Chaotic Ninja

CRIME FICTION dominated my 2015 reading list that I swear I could see blood dripping from my reading device. I read fewer books in 2015, but 5 of them were books that blew me away, gave me tremendous enjoyment, and entertained me to the hilt.   Here they are: The authors of these 5 books have masterfully depicted mystery, intrigue, and suspense in equal measure that they've created incredible stories that trigger an emotional response either because of what a character did or a situation that pushed the character over the edge. As a reader, this just fires me up. UNTOUCHABLE  by Ava Marsh is an extremely addictive read. It's sexually charged and provocative with a remarkable protagonist in Stella/Grace. It's a story that transports the reader to the dangerous world of high-end escort service. We become privy to the unspoken rules and to the dirty little secrets of powerful men and the women who are embroiled in the fatal game of sex, lies,...

So I was in a reading funk. It was so bad that according to Goodreads, I'm 28   books behind schedule  of my 80-book target for 2015.  Amazon is largely to blame. Because when your 60+ reviews are unceremoniously and unfairly pulled, you are gutted and you lose your street cred (if I ever had one, to begin with).  And you lose your review mojo . Then beta reading happened.  A few days ago, a brilliant author asked me "When are you gonna beta read for me?" Just so you know, I'm not a beta reader * . I've been invited by wonderful authors in the past, but I respectfully declined because I feel that I lack the necessary skills to beta read. Besides, w hen you read deliberately to find errors, it just sucks all the fun in reading.  But this author isn't strict. All she wanted was a male perspective.  Easy peasy. The reading part, that is. The critiquing, not so much. I found myself asking these questions before writing...

  I wrote the first part of this 2-part Chick Lit review three months ago for International Women's Day .  I didn't provide an explanation on what brought this on, so, let me just do that now. Chick Lit is a much-derided literary genre and yet it's embraced by millions of readers, largely the female kind. I don't pretend to know how the genre came into existence, but I vaguely remember the genre gaining prominence at the time of the publication of Helen Fielding's "Bridget Jones Diary" . Since then, there were a multitude of writers who went the chick lit route; some were successful, while others disappeared into obscurity. The genre continues to be criticized for the perceived superficiality of the topics and themes.   After reading these books (7 of them), I can safely say that, yes, there are recurring themes and situations that are common in these books. That's not necessarily a bad thing. It's what makes chick lit book a chi...

      DEMONS & PEARLS by PS Bartlett A fearless female pirate fueled by adrenaline rush, stakes her claim to the Captain-less ship filled with grubby buccaneers out to get her and her cousins. It’s chaos! It’s madness! It’s freakin’ awesome! And that’s just the beginning! There’s no situation too precarious and no man too dangerous for Ivory Shepard. She’s just one hell of a character. She’s a total firecracker! This prequel to “ The Blue Diamond: The Razor’s Edge ” is a pulse-pounding, beard-curling, action-packed story that has enough voltage to power up a Kindle device. It’s more than just a frenzied pirate tale. It brings to the fore controversial issues with tremendous passion, evident in the narrative style and tenor. This is such a thrilling read; not encumbered by lengthy expositions and sappy romance talk. It just tells an electrifying story of love, murder, revenge, and survival – not necessarily in that order. ★★★ ★ ★ 5/5 ...

The Girl Who Wouldn't Die by Marnie Riches ★★★ ★ ★ 5/5     The book puts you through a series of events that didn’t make sense at first. They were just pieces of a complex puzzle bolstered by misdirections, red herrings, shifty characters, and a frantic storytelling that will drive you insane. I wanted the story to end fast to make sense of it all. But when it ended, I didn’t know what to do with myself (I call this the Amsterdam Syndrome). It’s a searing slow burn of a book. And it’s brilliant.  There's a heavy Stieg Larsson influence but I still wasn't prepared when the author drops the bomb. And George McKenzie? We didn't hit it off, not immediately. But when she reveals bits and pieces about herself in every chapter, I knew I found a badass character that I want to get to know more. This is a crime book junkie’s fix. It takes a while to kick in, but when it finally does, you’re in for one explosive ride.   ** I'd ...

Welcome to Episode 27 of  Conversations over Milk & Cookies  hosted by Kindle Ninja.  Hi, Kindle Ninja here. You know, the ninja who occasionally stalks indie authors and invites them to Conversations over Milk & Cookies.  What is this madness, you ask? It's my way of supporting indie authors, and now, publishers! We interact with them everyday, directly through tweets, or indirectly through re-tweets, but we don't really know much about them. Their personalities really don't shine through in 140 characters.  Of course, that changed considerably when the Milk & Cookies segment was born. Since its inception, we've seen the funny side, silly side, dark side, and all other sides that these wonderful authors don't let show.  Today, I'm having a conversation with author and publisher Daniel J. Dombrowski of 33rd Street Press . D an (we can call you Dan, right?) is running a Kickstarter for Nonlocal Science Fiction #...