With the Sea Beside Me

With the Sea Beside Me: An intimate guide to California's central and north coast by Meade Fischer
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Transcendent and engrossing travel guide...

Meade Fischer confirms that whenever and wherever we travel it is the experience that matters, the here and now, and crucially how that changes us, rather than confirms what we expected or anticipated when we decided to go there. In an age where we are told that travel experience can be bought as a package, it is interesting and instructive to travel through the eyes of another, both refreshing and enlightening to share another visitor's insight from a different time as we explore a new experience of travel ourselves.

With the Sea Beside Me the descriptions are lyrical and vivid. As the synopsis explains: ‘… imagine being an adventure traveler setting out to explore the California Coast. Then imagine climbing in beside someone with intimate local knowledge of the coast and all its opportunities for outdoor exploration and enjoyment. With the Sea Beside Me is a guidebook, a running narrative and a collection of travel literature vignettes, a book that can be read for entertainment before departing and then referred to along the road. From Santa Barbara to the Oregon border, Fischer points out the great places to camp, outstanding hikes, kayaking and surfing spots, brew pubs, restaurants, lodging, interesting back roads and some of the fascinating people the traveler should stop to meet along the way. The road stories give the reader a sense of the places and the people, making each area feel familiar before arriving...’

If you've ever wanted to experience the California Coast, this is a great book to start with. If you love to travel, you will absolutely love reading about Meade's experiences. If you are nervous about traveling, then become an armchair traveler by starting with this book; you may just find that it makes you brave and ready for an adventure. Another great read by this author for all travel lovers. Highly recommended.

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Cosmic Coastal Chronicles: Reflections of a west coast wanderer

Cosmic Coastal Chronicles by Meade L. Fischer
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

A must-read for all travel lovers...

‘The West Coast of the United States, also known as the Pacific Coast, Pacific states, and the western seaboard, is the coastline along which the Western United States meets the North Pacific Ocean. The term typically refers to the contiguous U.S. states of California, Oregon, and Washington, but sometimes includes Alaska and Hawaii, especially by the United States Census Bureau as a U.S. geographic division.’

Anyone who loves to travel will not be surprised by Meade Fischer ‘s belief that travel transforms us for the better. But few of us have taken the time to analyze that transformation. In Cosmic Coastal Chronicles: Reflections of a west coast wanderer, Meade shares just how travel changes us, teaching us to be more patient, more tolerant, and more open to new ideas, perspectives, and differences. Sometimes travel and the experiences it brings can also be a little uncomfortable, but in those situations, we are all the more likely to experience transformation.

This collection of travel tales from around the Pacific West Coast is fascinating in the breadth of its scope. In this travel book the author shares his experiences and has produced a wonderful series of stories. In each case, the authors’ views and focus are centered on varying aspects of the human and physical landscape, each in such a way that they grab the reader’s attention from beginning to end.

The way the author reveals both the high and low moments, as well as the dangers and the risks that all travelers experience, in various forms, in search for what is new and novel in the world (or in this case the Pacific Coast), is both energizing and life-enriching.

By the time I had come to the end of the book, I felt that not only had I stood on foreign fields, and swam in a foreign sea, but that I had also broadened my horizons by sharing in the heartfelt emotions of the author. An enlightening read, that is bound to both edify and delight, Cosmic Coastal Chronicles is a must-read for all travel lovers. Very highly recommended. I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book.

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Arcadia's Children 4: Exodus

Arcadia's Children 4: Exodus by Andrew R Williams
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Although it takes only a single word to achieve liftoff, Arcadia’s Children 4: Exodus delivers another solid installment for the dedicated fans of sci-fi. The imagery in the writing style is suitably impressive, the characters and premise are compelling, and a clear effort has gone into producing something rather special while still upholding the spirit of hope and optimism the entire series embodies. Thus far, this is most definitely an adventure worth discovering. It leads to reflection, has well-defined characters, exciting battles and some moments of genuine wonder with the infinity of space. It’s a work that seeks its own personality within the saga. And, I think it has found it. Highly recommended and a well-deserved five stars from me.

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Death Mask: A Tale of Vengeance

Death Mask: A Tale of Vengeance by Nora Delzelle
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

A well-crafted sci-fi fantasy...

Forty-some years ago my uncle gave me a science fiction anthology. It was a thick red hardback that I read from cover to cover. It inspired a lifelong love of the genre. The stories in that book made me think outside the box. They filled me with awe for the imagination it took to write them. That book still remains in my collection today. The title is OMNIBUS OF SCIENCE FICTION, edited by Groff Conklin, a well-known and prolific editor of the genre. It was published in 1952, the Golden Age of Science Fiction. It’s a substantial volume, 562 pages, with 43 stories divided into sections relating to a common theme. Some stories are fun, some are thought-provoking, and some are adventurous. I love them all.

Death Mask: A Tale of Vengeance by Nora Delzelle is a wonderfully written and richly descriptive novel with brilliantly drawn settings and characters. The author weaves a well-crafted sci-fi fantasy that will captivate the reader’s attention from the start. Skillfully constructed, this exciting and thrilling sci-fi will have you turning the pages from beginning to end. There’s also plenty of imagery in the writing style that makes you feel you are right there in the story, and that’s something I look for in a good book.

The plot is intricately carved, as the synopsis suggests: ‘Ghosts, gods, and cursed relics are at the heart of this thrilling debut by Nora Delzelle. Death Mask is a modern re-imagining of the battles between Horus and Set, ancient Egyptian deities that represent order and chaos. It is a story about a young woman, Alex Kincaid, who gets caught in their deadly feud by placing a bid on an eBay auction for a golden mask. This relic confers protection and ageless power to the owner. Alex has to contend with angry gods, prophetic dreams, and ghostly guides imparting knowledge to discover that the ancients still walk among us. If Alex can survive, there is a steep price for her new-found power... her very soul.’

I enjoyed the story, character development, and dialogue. There were plenty of plot twists that I didn’t see coming and that added to the book’s mystique. When I stopped reading to work, I found myself wondering what happened in the book, and replaying parts of the novel in my head to see if I could figure more out. It's a solid read that benefits substantially from a raft of better-than-average elements. Highly recommended.


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IS THERE NOT A CAUSE?

Is there not a cause? by Nathaniel Terrell
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

An excellent debut collection of poetry and other musings...

If you are somebody who prefers to experience life and savor its moments, sacred, painful, and true, you will find several of your own favorites in this collection that you will return to for sustenance, for pleasure, and for wisdom, and you will never be disappointed. It touches you wherever you are in your own particular way, just the way poetry should.

Each poem conveys important messages about being connected with our soul and with our true nature. The poet uses the power of poetry and its capacity to pry open our hearts and minds in a gentle and welcoming way. It’s in the unanticipated moment when the truth of the poems are realized, do we have an experience that for some of us, becomes like a prayer.

IS THERE NOT A CAUSE? by Nathaniel Terrell is a collection best taken one page at a time. Each poem holds enough wisdom and enlightenment that will remain with you long after you’ve read them. These are poems that will stir the soul. This poetry is truly an invitation to mindful presence where the words and artistic expressions will initiate you, ‘wake you up’ so to speak, and guide you home.

This is a beautiful collection of poems, written by a very talented poet. It is a collection to savor and reread. You will find yourself coming back to it over and over as life changes happen, each time gaining more wisdom, advice, and peace from the words within. The poet invites the reader to slow down, read and enjoy each poem, while reflecting on how it relates to your life.

If you are looking for the poet inside the poem, look for the undercurrent he has left, the continuous hint of feeling can be found everywhere throughout this work. It’s powerful and strong, yet delicate and descriptive His pictures of emotional moods are painted beautifully. He has captured the essence of what a poet is. It’s only on the rare occasion that I get the opportunity to describe a poet in this way.

This is a powerful debut collection containing songs, stories, personal reflection, fiction and scenes of life. ‘Written from the perspective of a passionate, creative black man facing midlife and working hard to share his voice with the world, each poem paints a vivid picture of the soul of an artist… Touching on topics such as life and death, racism, faith, anger, social injustice, division in the nation, and getting up after failure, Nathaniel Terrell's IS THERE NOT A CAUSE? is meant to encourage and to provoke and will take you on a journey that starts fast and dives deep.’

Nathaniel Terrell will make you fall in love with literature again. If you've never liked poetry, you'll love IS THERE NOT A CAUSE? If you haven't read much poetry, this is an excellent place to start. A highly recommended read and a well-deserved five stars. I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book.

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In Sickness and in Health: A Journalized Account of Coping with Multiple Myeloma

In Sickness and in Health: A Journalized Account of Coping with Multiple Myeloma by Demetria Alexander Grissett
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

An inspirational faith-based journal that will inspire...

‘Multiple myeloma is a cancer of certain cells of the bone marrow called plasma cells. Multiple myeloma is a form of bone marrow cancer. Plasma cells normally produce our antibodies. Multiple myeloma features abnormal proliferation of plasma cells in the bone marrow, destructive bone lesions, and the production of abnormal proteins, specifically antibodies. Multiple myeloma is also referred to as myeloma.’

In Sickness and in Health by Demetria Alexander Grissetta is a journalized account of coping with multiple myeloma. Sharing the personal benefits experienced from keeping a journal or diary is a wonderful way to see how someone else has used the power of journaling. Reading about someone's journaling experience reveals what journaling has meant to them. What it has provided. What they have learned about themselves or the world that surrounds them. In this wonderful book the author shares her journey not only in dealing with the cancer, but with many other life-changing situations.

In Sickness and in Health has a transparent and practical style. The author shares personal life illustrations that will, no doubt, transform other reader's lives. The faith-building dimension of her journey is a dynamic ingredient of this book. I have had personal experience with this type of cancer in my own family, so I thank the author for sharing hers.

Very highly recommended and a well-deserved five stars from me.

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A Man Out Of Time (Phil Allman, P.I. Book 7) by Brett Wallach

A Man Out Of Time by Brett Wallach
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Thoroughly enjoyed it, and highly recommended it.

A Man Out Of Time (Phil Allman, P.I. Book 7) by Brett Wallach is a superbly written and richly descriptive novel with brilliantly drawn characters and settings. The threads of storytelling are expertly woven in this vigilante style narrative that it guarantees the attention of the reader. Skillfully constructed and set against the backdrop of the online dating world, this excellent moral quandary will have you turning the pages from beginning to end. In addition, the characters are drawn with great credibility and conviction. It's a solid read that benefits substantially from a raft of better-than-average elements.

The book description gives a sneak preview: ‘Like a latter-day Don Quixote, a delusional Phil Allman harkens for a time when men were chivalrous and brave. and women were virtuous and circumspect. With Dan Lee, his own Sancho Panza-like sidekick, he ventures into the wilderness, which in twenty-first century America is the sordid world of online dating. There they set forth to save damsels in distress and punish evil-doers, whether real or imagined…. A Man Out Of Time is the seventh book in the Phil Allman, P.I. series, and it finds our hero's already deteriorating sanity at its nadir. Dan Lee, a successful, retired IT professional, assists in his quest, to save Phil from himself, and to finally engage with the world outside of his cloistered and lonesome bubble. Along the way, they find a damaged but resilient young woman; does she really need saving, and do the men who have allegedly abused her deserve retribution? Such is the moral quandary of our adventurers who try to preserve innocence in a corrupt world.’

This was a fascinating and captivating read that had me immersed from the beginning. The story flowed from scene to scene with ease, and the author shows exceptional ability when it comes to storytelling. There are plenty of attention-grabbing moments in this page turner that will take the reader on a truly mesmerizing journey.

There’s no doubt that A Man Out Of Time is an exceptionally well written book. The contrast between tone and content is a characteristic talent of only a few authors. Wallach pays as much attention to his sentences as he does to his plots, shifting or consolidating meaning with the use of a single word. His writing is impeccably honed, full of juxtapositions and qualifications that help to create an authentic atmosphere throughout.

If you are looking for a well-written satire where PC has derailed the train ever before it left the station, then A Man Out Of Time by Brett Wallach will not leave you disappointed. Thoroughly enjoyed it, and highly recommended it. A well-deserved five stars from me. I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book.

I’ll be looking forward to reading more from Brett Wallach in the future. Although it must be mentioned, for those who are fainthearted or linguistically sensitive, profanity and graphic sexual scenes are infused throughout the book.

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