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Sunday, November 3, 2024

Book Review: The Dog Who Was There by Ron Marasco






The Dog Who Was There by Ron Marasco
Genre: Adult Fiction (Christian Fiction/Historical Fiction)
Date Published: January 31, 2017
Publisher: Thomas Nelson

No one expected Barley to have an encounter with the Messiah. He was homeless, hungry, and struggling to survive in first century Jerusalem. Most surprisingly, he was a dog. But through Barley’s eyes, the story of a teacher from Galilee comes alive in a way we’ve never experienced before.

Barley’s story begins in the home of a compassionate woodcarver and his wife who find Barley as an abandoned, nearly-drowned pup. Tales of a special teacher from Galilee are reaching their tiny village, but when life suddenly changes again for Barley, he carries the lessons of forgiveness and love out of the woodcarver’s home and through the dangerous roads of Roman occupied Judea.

On the outskirts of Jerusalem, Barley meets a homeless man and petty criminal named Samid. Together, Barley and his unlikely new master experience fresh struggles and new revelations. Soon Barley is swept up into the current of history, culminating in an unforgettable encounter with the truest master of all as he bears witness to the greatest story ever told.

The Dog Who Was There by Ron Marasco is a beautifully told from Barley, the dog’s, perspective. I listened to the audiobook version, narrated by the author himself. I thought he did an excellent job. Even though it wasn't told in a first person point of view, he became Barley. We walk with Barley from the time he was a young pup, still with his mother all the way to the Crucifixion and shortly after. I knew it would make me cry, especially in the end. I was expecting it, but it had me in tears already by chapter two. This story was told very believably in just the way you’d expect a dog so see the World and the people around him. This is definitely a story I will be recommending. And, with the holidays just around the corner, this would make an excellent gift.

Epigraph
“Truly I tell you,” Jesus replied, “no one who has left home or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or fields for me and the gospel will fail to receive a hundred times as much in this present age: homes, brothers, sisters, mothers, children and fields—along with persecutions—and in the age to come eternal life.”
—Mark 10:29–30

 Barley was lying with his snout resting on the hearth, looking up with his alert brown eyes, watching Adah cook dinner. She was sitting, as she always did at this time of night, on her small stool and stirring a pot of something that, to Barley, smelled delicious. It was nightfall in the small home that Duv had built, all by himself, when he and Adah first became husband and wife, many years before Barley had come into their lives. The walls of the homey, one-room house were thick, made out of light-colored stone and coarse mud, from the region of Judea they lived in…

Listen to more here.


author
Ron Marasco is a professor in the College of Communication and Fine Arts at Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles. His first book, Notes to an Actor, was named by the American Library Association an "Outstanding Book of 2008." For the past five years he has taught a very popular course on the subject of grief using film, theatre, literature and oral history as a way to study this often intimidating subject. He has acted extensively on TV―in everything from Lost to West Wing to Entourage -and appeared opposite screen legend Kirk Douglas in the movie Illusion, for which he also wrote the screenplay. He has a BA from Fordham at Lincoln Center and an MA and Ph. D. from UCLA. Brian Shuff is a writer from Mesa, Arizona, who now lives in Los Angeles where he is at work completing a book of short stories. His mother died when he was eight years old, giving him a life-long interest in the subject of grief. Along with Ron Marasco he has written a screenplay based on Louise Hay's groundbreaking book, You Can Heal Your Life that will premiere in 2011. He and Marasco are also working on a dramatic adaptation of John McNulty's book This Place on Third Avenue.

To learn more about Ron Marasco and his books, visit his IMDB page. You can also find him on Goodreads and an excerpt of this book on YouTube.

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Tuesday, June 18, 2024

Book Review: Light Magic by Juliana Haygert






Light Magic (Rite World: Fallen Angel #2) by Juliana Haygert
Genre: New Adult Fiction (Paranormal Romance)
Date Published: May 23, 2024
Publisher: Dark Witch Press LLC

I’m better alone than deceived …

In my wild pursuit of redemption, I struck a sketchy deal with a demon to get back my celestial wings. Surprise, surprise – I got played, ended up hurt and alone.

Now, I'm trying to snatch back my lost magic, untangle the mysteries surrounding Elysium, and scrub my name clean.

However, thanks to a fat bounty on my head, every stroll outside turns into a showdown with supernatural freelancers hungry for the jackpot. After a brutal brawl left me broken, I reluctantly called on a witch with healing mojo. And guess who shows up? Her brother, the two-faced demon who betrayed me not too long ago.

Plot twist: he's still bound to me, thanks to some unbreakable spell.

Fueled by equal parts rage and necessity, I'm flipping the script, hell-bent on breaking the annoying bond, reclaiming my magic, and taking down not just the backstabbing demon but also every threat aiming to wreck my world.

LIGHT MAGIC is a sizzling paranormal romance, set in Juliana Haygert’s kick-ass Rite World. This spellbinding urban fantasy promises a riveting blend of magic and suspense, leaving readers yearning for more..


Light Magic is the second book in the Rite World: Fallen Angel series by Juliana Haygert. I love Ariella and Levi's Hot-Cold, Argue-y bantering. They're a lot of fun! Like book one, there's a lot of action. Just when Ariella starts to feel comfy somewhere. Boom! She's found! Levi spent some time away this time around. He was missed, as I definitely like it better when he's around. These books definitely keep me entertained. We got some surprises and twists, and I look forward to seeing where things go next.

The ARC of Light Magic by Juliana Haygert was kindly provided to me by the author for review. The opinions are my own.

Have you read the first book in this series?

Check out my reviews of other books by this author!

author
While USA Today Bestselling Author Juliana Haygert dreams of being Wonder Woman, Buffy, or a blood elf shadow priest, she settles for the less exciting—but equally gratifying—life of a wife, mother, and author. Thousands of miles away from her former home in Brazil, she now resides in North Carolina and spends her days writing about kick-ass heroines and the heroes who drive them crazy.

To learn more about Juliana Haygert and her books, visit her website.You can also find her on GoodreadsFacebookInstagramPinterestTikTok, and Twitter.


Tuesday, April 30, 2024

Book Review! Extinction by Douglas Preston






Extinction by Douglas Preston
Genre: Adult Fiction (Thriller / Mystery / Science Fiction)
Date Published: April 2, 2024
Publisher: Forge Books

With Extinction, #1 New York Times bestselling author Douglas Preston has written a page-turning thriller in the Michael Crichton mode that explores the possible and unintended dangers of the very real efforts to resurrect the woolly mammoth and other long-extinct animals.

Erebus Resort, occupying a magnificent, hundred-thousand acre valley deep in the Colorado Rockies, offers guests the experience of viewing woolly mammoths, Irish Elk, and giant ground sloths in their native habitat, brought back from extinction through the magic of genetic manipulation. When a billionaire's son and his new wife are kidnapped and murdered in the Erebus back country by what is assumed to be a gang of eco-terrorists, Colorado Bureau of Investigation Agent Frances Cash partners with county sheriff James Colcord to track down the perpetrators.

As killings mount and the valley is evacuated, Cash and Colcord must confront an ancient, intelligent, and malevolent presence at Erebus, bent not on resurrection―but extinction.

Extinction of the first book I’ve read by Douglas Preston, and it didn’t disappoint. I wouldn’t really compare it to Jurassic Park too much, but if you loved Jurassic Park you’ll like this one.  This is more of a mystery. Who’s the bad guy/bad guys? In Jurassic Park, the enemy was always clear, because they weren’t the main point of the story. In Extinction, the story starts with mysterious killings, and it builds from there. I loved the imagery of the mammoths and other prehistoric mammals. It was written beautifully. 

This story was very well told. Especially since it was told from multiple perspectives which can sometimes get messy. This one was put together nicely. It did drag in areas, but when it was going, it really went. There were brutal bits, but they were mainly left to the imagination rather than a full description. Sometimes less is more, and while I’m not one to get queasy, I feel like if you do, this style wouldn’t be as hard on you. It was interesting! You can tell the author did some research here, and that makes it all the better. 

Even though it never ends well, fictionally speaking, I’ve gotta say I’d line up to see these creatures. Dinos. Mammals. It’d be worth the risk to see them. Sign me up!

The ARC of Extinction by Douglas Preston was kindly provided to me by the publisher through NetGalley for review. The opinions are my own.

Olivia lay in the dark, Mark breathing softly next to her. The night was still, without the breath of breeze, the silence profound. It had dropped below freezing, but their sleeping bags were super warm, and she was used to camping in alpine weather. Her dad had taken her and her brothers camping in the Wasatches and Manti-La Sal in all seasons, sometimes on cross-country ski trips in the dead of winter in ten-foot-deep snow and nights to twenty below. God, she missed him. Mark was a little like that, unintimidated by wilderness conditions, totally cool with anything nature might throw at him. The first thing she did with any new boyfriend was go camping. So many of them, despite their big talk, failed the test — all it took was a little rain or snow, a swarm of mosquitoes, or a rattler, and they were in a panic. Or they just didn’t have a wilderness sense — like casually leaving trash or pissing too close to a stream or not knowing how to set up a tent. She shifted her body, not feeling the slightest bit tired. The sun set so early in the fall, it was still probably only eight o’clock. She wished she could fall asleep like Mark, who could drop off anywhere, anytime, in five minutes. It was a dark, moonless night. The mammoths would be sleeping in their hollow below them. She listened, wondering if mammoths snored. But she could hear nothing. Her mind wandered, and she thought of her Olympic medal, sitting in its sock in the back of her underwear drawer in Salt Lake. All those years of work, struggle, risks, crashes, injuries, surgery, rehab, recovery, more work, more struggle — and finally Pyeongchang. All that work had been squeezed up and stamped in a piece of bronze sitting in the back of her drawer. Mark had been upset that she wouldn’t frame it and hang it with a picture of her receiving it on the stand. Why would she? She hated even looking at it. It would be different for her child. Son or daughter, it didn’t matter. He or she wouldn’t make the mistakes she’d made. Olivia had been through it all and knew now how the system worked and what had to be done, and she could guide her child to something a whole lot better than bronze. She suddenly was hyperalert, tense. She heard a sound. A strange plucking sound. Mark was instantly awake too. And then it started, the loud tearing sound of the tent fly, like it was being cut. “What the f***?” Mark sat up like a shot. She pulled a headlamp out of the tent pocket and switched it on. She shined it through the mosquito netting of the inner tent to reveal a long, ragged cut in the outer fly. “What was that?” said Mark. “A branch?” “There’s no wind,” Olivia said. “You think it’s a bear?” he said. “They said the bears had been removed.” “Yeah, but one could have wandered back in over the mountains.” Olivia wondered. Maybe it was an animal, smelling the humans inside and reaching out to scratch the fly just to see what it was. They listened, but the silence was total. “I’m going out,” said Mark. “No, wait.” “I’m not waiting. If it’s a cat or bear, we’d better drive it away. We can’t wait for it to come in here.” He took the headlamp from her, put it on, and pulled his buck knife from its sheath, before slipping out of the bag. He was wearing Capilene full-body long johns. He went to the tent door and unzipped it. He paused. No sound. Then he stuck his head outside the door. “See anything?” “Nothing.” She was filled with uncertainty. It could be a mountain lion in wait. Maybe it ran off when they turned on the headlamp. But Mark was right: they couldn’t just cower in the tent. They had to do something. Calling out for the guide would only put him in a place of danger, and besides, asking for help from the guide ran against her wilderness ethic. She felt around and grasped her own knife and put on her own headlamp but didn’t turn it on yet. “Okay, I’m going out,” he said, and slipped out into the dark. She could see the glow of his light indistinctly through the tent fabric as he swept the area. She tensed, gripping her own knife. The glow quietly moved about for a long thirty seconds. She heard him suddenly grunt—a weird sort of snort — and there was the sound of spilling liquid, and the glow vanished. “Mark?” Olivia cried. “Mark!” No sound. She sprang to the tent flap and looked out, turning on her headlamp and sweeping the area with the light. There was his knife, on the ground. Nearby lay his headlamp in the grass, still lit. “Mark!” she screamed. “Mark! Hey, we need help here!” she cried, leaping out of the tent, gripping the knife. She stopped where he had dropped his knife and headlamp and stared at the ground in horror — just as she felt something strike the back of her neck and slide in, crunching the bone and going through it, as hot as fire and cold as ice at the same time. 

author
Douglas Preston has published thirty-six books of both nonfiction and fiction, of which twenty-nine have been New York Times bestsellers. He is the co-author, with Lincoln Child, of the Pendergast series of thrillers. He writes about archaeology and anthropology for the New Yorker Magazine, and he worked as an editor at the American Museum of Natural History in New York and taught nonfiction writing at Princeton University. He currently serves as President of the Authors Guild, the nation’s oldest and largest association of authors and journalists.

To learn more about Douglas Preston and his books, visit his website. You can also find him on Goodreads, Facebook, and YouTube.

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Saturday, April 27, 2024

Book Review! Dark Wings by Juliana Haygert






Dark Wings (Rite World: Fallen Angel #1) by Juliana Haygert
Genre: New Adult Fiction (Paranormal Romance)
Date Published: April 25, 2024
Publisher: Dark Witch Press LLC

I made a deal with the devil …

What kind of angel doesn’t have her wings, her sword, and her magic? Oh, right … the me kind. These days, I'm practically just another human.

The hurt of not being a true angel is too much, so I come up with a brilliant idea: I summon an evil wish-granting demon and trap him in a witch's circle. The price for his ticket out? My wings and my magic.

But, surprise, the ritual goes haywire and now this devil is bound to me! Furious but shackled by the spell, the demon reluctantly agrees to help me get my wings back, then we figure out how to break the bond, preferably without driving each other crazy.

Remember what they say about best-laid plans? Buckle up because this ride is getting bumpy, and our odd partnership? It's heating up.

DARK WINGS is a scorching paranormal romance set in Juliana Haygert’s enigmatic Rite World, where love defies heaven and hell. Magic and desire collide in this action-packed steamy urban fantasy novel, leaving readers breathless and desperate for more!




Dark Wings is the first book in the RiteWorld: Fallen Angel series by Juliana Haygert. Ariella is a fantastic main character. She was written so beautifully, I felt like I was really seeing through her eyes. I don’t usually enjoy a demon playing a good guy, but I’ll have to make an exception for Levi. His presence was undeniable, and their chemistry was off the pages. There was some steam going on too. Whew! I enjoyed the supporting characters as well. Levi’s sister was a gem! Their whole world was well put together and easy to envision. Non-stop action all the way through. I’m fully invested in this one, and can’t wait for more!

The ARC of Dark Wings by Juliana Haygert was kindly provided to me by the author for review. The opinions are my own.

Check out my reviews of other books by this author!

author
While USA Today Bestselling Author Juliana Haygert dreams of being Wonder Woman, Buffy, or a blood elf shadow priest, she settles for the less exciting—but equally gratifying—life of a wife, mother, and author. Thousands of miles away from her former home in Brazil, she now resides in North Carolina and spends her days writing about kick-ass heroines and the heroes who drive them crazy.

To learn more about Juliana Haygert and her books, visit her website.You can also find her on GoodreadsFacebookInstagramPinterestTikTok, and Twitter.


Buy this book at: