Peter and the Little People by @David_J_OBrien #FairyForts, #Leprechauns, #Middlegrade

3 Roses

The Plot:

You’ve heard stories about Little People: leprechauns and their like. Ireland is full of people who’ve had strange experiences out in the fields in the early morning. All just tall tales and myths, of course.

At least, we assume so...

But Peter knows better.

A boy with a love of wildlife and talent for spotting animals, Peter often sees what he calls elves in the fields as he travels Ireland with his dad. Sometimes it’s just a flash as they drive by, but he catches sight of something too swift for most people to keep their eye on. And Peter is young enough to trust his own eyes more than the adults who tell him these creatures are not real.

When his family go to spend the summer with his granny on her farm, Gemma from the farm next door offers to show him the badger sett under an old Ring Fort. Peter accepts gladly. To his surprise and delight he finally gets a chance to do more than catch a glimpse of the Little People. Will the Little People be just as happy? Perhaps, when Peter learns about some plans for the farm, they might be.

10% of the Author’s Royalties will be donated to WWF, the World Wildlife Fund, and to IWT, the Irish Wildlife Trust.

About the Author:

David is a writer, ecologist and teacher from Dublin, Ireland, now living in Pamplona Spain. He has a degree in environmental biology and doctorate in zoology, specializing in deer biology, and is still involved in deer management in his spare time.

As an avid wildlife enthusiast and ecologist. Much of David’s non-academic writing, especially poetry, is inspired by wildlife and science. While some of his stories and novels are contemporary, others seek to describe the science behind the supernatural or the paranormal.

A long-time member of The World Wildlife Fund, David has pledged to donate ten percent (10%) of his royalties on all his hitherto published books to that charity to aid with protecting endangered species and habitats.

You can find out more and read some poems and short stories at http://davidjmobrien.wordpress.com/ and can join David on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/DavidJMOBrien.

Review:

When MuseItUp Publishing opened, it was dedicated to producing the highest quality books possible. Lea Schizas started with about a dozen authors and maybe three editors. She personally went through every book she published. Today, the Muse has over a hundred authors, with a staff of several editors, and Ms. Schizas is no longer able to monitor the quality of every book that leaves her house. I’m afraid that shows. The quality of the grammar I see in Muse books has dropped somewhat, even in middle-grade books where I believe it needs to be higher so children can learn what good grammar is.

I also believe the pacing of Peter and the Little People was uneven. It seemed to take quite a while for Peter to spot a Little Person, find out what he thought they were, what they really were, and finally get to the problem. From there, everything seemed to speed up considerably, and pow! The book was done.

Since this is a middle-grade book and it’s been a very long time since I’ve read a book for a child that age, I’m taking a three-rose neutral stance here. A child would probably enjoy Peter and the Little People. A grammar Nazi with adult ADD, maybe not as much.

Author Website:  http://davidjmobrien.wordpress.com/

Warnings:  None

Length:  128 Pages

Digital Price:  $2.99

MuseItUp Publishing, Inc. Buy Link:  https://museituppublishing.com/bookstore/index.php/now-available-in-ebook/peter-and-the-little-people-detail

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.

Three Wrongs by Charles Bowie

Blurb:

Sean Donovan is doing all right; he has two offshore bank accounts and an American one as well and all three are filling up nicely. His network of clients know his business plan: he is willing to acquire whatever rare or inaccessible product is needed, be it the security plans to an art gallery, a rare Etruscan goblet or a recorded conversation from a former American President. And he will steal it and deliver it to them, no questions asked nor answered.

But he is becoming dissatisfied. In addition to the physical wear and tear inflicted on his body by adversaries, he is now becoming weary of the toll his newly-discovered conscience is exacting from these highly illegal exploits. A series of lies to his most recent client has caused him to think about the impact of his deeds and he doesn’t like how it makes him feel. An idea begins to form; what if he was to undo his last three wrongs? And what if he nevertheless wants to benefit from turning over this new leaf?

This story follows Sean Donovan as he travels from Bucharest to London to Montreal and New York. Will he repent his wicked ways? Will he quit the business before those who he has wronged catch up to him? Will he discover that three wrongs don’t make a right?

Review by Rochelle Weber:

Sean Donovan is the best at what he does—theft for hire—when he has all the facts in the case, when he is not mistaken for someone else, and when it’s not personal. In his latest cases, everything is awry. Thugs keep getting in his way. When he tries to stop them from killing a gypsy boy in Bucharest, he finds himself in possession of a bag of stolen passports, one of which puts him onto the radar of yet another bad guy. His next job is to steal the lucky necklace belonging to an actress. His client is a spoiled brat of a teenaged starlet; the victim is a beautiful, smart, funny, nice woman who only removes her lucky pearls at bedtime.

I received an Advanced Review Copy that had not been fully edited, so I can’t comment on the few editorial glitches I found. I’m sure they’ll have been caught when Mr. Bowie went through the galleys. What I can say is that Three Wrongs grabbed me at the beginning and kept me burning through my Kindle right to the end. Despite his chosen profession, I like Sean Donovan. Retired spies have a very specific set of skills and there aren’t too many things they can do with them. Donovan chose a lucrative and (mostly) safe profession. In many instances, he replaces what he stole with duplicates so the owners won’t even know their property is gone. I look forward to reading the second book in this series, AMACAT. Meanwhile, I highly recommend Three Wrongs.

Length:  230 Pages

Prices:

Print:  $10.95

Digital:  $5.95

Buy Links:

Print:  https://museituppublishing.com/bookstore/index.php/museitup/mainstream/three-wrongs-541-detail

Digital:  http://www.amazon.com/Three-Wrongs-Donavan-Thief-Hire-ebook/dp/B00BACRDMU/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1433093644&sr=8-1&keywords=Three+Wrongs+%2B+Chuck+Bowie

You’ll notice we always include the publisher’s buy link. That’s because authors usually receive 40% of the book price 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 royalties from what is left. So, if a book costs $5.99 at E-BookPublisher.com and you buy from there, the author will receive about $2.40. If you buy the book at Amazon, the author will receive about $0.83.

Downloading 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 chord into a USB port on your computer and simply move the file from your “Downloads” box to your E-Reader/Documents/Books directory. You can download your books onto your computer using “Save As” to a “Books” file you create and sort them into sub-folders by genre, author, or however you wish before transferring them to your e-reader. That way, if there’s a glitch with your e-reader, the books are on your computer. And, your author will be happy you did when he/she sees his/her royalty statement.

Thanks for visiting. Julie, Donna, & Rochelle

The Lights of Home by Amanda Morgan

Blurb:

The life of reclusive archaeologist Jill Reade is nearly perfect and she is content. She has carved a niche for herself contracting with both governmental and private entities to conduct small-scale archaeological projects throughout the Pacific Northwest. She inherits a bed-and-breakfast, currently being run as a women’s renewal center, from Alice Norman, a woman she’d met only one time—at her grandfather’s memorial service. Jill, befuddled by the legacy, has no desire to be an innkeeper and steadfastly refuses to let it alter the life she has worked so hard to shape.

At the urging of Alice Norman’s attorney, Jill reluctantly agrees to use the remote lodge as a base camp during her next project. While there, she’s told the legend of the Sanctuary Tree—a giant tree with dense boughs that sweep the ground, providing protection from the elements for anyone lucky enough to stumble into its aromatic chamber. She hears, again, the story of a woman who, many generations before, had been caught by an early snowfall after leaving the nearby gold fields and, with her gold, disappears forever. Jill had already been told snippets of that story by her grandfather who was born not far from the very lodge she has just inherited. She also learns that, while she may not want the lodge, there are those who do, and they’re willing to risk much to get it.

Before Jill can complete her work and leave, an early snowstorm traps her in the lodge with fourteen strangers and a helpful resident from many generations past. She spends the Thanksgiving holiday playing hostess, cook, nurse, sleuth, confidante, entertainer, and, most importantly, friend. She leaves the lodge with a new-found sense of self, a new purpose, and even, perhaps, a new love.

Review:

The Lights of Home by Amanda Morgan is a charming literary novel told in third person. A lively, easy flowing story set in the Pacific Northwest, it is rich in local history with great insight to unique characters and realistic challenges. Morgan is attentive to details and highly descriptive of the panoramic setting. However, in her effort to include an extensive amount of detailed description, her dialog with the dog becomes somewhat contrived at times. There are no big surprises or intense mysteries in this book; just a heart-warming story of family legends with gentle humor and characters with which the reader will find it easy to relate. I recommend this book for its homespun wisdom and pleasurable reading.

Length:  226 Pages

Prices:

Print:  $14.81

Digital:  $4.99

Buy Link:  http://www.amazon.com/Lights-Home-Amanda-Morgan/dp/1602901341/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1232509975&sr=8-1

Thanks for visiting, Rose & Rochelle.