale-Highway-Nicholas-Conley/dp/1940215536/

You’ll notice we always include the publisher’s buy link. That’s because authors usually receive 40-50% of the net proceeds from the publisher. Editors and cover artists usually receive about 5%. When you buy a book from Amazon, Barnes & Noble or another third-party vendor, they take a hefty cut and the author, editors and cover artists receive their cuts from what is left. So, if a book costs $5.99 at E-Book Publisher.com and you buy from there, the author will receive about $2.40-$2.99. If you buy the book at Amazon, the author will receive about $1.70-$2.10.

Download the file from the publisher onto your computer as you would any other file. I’ve created a folder for books on my computer, with subfolders by source (Marketing for Romance Writers, Net Galley, Authors who find me on Kindle lists, etc.). That way, if there’s a glitch with your Kindle, the books are on your computer. Some publishers send books in all digital formats. If my Kindle breaks and my kids buy me a Nook, I won’t have to replace all of my books. If you have a Kindle and your hubby has a Nook, you won’t have to buy separate copies, so buying directly from the publisher can save you money.

Moving the file from your computer to your e-reader is as easy as transferring any file from your computer to a USB flash drive. Plug the larger USB end of your e-reader charging chord into a USB port on your computer and simply move the file from the folder into which you’ve downloaded the book to Documents/Books directory on your e-reader. You can move the file by highlighting it and dragging it to the documents directory in you Kindle you want to move it to. Or right click on it, and then left click copy or move. Or hit Control/C for copy, Control/X for cut, and Control/V for paste.

Your author will be happy you did when he/she sees his/her royalty statement.

Thanks for visiting.

My Soul Immortal by Jen Printy

Blurb:

An endless love, for an endless price.

Jack’s immortality is exposed when he prevents a liquor store heist, forcing him to flee to protect his secret—a secret not even he understands. But when he meets Leah Winters—a mirror image of his decades-lost love, Lydia—his very soul is laid bare. He begins to question his sanity. Is she real, and if so, what does that mean for Jack and his secret?

Jack’s not the only mystery man in town. A stranger named Artagan hints at knowledge Jack is desperate to possess. But can he trust Artagan, or does the dark newcomer harbor deadly secrets of his own?

As Jack’s bond with Leah grows, so does the danger to her life. Jack must discover just how much he is willing to risk in order to save the woman he already lost once.

About the Author:

Since childhood, Jen Printy has been writing. Whether stories about a fantasy world or everyday life in Maine, Jen loved losing herself in the worlds she created on paper. The arts in all forms have always been an important part of Jen's life, a love instilled in her by her father. When Jen isn't writing, she's sculpting as a freelance doll artist.

Jen lives in southern Maine with her husband, two daughters, and diva dog, Cookie. She loves spending time friends and family, finding treasures along the seashore, or enjoying a Guinness at her favorite local pub.

Review:

My Soul Immortal was an intriguing book that explored the concepts of immortality and reincarnation. Jack is immortal; he’s almost two-hundred years old, and so far, nothing can kill him. He’s been shot, stabbed, poisoned, and it all hurts, but he heals quickly and lives. But he hasn’t had a happy life. When he was young, he was engaged to a beautiful girl named Lydia. Her wealthy father disapproved of her match to the son of the vicar’s widow, but she didn’t care—until someone told her they’d seen him with another girl. She ran out into a rainstorm to confront him, caught influenza, and died. Jack blamed himself for her death and lived in misery for the next hundred-fifty years.

Until he gets shot preventing a robbery in Los Angeles. He puts a map on the wall, shoots a dart into it, and it hits Portland, Maine. Not long after arriving there, Jack collides with a young woman who looks exactly like Lydia. He tries to avoid getting to know Lea, but she’s an art student who invites him to an exhibition where she shows him paintings she’s done of him and his life with Lydia. She’s been dreaming about them her entire life.

But Jack and Lea are pursued. A man with a shadowy past named Atagan seems to shadow them, and he warns them of dangers dating back to their first life together.

My Soul Immortal drew me in with great characters, and a good story. But the dialog was a bit stilted. The ending came rather close to a cliff-hanger. The issues in this book were solved, but it was clear there would be a sequel, and it left questions as to how the new situations would affect Jack and Lea. It’s a squeaker as far as I’m concerned.

And finally, there’s an issue I’ve seen so far in most of the Red Adept books I’ve read. Someone has apparently told the RAP authors and editors to avoid using too many adverbs. That’s good advice, and I give it to my authors. However, substituting adjectives for adverbs doesn’t work. It’s substituting a “newbie habit” for just bad grammar. Don’t just take the “ly” off the word. Find a stronger image. It’s bad enough when I see this happening in self-published works, but you folks have an editorial staff. Use adverbs sparsely, and only use adjectives when you’re describing a noun, a proper noun, or a pronoun. If the word “noun” isn’t there, it doesn’t get an adjective.

Sorry for the rant, but I’ve been seeing this a lot lately, and something like seven or eight Red Adept authors sent books to me to review, so I know I’ll probably see it in the rest.

Again, My Soul Immortal was a good book, and I do recommend it.

Author Website: https://www.facebook.com/JenPrintyAuthor/

Heat Rating: PG

Length: 312 Pages

Prices:

Print: $14.99

Digital: $5.99

Buy Links:

Print: http://redadeptpublishing.com/#!/My-Soul-Immortal/p/4653658

Digital: http://www.amazon.com/Soul-Immortal-Fated-Eternals-Book-ebook/dp/B00ILXSNOI/ref=asap_bc?ie=UTF8

You’ll notice we always include the publisher’s buy link. That’s because authors usually receive 40-50% of the net proceeds from the publisher. Editors and cover artists usually receive about 5%. When you buy a book from Amazon, Barnes & Noble or another third-party vendor, they take a hefty cut and the author, editors and cover artists receive their cuts from what is left. So, if a book costs $5.99 at E-Book Publisher.com and you buy from there, the author will receive about $2.40-$2.99. If you buy the book at Amazon, the author will receive about $1.70-$2.10.

Download the file from the publisher onto your computer as you would any other file. I’ve created a folder for books on my computer, with subfolders by source (Marketing for Romance Writers, Net Galley, Authors who find me on Kindle lists, etc.). That way, if there’s a glitch with your Kindle, the books are on your computer. Some publishers send books in all digital formats. If my Kindle breaks and my kids buy me a Nook, I won’t have to replace all of my books. If you have a Kindle and your hubby has a Nook, you won’t have to buy separate copies, so buying directly from the publisher can save you money.

Moving the file from your computer to your e-reader is as easy as transferring any file from your computer to a USB flash drive. Plug the larger USB end of your e-reader charging chord into a USB port on your computer and simply move the file from the folder into which you’ve downloaded the book to Documents/Books directory on your e-reader. You can move the file by highlighting it and dragging it to the documents directory in you Kindle you want to move it to. Or right click on it, and then left click copy or move. Or hit Control/C for copy, Control/X for cut, and Control/V for paste.

Your author will be happy you did when he/she sees his/her royalty statement.

Thanks for visiting.