Category Archives: Book Reviews

Time and Blood by Sherry Rentschler

November 1, 2017 PJ Leave a comment

Time and Blood

by Sherry Rentschler

I knew I’d be in for a treat when I read Time and Blood by Sherry Rentschler, as she is a gifted story teller. I wasn’t disappointed. If you like clean paranormal reads, nor will you.

Title: Time and Blood

Author: Sherry Rentschler

Series: Book one of the Evening Bower

Age Range: High School and Up

If you read Ms. Rentschler’s other reviews, you will find that I am a fan and have read all of her books. She is an award winning author who writes from the heart. One of her poetry books, The Book of Now, weaves a tapestry of yesterday’s history, today’s news and tomorrow’s hope. Time and Blood, the first book of her Evening Bower series is similar, but in novel form.

Time and Blood tells the prophecy of the Scarlet Phoenix, recorded in The Great Book of Forgetting, and the pairing of Ethyrea and Khnuman. As the story of love and the savagely murdered Khnuman unfolds, the reader wonders how Ethyrea will fulfill this prophecy older than Atlantis, because she is the last of her kind.

Millennia pass and Ethyrea, who is now known as Rhea, dreams of a familiar voice. Is it the voice of her long lost mate calling? Will these dreams become reality or remain a torturous reminder of her lost love? She helplessly watched him die, if it is her soul mate, is he calling her to come to him in death, or how will he cross time and blood to be with her in life? Might I suggest you will want to read the books to find out?

Hmm – In What Order Should I Read the Books?

I first read Midnight Assassin, a stand alone novella written to test whether readers were interested in yet another vampire series. The Gypsy Thorn is a prequel to Time and Blood. Midnight Assassin is not part of the Evening Bower series, and is not required reading. However, I like the order in which I met the characters. I recommend that you read The Gypsy Thorn prior to Time and Blood. Please click the links in this paragraphs to read my respective reviews.

Book Links

Amazon Page

Barnes and Noble Books a Million

About Sherry

Sherry Rentschler’s poetry has appeared online and in print. She’s a previous Assistant Editor, Amateur Poetry Journal (online), and a newspaper photojournalist. She lived in Italy, traveling around Europe, the Middle East, the Caribbean, Puerto Rico, and Greenland.

Among Sherry’s numerous awards are two 2017 National Indie Excellence Award Finalists (The Book of Now interior and poetry), 2017 eLit Book Silver Award for poetry (The Book of Now), a 2017 Indie Press Award for the cover of her non-fiction poetry, The Book of Now, 2017 Readers’ Favorite 5 Star reviews for Breaking the Glass Slipper, and The Book of Now.

Among her hobbies are all things vampire, plus dragon collecting, photographing trees, and dancing with faeries. She loves old Sherlock Holmes movies, reading urban and gothic fantasies, fine wine, and consuming rich, dark chocolate. Rentschler is a retired USAF veteran and currently resides in North Carolina with her husband, also a retired USAF veteran. They await the return of the dragons.

Where to Connect with Sherry

Blog: Between the Lines

Facebook: AuthorSherryRentschler

Twitter: @PoetPhoenix

Blog, Book Reviews, Children's

Sweet T and the Turtle Team Book Review

July 15, 2017 PJ 4 Comments

Sweet T and the Turtle Team Book Review

A big thank you to Stacie Theis at BeachBoundBooks who put together the materials for this post and coordinated the blog tour for Sweet T and the Turtle Team. I’m happy to join the fun and to present my Sweet T and the Turtle Team book review. This children’s book is written by Cat Michaels and beautifully illustrated by Irene A. Johns. The tour will run from July 12 – August 9, 2017.

Note: I received a PDF copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

About the Book

Title: Sweet T and the Turtle Team
Author: Cat Michaels
Illustrator: Irene A. Jahns
Publication Date: July 2017
Publisher: 2101 Ink
Number of Pages: 72
Recommended Ages: 6 to 11

My Review: I have to say right off that this Sweet T and the Turtle Team book review will be one of the easiest I’ve ever written. This children’s book by Cat Michaels appeals to me on many levels! Ms. Michaels gently weaves life lessons as the story unfolds. These lessons include environmental consciousness, acceptance, bullying, and helping others overcome issues are deftly covered. Although Sweet T and the Turtle Team is the 3rd book in the series, each book can be read independently.

In this book, Tara who is nicknamed Sweet T, is vacationing at her Great Aunt Mae’s home in Gull Island. She is lonely because she hasn’t made friends yet. The other children make fun of her accent. And what is up with the neighbor, Billy, who is sometimes mean to her? Sweet T learns that Billy has a secret, and hasn’t shared it with her yet. Will they ever truly become friends so that Billy is comfortable enough to confide?

Sweet T, her sister Jenna and others are asked to watch a sea turtle nest to ensure its safety from sea gulls and other predators. Will the nest survive when a hurricane comes through? And why did Billy crumple the Turtle Team Guidelines and refuse to help?

The book’s treasures don’t end when the charming and educational story is finished. Ms. Michaels added discussion questions for the readers to answer to ensure they understood and retained the story. She also added a glossary of abbreviations used when texting, a glossary of story related terms and a photo gallery of a real sea turtle nest and hatchlings.

I love and highly recommend this story!

Pre-order Now ~ Available July 21, 2017

Amazon | iTunes

Take a peek inside the book…

Watch the book video…

About the Author

Author, blogger CAT MICHAELS, M.S., Ed., has more than two decades of experience helping students from kindergarten to college with learning disabilities and Asperger’s syndrome.

Her chapter books and Sweet T Tales series for beginning readers tell of every day life with a twist of magic and mischief. Cat’s books encourage young and reluctant readers to use their imagination and solve kid-sized dilemmas as they enjoy reading.

Cat lives in North Carolina with her family, where she enjoys digital photography and graphic design, creates pocket gardens, works out as often as she can, and writes.

Website/Blog | Facebook | Twitter | Pinterest | Instagram

Find Cat’s books on Amazon and iTunes

Blog Tour Giveaway

Prize: One winner will receive a $75 Amazon gift card or $75 PayPal cash prize, winner’s choice Giveaway ends: August 9, 11:59 pm, 2017 Open to: Internationally How to enter: Please enter using the Rafflecopter widget below. Terms and Conditions: NO PURCHASE NECESSARY TO ENTER OR WIN. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED BY LAW.

A winner will be randomly drawn through the Rafflecopter widget and will be contacted by email within 48 hours after the giveaway ends. The winner will then have 72 hours to respond. If the winner does not respond within 72 hours, a new draw will take place for a new winner. Odds of winning will vary depending on the number of eligible entries received. This contest is in no way sponsored, endorsed or administered by, or associated with Facebook.

This giveaway is sponsored by the author, Cat Michaels and is hosted and managed by Stacie from BeachBoundBooks. If you have any additional questions feel free to send an email to stacie@BeachBoundBooks.com.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Blog, Book Reviews

The Gypsy Thorn

June 10, 2017 PJ 1 Comment

The Gypsy Thorn

When I first read Midnight Assassin: A Tale of Lust and Revenge, I thought it was a great series starter and wanted the next book immediately. The author, Sherry Rentschler, just released The Gypsy Thorn, which I bought directly from her at a book fair. The Gypsy Thorn provides the “back story” to Midnight Assassin and introduces other characters that will appear later in the series.

I made plans to attend the book fair months ago when I found out Ms. Rentschler was going to be relatively close to my hometown. I drove an hour each way to attend, and I’d do it again. In a heartbeat. Pun intended. Ms. Rentschler is as charming and spicy as I imagined from reading her blog. While talking to Ms. Rentschler, she indicated that Midnight Assassin was a novella to test whether readers would enjoy a new vampire series. Take it from me, Ms. Rentschler, the answer is a resounding “YES!”

I read The Gypsy Thorn in one afternoon and now have to suffer withdrawals while waiting for the next book in the series to be released. I’m not going to recap “the story” here in my review because I’d rather use the space to tell you to go buy both books. Why are you still reading? Go now.

For those of you still not sold, I was already a vampire fan before starting this new series. However, if I weren’t, I would have been “converted” after Drahomira’s bite. She is strong, resilient, beautiful and smart – my kind of lead female character. Couple that with Ms. Rentschler’s descriptive storytelling and readers are in for a treat.

I highly recommend reading Midnight Assassin before The Gypsy Thorn. You will love them both! (Where is the happy face emoji with vampire fangs when you need it?) It was quite fun talking to Ms. Rentschler at the book fair because I found out The Gypsy Thorn is a prequel to Time and Blood. I’m counting the days, but I won’t be holding my breath though because I would need Drahomira to make me into a real vampire to survive until October.

To connect with author Sherry Rentschler, go to her blog .

Forever your fan, Ms. Rentschler! ‘Til we meet again.

Update: This post originally reported that the next book would be called The Evening Bower. It is actually called Time and Blood, #1 in the Evening Bower series, and has been changed in the post.

Blog, Other

My Last Breath

August 22, 2016 PJ Leave a comment

My Last Breath

by PJ LaRue

My hope is that
You will

Live long enough to forgive me.
Although I’m not asking you to condone abuse, I’d love to
See you one last time. And, maybe you will begin
To understand that I could not

Be the father you deserved.
Real men don’t abuse, but some can’t stop themselves when
Evil demons live within our souls.
At least let me exhale My Last Breath knowing that I am forgiven.
To my eternal sleep I will go, realizing that I can never atone for
Hurting you.

Note to readers: One of my favorite Facebook pages is Help for Adult Children of Alcoholic’s. You may find it helpful, as well.

Blog, Other

Forgiveness is Powerful

August 17, 2016 PJ Leave a comment

Forgiveness is Powerful

Yesterday and today have been surreal. My brother, who is very close to dad, was in such emotional pain about my dad’s poor health that I decided to return to my hometown. My father is very ill and in ICU. Before this, I hadn’t seen my dad for 10 or 15 years. But right now, I’m sitting in his hospital room watching him sleep.

I didn’t know what I would do when his time to pass drew near. But yesterday, I told dad that even though there were very bad times in my childhood, I also remember the good times. I told him I know that if he could have been a different person, that he would have. But between mental illness and alcoholism, he couldn’t control his anger and violence. I told my dad that my experiences as a child were going to help me be a better adoptive parent to my daughter, once I get her. I may be able to relate to some of her experiences, and that may help her talk to me and trust me sooner.

The ICU nurse told me that the oxygen mask itches so I lightly stroked dad’s face around the edge of the mask. He reciprocated by touching my face and hugging me. Three days ago, I wouldn’t have thought that I would ever allow that to happen.

Of course, there is no reason for me to feel threatened at this point. I forgave dad many years ago, but really didn’t want a relationship after cutting him out of my life when I was a teen. Back then, I was terrified of him and severing our relationship was pure self-preservation.

I will say that actually voicing forgiveness is powerful. I’m at peace. But I think I may have given my dad some peace, as well. I hope so. If he passes now, maybe the transitition will be a little easier for him. And I hope to grow from this experience, as well.

Time and Blood

Hmm – In What Order Should I Read the Books?

Book Links

About Sherry

Where to Connect with Sherry

Related posts:

Sweet T and the Turtle Team Book Review

About the Book

Pre-order Now ~ Available July 21, 2017

About the Author

Blog Tour Giveaway

Related posts:

The Gypsy Thorn

Related posts:

My Last Breath

Related posts:

Forgiveness is Powerful

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