Review: As Wings Unfurl by Arthur M. Doweyko

As Wings Unfurl 

by Arthur M. Doweyko 

Applegate Bogdanski returns from Vietnam with a missing leg, a Purple Heart, and an addiction to morphine. He stumbles through each day, looking forward to nothing and hoping it will arrive soon. When he attempts to thwart a crime, he is knocked unconscious and wakes up to discover that people are once again calling him a hero, though he feels undeserving of the praise.

Apple returns to work and meets Angela, a mysterious woman who claims to be his guardian. Immediately, he feels a connection to her, which morphs into an attraction. But he soon discovers that Angela is much more than she seems.

Apple and Angela are swept up in a conspiracy that stretches through time and space. Together, they must fight to save everything they hold dear from an alien race bent on destroying humanity.

My Take:

When Applegate Bogdanski returns from Vietnam, he has traded a leg for a Purple Heart, a Bronze Star, a hero's welcome, and an addiction to morphine. He stumbles through life in a drug-induced cottony daze, wishing to die and knowing deep inside that he's not a hero but a coward. His job at a small bookstore in New York City is hardly interesting, until a man shows up pummeling his boss and looking for negatives to some incriminating picture.

A mysterious woman named Angela shows up and saves him, and claims to be his guardian angel. The negatives become the focal point of a string of attempts on his life by beings far more powerful than any human, and only the superpowers of his angel can save him. But all isn't as it seems. The angels and demons struggling over secrets seem more alien than divine, and the two of them uncover an unholy plot that could eliminate all of mankind. 

Content:

Drug Content:
PG – Multiple references to drug addiction and abuse, pushers, and drugs administered against a person's will. Some slight alcohol consumption. 
 
Violence:
PG-13 – Multiple violent scenes, including a few decapitations and severed limbs. Nothing gratuitously graphic.
 
Language:
PG-13 - The F-bomb appears once, and milder expletives are spread throughout the work.
 
Adult Content:
PG-13 – A few slight adult conversations, and several scenes with nudity, but no sex.
 
Christian content:
There's a tremendous struggle of good vs evil in this book, and the bad guys are disguised as monks, priests, cardinals, and nuns. The good guys also impersonate the priesthood. Several religious people pray, and much of the action takes place in religious buildings, like a cathedral. And you'll find loyalty, faith, and self-sacrifice repeatedly here. But don't enter this book looking for a story of the unseen world of angels and demons fighting for the souls of mankind.

  

Final Analysis:
As Wings Unfurl is a fast-paced high-stakes thriller with a depth of world building and character development that gives it solid realism. The characters are relatable, the setting and story immersive, and the pacing perfect. I found it engaging, gripping, and entertaining. Five Stars!

About the Author:

As a scientist, Arthur has authored 100+ publications, and shares the 2008 Thomas Alva Edison Patent Award for the discovery of Sprycel, a new anti-cancer drug. He writes hard science fiction, fantasy and horror. His debut novel, Algorithm, which is a story about DNA and the purpose of humanity, garnered a 2010 Royal Palm Literary Award (RPLA) and was published by E-Lit Books October 2014. He has published a number of short stories, many of which were finalists in RPLA competitions. A number of his short stories have garnered awards, which include Honorable Mentions in the international L. Ron Hubbard Writers of the Future Contest and First Place in P&E Readers Polls. His recently completed Angela's Apple, a novel about angels who are not angels, won 1st place as Best SciFi Novel at the 2014 RPLA and will be published by Red Adept Publishing. His current project, Henry The Last, is about the last human being, a Lakota Indian cyborg. He lives in Florida with his wife Lidia, happily wandering the beaches and jousting with aliens.

You can find more about him, read his edgy science blogs, or enjoy his art work at www.ArthurMDoweyko.com

Review: No Longer Hidden by M. C. Aquila

No Longer Hidden 

by M. C. Aquila

Linnea is a Swedish princess reluctantly settled into her role as the middle never as influential as the eldest and never as beloved as the youngest. With her fiancé missing in action for nearly a decade, her future is uncertain. But when the Norwegian king curses her younger sister, the fate of Sweden itself is at risk. As war breaks out, Linnea goes on a quest to meet the king and strike a deal that will save the lives of her family and her people — even if it means using her own life as a bargaining chip.

But quests rarely go as planned, especially as she uncovers the secrets of Norway's royal family and the hidden purpose of the war…

This loose retelling of the classic fairy tale "East of the Sun and West of the Moon" takes place near the end of the Viking Age when the old, fierce gods of myth and the new, omnipotent Christian God were both considered equally true and real.

 My Take:

Linnea Olofsdotter is the middle-born princess to the king of Sweden. Predicted to be ordinary and common by a witch's foretelling, she is fiance to the second-born prince of Norway, who went missing five years ago while on a hunt for a giant wolf in the north. 

When her father proclaims a contest for his third daughter's hand, many young princes from all over come to compete, including the sorcerer king of Norway. When King Ingvaldr does not win, in rage he casts a curse on her, placing her in a deep magic sleep only magic can raise her from. Then he and his fleet disappear in a moment.

King Olof makes ready to go to war with Norway, a war he cannot win. And the only one who can save both countries from destruction is Linnea, who must travel through forbidding monster-infested forests and mountains to plead with King Ingvaldr to take her to wife instead. But will the wizard listen at all? Will she even survive the treacherous journey, when she must travel alone?

Content:

Drug Content:
G – There is very little alcohol in this novel, and no substance abuse. 
 
Violence:
PG – A character is badly burned. There's a scene where men are coming back from a war, missing a limb or two.
 
Language:
G – Nada.
 
Adult Content:
G – There's a bit of kissing but nothing further. Good clean romance.
 
Christian content:
The main character goes up against several monsters of Scandinavian myth, and defeats them using icons of the Christian faith. (Crosses, prayers, that sort of thing.) Scripture is quoted in a few places, and faith plays a critical role in the characters as well as the countries they travel through. The book's setting historically is during the Christian conversion of these Scandinavian countries, and friars and bishops play a part in the plot. Faith, hope, self-sacrifice, and loyalty are critical components in this tale. 

  

Final Analysis:
Wow! Where to begin? This fantasy had me spellbound until 2AM; I could NOT put it down. From two chapters in I was unable to stop reading. It had it all - the fae folk, the frost giants, the hulders and the descendants of the wolf king Fenrir. From cover to cover, Aquila weaves a gripping tale of the struggle of faith against magic, of the dark against the light, of hope against hate. The contrasts between the forces of good and evil are not hard to discern here, and the stakes could not be higher. The fates of Sweden and Norway both hang in the balance. Masterful worldbuilding combines with believable and relatable characters, spiced up with a liberal dose of humor, banter, and a little romance to make an excellent, fast-paced fantasy. Perfect for lovers of historical fantasy and Scandinavian mythology.Five Stars!

About the Author:

M. C. Aquila, a Catholic and born and bred nerd, graduated from Winthrop University with a BA in English. She grew up in Pittsburgh, PA but currently resides in South Carolina. When she is not co-writing the Winter's Blight series, she tutors both native and ESL students in English, giving her a renewed love for the strange wonderfulness of the language. She also enjoys drawing daily, baking recklessly, hiking in the Blue Ridge Mountains, searching for the best red wine in existence, and reading any story with a villain she loves to hate.

To learn more about her present and future books, visit her website: https://mc-aquila.com/

Review: Chimera Catalyst (Finder#1) by Susan Kuchinskas

Chimera Catalyst (Finder #1)

By Susan Kuchinskas

 When Finder is hired to locate charismatic, green-haired Miraluna Rose, it seems like an easy job. Crack into corporate databases, brew up some biologics to enhance his thinking, and get the job done with the help of the Parrot, a bird/dog chimera with the finest traits of both species.

The search takes Finder and the Parrot to the sun-broiled streets of Laxangeles, the canals of Seattle and the weirdly mutated vegetation of the Area. It turns out that it's not a simple missing-person case after all.

Finder discovers that ReMe, a corporation providing medical cloning services, is illegally breeding human/animal chimeras. ReMe is selling these exotically beautiful female creatures, branded as ArcoTypes, as playthings to the wealthy and ruthless.

Miraluna Rose is its finest creation, but she has other ideas. She's holed up at Refuge, a haven for runaway ArcoTypes, where she's planning a future of freedom for her sisters.

To help the ArcoTypes fight ReMe, Finder and the Parrot will need the help of a couple of sympathetic AIs, the CEO of the world's largest advertising company and a posse of highly modded, celebrity-crazed media kids.

My Take:

When Finder is hired by Thin Man to hunt down a woman named Miraluna Rose, he knows it's no ordinary missing person case. On the surface, it seemed she was going out for the evening, but she never came back. The breathtakingly beautiful green-haired woman must have been snatched, and Finder and his genetically crafted parrot-dog Parrot must follow a confusing trail of bread crumbs using high tech gadgetry and computer wizardry to rescue her.

But as Finder pursues, he comes up with more questions than answers. Who, or WHAT, is Miraluna Rose? Why does it seem like maybe she doesn't WANT to be found? What is Thin Man hiding, and what does ReMe, a genetic cloning corporation, have to do with this? 

Suddenly, Finder finds himself the target of a manhunt, and keeping one leap ahead of the corporate goons is almost all he can handle as he uncovers secrets they are trying desperately to keep hidden.

Content:

Drug Content:
R – Wow, so much. In the future, it appears oxytocin is an over-the-counter drug, and walking around with an IV-port to fast-track performance-enhancing meds is common.  (BTW I appear to have confused oxytocin with oxycodone, which is a controlled substance, my bad).
 
Violence:
PG – This thriller has some violence, and some death and torture mentioned but not on screen. 
 
Language:
R - The F-bomb is dropped quite a bit. This isn't something I'd give an early teen to read.
 
Adult Content:
PG-13 – Sex trafficking is a major thread of this story. Clones are manufactured for pleasure. Gender parts are mentioned in a few places, but no real action occurs on screen. The human-animal genetic hybrids hinted at a bit of bestiality hiding in the shadows, but again nothing occurred onscreen.
 
Christian content:
None. There's a church, but it's pretty much New Age, and involves what amounts to a skin-on-skin touching orgy. (not sexual, just... touching.)  

  

Final Analysis:
I found Chimera Catalyst to be a fast-paced, well-written thriller. I liked the plot twists and the characters, especially the Parrot and Finder and their interactions. The stakes were high, the world-building phenomenal, the characters enjoyable, the humor engaging. Five Stars!

About the Author:

As a kid, Susan Kuchinskas spent hours catching toads, watching rabbits and starting ant wars -- and reading, reading, reading.

She's never lost her love for creatures of all kinds. In fifth grade, she discovered the bookmobile's science fiction section and read nothing else until she got to college.

After the usual writer's mix of odd jobs – gogo dancer, housepainter, office temp – she happened into journalism. As a technology journalist, she covered the rise and fall of the dotcoms, the move to digital and mobile, and the ascendance of social media.

She's the author of two previous books, Going Mobile: A Guide to Real-time Mobile Applications that Work (CMP Books 2003), and The Chemistry of Connection: How the Oxytocin Response Can Help You Find Trust, Intimacy and Love (New Harbinger 2008).

Her short stories have been published in anthologies and journals including Deep Space Dog Fight and Chicago Literati. This is her first novel.

To exercise the parts of her body and mind that don't get a workout from writing, Susan is an organic gardener, beekeeper, sculptor and DIY re-modeler. She enjoys uncovering exotic cultures at home and abroad.

She lives in the San Francisco Bay Area with her mate, Mike, and their socially challenged dog and super-chill cat.
!

Review: Sarah's Song by Vicky Whedbee

Sarah's Song

by Vicky Whedbee

 It’s the 1940’s, in rural East Tennessee, Appalachian country. For most everyone, there is only work, and possibly church, if there’s one nearby. People rise before the sun is up, work hard, go to bed early, and rest in church on Sunday. Little chance for much else to happen. Right?

So, why would keeping one little secret for over sixteen years be so important? What could possibly have happened, that could change the lives of so many people, if the secret were to be revealed?
There are only three people alive, that know the answer to that question. For now.

My Take:

The fire that burned her house down and killed her parents left Sarah having to care for her younger brother and sister at her grandfather's house. The bad man that set the fire had died in there with her parents. All three kids suffered years of trauma over that tragic night. Nightmares that just wouldn't stop. But time heals all wounds, doesn't it? Life goes on, and children grow, and forget.

A cold winter's night takes the life of a young Cherokee boy's parents. Though little more than a toddler, the boy becomes the slave of the pig farmer whose shed they were sleeping in. And time passes, while he grows, chained and abused and half-starved.

But one morning, a mistake the farmer makes allows the young man to escape with a couple buying a pig, and these stories become forever intertwined. And the terrible secret from the forgotten past? Well, secrets have a way of coming out...

Content:

Drug Content:
G – There is very little alcohol in this novel, and no substance abuse. 
 
Violence:
PG – There are a few scenes of abuse and violence.
 
Language:
G – Nada.
 
Adult Content:
G – There's a bit of kissing but nothing further. Good clean romance.
 
Christian content:
Quite a bit. One of the characters comes to Christ and is asked to give his testimony. When he does, many of the church members present are moved to get serious with God. This character goes on to become a preacher of sorts. Characters wrestle with faith and purpose. We see prayer, compassion, scripture quoted occasionally, and the characteristics of love, joy, peace, self-sacrifice, and generosity beautifully presented. 

  

Final Analysis:
Sarah's Song is a beautifully written novel that dances around the edges of multiple genres. Is it a romance? Yes! Is it an adventure story? Yes, again. It's a murder mystery, a romance, and a faith-filled thriller, all wrapped up and presented in a beautiful bow. Several passages had me moved to tears over the trials and victories of the characters. Whedbee brings raw emotion to the table, with a gripping tale of rural life in the Forties. The character development is real and raw, and the stakes are high. The pacing was reasonable. Good world-building, real characters, thrilling action and a spice of romance. What's not to like? Five Stars!

About the Author:

Vicky Whedbee was born and raised in Daytona Beach, Florida, where she resided until her 40's when she relocated to San Mateo, Florida. An avid reader, she wrote her first novel over a period of years as a labor of love and fulfillment of a life long dream that began with the encouragement of her English teacher in high school.
With a diagnosis of cancer for her dad, she decided to become an independent author and published her novel on her own in order to present a finished product to her father before his demise. She was in the process of reading said novel, "Things He Hadn't Told Her", to him at the time of his passing.
She wrote her second novel "Sarah's Song", which was a collaboration with her father set in the time of his childhood in the rural Appalachian mountains, with notes taken prior to his demise. Both books have been met with stellar 5-STAR reviews on Amazon & Goodreads, as well as awarded the 5-star review seal from Reader's Favorite.
After numerous requests, she wrote a sequel to Sarah's Song, titled Sarah's Home, which could also be read as a stand-alone. It, too, is being received with love and 5-STAR reviews.
She is currently working on her next novel.
Visit & contact her through her website https://crwvao.wixsite.com/vickywhedbee