Review for Nova by Joanne Van Leerdam

Author: Joanne Van Leerdam

Genre: Poetry

My Rating: Five Stars

Blurb: 

Explore with the poet what it is to be human: to love, to celebrate, to grieve, to feel pain, and to overcome, through powerful images of fallenness, hope and redemption.

My Review:

Wow. That is the first thing that came to my mind when I started reading this collection of poems. Trust me, there is a lot packed into that short little word, too. To clarify, here are some other words that come to mind to describe Nova. Brilliant. Spectacular. Gorgeous. That's just the tip of the iceberg.

Joanne Van Leerdam's poetry does everything great poetry should do. It entertains. It evokes emotion. It inspires. These poems of growth, loss, and love definitely do not disappoint!

Every single poem in this collection is amazing and I have found some new favorites that I will most certainly be reading over and over! I am looking forward to discovering more works by Joanne and I highly recommend you check out her poetry, as well!

If you're searching for some great poetry, Nova is available on Amazon!

Review for Phoenix Always by Jae Dawn

 
Author: Jae Dawn
Genre: Urban Fantasy/Paranormal

Blurb:

From Romania to New Orleans through nine centuries and thirty-nine lives, Phoenix Maison remembers them all. What she doesn’t remember is how she came to be trapped in this cycle of reincarnation. Every year in every life, she prepares for her possible death, but this life is different from the others. She loves her family and her native New Orleans and longs for a future with her girlfriend. 

Determined to break her curse, Phoenix stumbles down an oddly familiar path back to the only life she doesn’t remember, where her immortal soul lived in an immortal body. 

Even as bloodless corpses pile in her beloved city, Phoenix still hopes to escape her destiny. But her seemingly endless time is running out and she must either embrace what she was always meant to be or let humanity meet a brutal fate. 
The future of mortals and immortals alike lies in her choice.

My Rating: 5 stars

My Review:

Phoenix Always begins with Phoenix Maison, an eighteen-year-old young woman who has lived thirty-nine lives. She is finally happy in her current life with adoring parents, a girlfriend, and a city she loves. However, her clock is ticking down before she once again dies and is reborn. She may be able to break the curse over her but is the cost higher than she is willing to pay?

This novel had me hooked from the beginning! It has great pace and never a dull moment. The way the author interlaced fragments of the protagonist's past with the present is flawless. I loved Phoenix! Her life is so fascinating and she's a strong heroine. You can feel how much she loves her family and friends, and can empathize with the struggles she faces. I really enjoyed the New Orleans setting and with the authentic descriptions of the city you can just see yourself there.

The entire concept of Phoenix Always is absolutely intriguing. There are immortal beings, magic, and plenty of unique characters. It's very well-written, exciting, and has twists and turns throughout that keep you wondering what will happen right up to the end. I look forward to reading the next one!


You can find this amazing book on Amazon!

Spotlight and New Release with author Lily Amis!

Hello! Today on the blog we have Lily Amis and her new release, Birdy & Fishy!

Birdy & Fishy Book Blurb

“Birdy & Fishy” is a lovely and deep story, about the great power of hope. It is about, believing in miracles and the strength of friendship and loyalty. Despite different lifestyles, it is the desire for freedom that unites us. We should never give up on our dreams and desires. We should always trust in destiny because the higher power of the Universe will make the impossible, possible, sooner or later. But, remember, everything has its own time and there is a key to every lock because the creator never gives problems without a solution. Therefore, there’s no comparison between the sun and the moon, because they shine when it is their time and SO WILL YOU!

Birdy & Fishy is inspired by

This short story is inspired by the two first memoirs of Lily’s Trilogy, Destination: Freedom (ISBN-13: 978-1502852243, ASIN: B013YS2MWI) and Definition of Freedom (ISBN-13: 978-1515144588, ASIN: B01HK25TBU). Both book titles are also available in German and as ONE BOOK The Lily Amis Story. 

The symbolic meaning behind “Birdy & Fishy”

This deeply meaningful short, age- and timeless story inspired by the two memoirs Destination: Freedom and Definition of Freedom is a reflection of Lily’s Life in a foreign country.

Fishy’s desperate desire for freedom, a circle of loving friends and a caring family, the feeling of belonging somewhere and of being accepted and integrated, is what many refugees/immigrants feel and struggle with. Some struggle, just for a while, but others for their entire lives. But, as they say, there is always light at the end of the tunnel and this story, with a happy ending, is a good lesson, to never give up on hope, faith, dreams, goals, wishes, and desires, despite the challenging obstacles, of destiny and our selfish, elbow-society!

 Birdy & Fishy links

EBook on Smashwords

https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/716357

ISBN: 9781370442966

EBook on Amazon

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B06Y2F962F/ref=cm_sw_r_tw_dp_x_-Jl6ybK0FF0KH

ASIN: B06Y2F962F

Print Book on Amazon: Soon available!

ISBN-13: 978-1545113318

ISBN-10: 1545113319

Birdy & Fishy Book Collection

https://society6.com/nassimadesign/collection/birdy--fishy-collection

Also available from Lily Amis!

The Lily Amis Story

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01M9G47G2/ref=cm_sw_r_tw_dp_x_i4k6ybYV2QWA1

ISBN-10: 1534780947

ISBN-13: 978-1534780941

ASIN: B01M9G47G2

About Publisher, Author, Illustrator & Blogger Lily Amis

Nominated Multi-Genre Author, Blogger and Artist Lily Amis is the Author of “Destination: Freedom” and eleven more books. With her honest memoir she has enjoyed strong media exposure and public interest during the refugee crises in summer 2015. Placements included two features with British newspaper the Daily Mirror as well as interviews with popular UK’s lifestyle websites Female First and Frost Magazine.

Lily Amis had to fight against injustice, prejudice, discrimination and social isolation for almost three decades to become who she is today. An Independent Author living in Switzerland with the goal to entertain and educate readers about important and eye-opening topics in our society with her books and blogger magazine “Read My Mind”.

Her free online magazine is an entertain & educate project by Lily’s Publishing company nasSima design. With passionate and talented Authors and bloggers from all over the world she is inspiring aspiring Authors and readers as well as Indie Artists from all kind of genres such as music, movie and art. The first issue was published on April 4^th 2017 and the RMM team is working on the summer issue now.

Lily Amis Socialmedia & Blogger magazine

Website: www. LilyAmis.com

Blog: LilyAmis.blogspot.com

Lily Amis Book Collections: www.society6.com/nasSimadesign

RMM Magazine: www.nassima-design.com/RMM/spring2017

Lily Amis Amazon Authorpage: https://www.amazon.com/Lily-Amis/e/B00PSLRSS8

Lily Amis Smashwords Authorpage: https://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/MissLilyAmis

Twitter: @nasSimadesign  and @ReadMyMinMag

Pinterest: @nassimadesign

Facebook: @LilyAmisAuthor, @LilyAmisMemoir, @LilyAmisShortStories, @ReadMyMindMagazine

En Garde!

I love reading a good fight scene. I love writing a good fight scene even more and my novels are full of them.  Writing an epic battle is a great deal of fun but it’s far from easy. Having a fight scene that is both gripping and easy to follow does present some challenges and it’s important to remember some key points.

Firstly, you need to have a specific goal in mind. While the good guys fight the bad guys and the good guys have a hard time but eventually win is an admirable and time tested way to go, it’s very general. Before I write a battle scene I ask myself, what is the point of this fight? Is it to capture an adversary to try to get information? Is it to obtain a new weapon from the enemy, or retrieve something that was stolen? Is it simply to survive? Having a specific goal will make it easier to direct the fight scenes, instead of just having a bunch of people slashing away at each other just for the sake of fighting.

The scene. Make it different and unique. Every one of my fight scenes is different from another. I’ve had fight scenes in places as simple as a large field, to as complicated as starting in a parking garage and ending up on top of a tall building. Changing it up gives you a chance to work with different aspects and will keep the reader interested. Obviously, a fight in a field would be easier than a brawl in a parking garage. It isn’t only the place you need to think about. Is it sunny out? Hot? Rain would make the ground slippery and deep snow would make it difficult to maneuver. Adding these elements will give your fight scene tension and added challenges for your characters.

No fight scene would be complete without some amazing weapons but choosing your weaponry takes some careful and thoughtful planning. A massive battle-ax sounds amazing and deadly but you can’t take a battle-ax and stick it in the hands of a fourteen-year-old girl; it would be too heavy. One of my characters, Finlay, yields a battle-ax and I make sure and mention his well-muscled arms and shoulders.  Guns are great for distance but in a close-up battle you would risk shooting your companions. A katana is a timeless weapon. However, it is best for slashing, not stabbing. Do your research! I’ve spent countless hours researching weapons, how they work, stances, and moves. Knowing how to use the weapons in your writing will make it more realistic and interesting for the reader.

Speaking of realistic, keep facts in mind when writing a fight scene. A battle is tiring. If your character is still fit as a fiddle after an hour-long battle, something is wrong. You need to add details like burning muscles and sweat getting in your character's eyes to keep your fight real. While a person getting stabbed in the leg and continue to valiantly fight with the blade still embedded may add some great flair in a movie, it may not be quite realistic. How deep is the knife stabbing? Is it slicing through more muscle with each step, or wedging against a bone? Your character would be in a tremendous amount of pain, and likely wouldn’t be fighting for long.

My last bit of advice would be to keep the outcomes of your fight scenes balanced. If your protagonist is always losing, that’s discouraging to the reader, and your characters! On the other hand, if your protagonist is constantly coming out on top you lose the chance for your character to learn and grow. Writing both wins and losses for your characters will keep your readers wondering with each battle, what’s going to happen?

And now, to arms!