A Feeling In My Bones {My Thoughts}

A Feeling in My Bones by Gervase Shorter
 My rating: 4 of 5 stars
EBook  approx 252 pagesPublished April 26th 2011 By Gervase Shorter via SmashwordsISBN  0011298464  (ISBN 13:  2940011298462)

Source: Review copy provided by author

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Extended Description of Story via Smashwords.com

Jake Forrester is recruited by Harvey Baum, a Miami based business associate, to carry out an assignment for Cyrus Kroger, a reclusive billionaire, at his heavily guarded property in the Catskills. In a series of emails to his wife Sally, Jake describes his increasingly close friendship with the septuagenarian Kroger but Jake suddenly disappears and Baum says he is out of contact, visiting Kroger´s operations in Central Africa. Shortly after Jake´s disappearance Baum phones Sally to say Kroger has fallen ill and died and then, a month later, he phones again, this time to say Jake is back in Miami but in a clinic suffering from a nervous breakdown.

Sally flies to Miami and brings Jake home. She notices there are no visas or stamps in his passport indicating a visit to Central Africa. Jake gradually returns to normal but his relationship with Sally does not regain its old warmth. Whatever happened in the month Jake disappeared brings him vast wealth but Sally is worried because she finds he is growing increasingly nervous and suspicious.

Sally and Jake start getting used to being extremely rich. She finds she is leaving her old life and friends behind. They move into a Park Lane penthouse and there Sally makes a discovery that brings her whole world crashing down. She starts investigating and what she discovers makes her afraid for her life.

My Thoughts

This book was a minefield from the beginning, it was full of pitfalls and twists and turns that totally were too good to put down. The drama and suspense are offset by characters you will find easy to understand and in the case of Jake's friend Harvey easy to dislike as well! The main character Sally Forrester is a no-nonsense forthright woman with a charming bounder of a husband who manages to finally sail his ship into port so to speak making the couples dreams of wealth a reality. The only problem is how did her husband Jake come by his money, was it by fowl means or fair? What happened to Jake for a month? Why is he no longer the warm, fun-loving, charming man she married?

The answer to these questions and more are found out over the course of her story, a story that takes the reader on a rather rambling madcap journey of almost a year where Sally tries to stay alive and culminating in a shocking ending that will change your mind about money being the end to all life's trials and troubles!

I highly recommend this read to those of us like me who like to travel in our armchairs, Sally and Jake will take you on a few journeys to places that are beautiful and also places most of us will never visit in our life time.

[ECopy of this book was provided by author in exchange for an honest review.]

All the places to connect with the author:Gervase Shorter's Web SiteAuthor page/Book Buy Links on AmazonAuthor's Smashwords Page

From Sketch to Chapter Art, an Illustrator at Work/Q&A with Author Richard Due.

Have you ever wondered what was behind the artists illustrations in a book, what the thought process and the actual delivery were like? After the book synopsis to "The Moon Coin" you will get a small glimpse into the how, the what and the why! Read on and enjoy.

Book Synopsis

Gibbering Gnome Press Presents a Tale of Epic Fantasy

For Lily and Jasper Winter, the Moon Realm began with a single secret bedtime tale. As the children grew older, Uncle Ebb enthralled them with thrilling tales of the Dragondain riding horse-sized, catlike Rinn; mysterious tales of peerin-wielding lunamancers manipulating the magic that lies just beneath the surface of reality; exciting tales of flying dragons, swimming merfolk, stomping giants, and troublesome faeries. But as the magic of their childhood faded, so too did the tales. Eventually, they were just . . . good stories.
 Or were they?
 Now, nine years after it all began, Uncle Ebb is missing.
 Lily and Jasper search for clues, but their uncle's mansion is full of distractions. A Tesla generator thrums in the basement. Prismatic electrimals flit around walls resembling underwater reefs. Then a most unexpected friend comes to their aid, leading them to a hidden room where they find a mysterious coin—the moon coin. Before the night is out, Lily is transported to the real Moon Realm. But the moons are in trouble. The Rinn of Barreth are under siege, and the lunamancers of Dain are beset by the very dragons they once loved. Most horrifying of all, the moon Darwyth has fallen to a villain named Wrengfoul, whose creeping evil now threatens to overshadow all the Realm.

Are Lily and Jasper too late to save the Moon Realm, or will they have enough time to write an ending of their own?

Featuring twenty-two stunning full-color illustrations by Carolyn Arcabascio. Volume One of the young adult fantasy adventure series The Moon Realm.
 From Sketch to Chapter Art, an Illustrator at Work
{An interview with the author and the illustrator on the making of The Moon Coin.}
For me, getting to work with Carolyn Arcabascio was a dream come true. On The Moon Coin, we worked from a master list of scene options, with Carolyn picking out scenes she liked and making sketches. For the prologue, Carolyn drafted three options. All three were great, but two in particular were spectacular. I first went with option 3 (one of my scene suggestions). I think we spent more time on this sketch and subsequent color drawing than on any other piece. But it never seemed right. At the eleventh hour, I asked Carolyn how hard she’d hit me if I suggested scrapping the thing and instead going with the pinky promise scene you see below (one of her scene suggestions). Carolyn responded: "There would be no hitting involved!" and told me it wouldn't be a problem. You sure can't ask for better than that.From the Prologue: Bedtime Tales.

Richard: Did you make all these sketches in the same location, Carolyn?
Carolyn: Yes, I do all of my work at a drafting table that's situated in a little nook of my apartment in Acton, Massachusetts. There's a bookshelf to my right and a wall of "inspiration" to my left, where I hang prints of other artists' and illustrators' work. On either side of my drafting table are drawers of supplies, and stacks of sketchbooks and old paintings. The drafting table faces a window overlooking a quiet street and the woods beyond it.
From Chapter Two: A Coin of the Realm.

Richard: Do you use models when you're sketching?

Carolyn: I use a combination of models and photo references. If I need to work out the nuances of a character's posture and really understand the perspective of it, I'll ask whatever friend or family member is handy to pose for a sketch. Often, I'll get into the position myself or mimic the facial expression I want to portray in order to get the feel of it. And sometimes, if there's a character being portrayed multiple times across scenes, I'll make a rough model of their head out of clay so I'll have it to refer to.


From Chapter Four: To Barreth.

Richard: When drawing fantastical creatures, do you use bits and pieces of real animals for inspiration, or have you actually seen a wirtle and you're just not telling us? ;)

Carolyn: No wirtles native to Massachusetts, fortunately! When figuring out the look of fantastical creatures, I use photo references of different animals to understand the way the anatomy might work, and then combine features as I see fit and as the story calls for. To understand the wirtle's legs and paws, for example, I referred to a series of photographs of show dogs leaping over hurdles. The severely arched, scruffy back was influenced by photos of hyenas on the prowl. The bone-structure of the face ended up being something of a cross between a cow and a warthog, and I wanted the snout to be bare—kind of gross and raw-looking. Add it all up and, voila! We have a wirtle.

To get your own copy of this wonderful fantasy for middle grade reading on up hit the buy links below so you two can fall in love with Lily and Jasper!

all photos courtesy of author, all rights reserved with Copyright 2011 by Richard Due

The Moon Coin, by Richard Due, is available at the following buy sites:AMAZON    BARNES and NOBLE   I BOOK STOREThe ebooks will be on sale for 99 cents till 1/31/2012I have to say this sounds like a delightful story, my YA shelf has not had a fantasy quite like this one on it yet! My thoughts on the book are not scheduled until March 15th as when the author approached me my blog schedule was set until then. However am reading the story soon so my write up on goodreads and other sites will be up probably before the end of February.

Link Sharing and other info today.

photo links to buy links for Authors books available on Amazon 

In a little town called Poetry there lives an author on her piece of property where she not only writes but she lives in a manner that few people today choose as a lifestyle. MARIA ZANNINI has the pioneer spirit of our forefathers, the savvy of experience of living in the 21st century, the trial and error she has gone through herself that she now wishes to share so she has released the first in a series of books that range from shopping with coupons, budgeting,  tasty meals and everything in between. You can find her new series info on her FACEBOOK FAN PAGE that details all you need to know about living frugally.The first book is "Smart Budgets for Busy People" and you get a copy for only 99 cents here:AMAZON BUY LINKSMASHWORDS BUY LINKSome more interesting links have come to light that are to do with meeting and greeting authors and learning about their works. The first one to share is for authors only {upcoming or published either one I believe} coming up February 4th, NINO Con and I have Author Mina Burrows to thank for bringing it to my attention and yours.

photo links to Mina's post about the Con

Also coming up in February is ConDFW XI on the 17th-19th at Crowne Plaza Suites in Dallas TX.

This is a literary science fiction and fantasy convention featuring writing-and publishing-focused programming, science programming, excellent guests, art show, charity book swap, short story contest and a slew of non traditional activities that is open to all. Author Cherie Priest is the 2012 Guest Of Honor as is Artist William Stout and I have to thank the newsletter that was in my email from the writing duo of Cat Adams that called this con to my attention. {Maybe CT and Cathy will get to go.!}

photo links to con website

The next takes place June 22nd to 24th 2012 and it is for readers, writers, editors and supporters of quality fantasy literature and it is located in Minneapolis MN at the Marriot hotel. This will be a panel of discussions and more info can be found at this link for the  4th Street Fantasy Conversation.

photo links back to website

FENCON IX will be September 21-23, 2012, at the Crowne Plaza North Dallas/Galleria and it is a Fan-Operated Science Fiction and Fantasy Literary Convention in the Dallas/Fort Worth Area. There will be books, music, food, art and all kinds of fun from the web page info I found! There is a Facebook Event Page which you can utilize to remind yourself by signing up to the event. For full info The FenCon Web Site has very detailed information about the event.

Now that the Con links are up have a couple of blog hops that will be participating in that you might find of interest as well.

The first one is in February and it is co-hosted by  Author Felicity Heaton and Bitten By Paranormal Romance and runs from 10-16th, 2012. Entry deadline is February 5th.

Vampires For Valentines Giveaway Hop includes books, swag, ebooks and etc but is all vampire romance book related and what better way to spread our love for these supernatural creatures than giving someone their very own vampire for Valentines! My own giveaway will be international with 3 winners.

photo links to Vampires for Valentines hop post

photo links to initial post with rules and linkups.

Next is March Hop to help ring in Saint Patrick's Day in Style, the hop is hosted by I Smell Sheep and Fictional Candy. Deadline for entry to participate is March 1st and the main theme is something related to being Irish or St Paddy's Day and of course book related as well! My giveaway will be International and have 3 winners.

That's it for today, could keep going but think those are enough links to keep you busy for a bit. Anything interesting you think I might like? A Con somewhere in Texas this year, a giveaway for paranormal romance books, a new to me author whose series releases soon that I might want to try?