2013 Self-Published Challenge Recap

Challenge:  Self-Published Challenge
Host:  Workaday Reads
2013 Level: Paragraph (10 books) - FAILED!
Thoughts:  Didn't make it, but still didn't do too bad for not seeking out self-pubs.
1. Echoes from the Infantry by Frank Nappi
2. Thrift by Phil Church
3. The Circle of Tivedon by Ryan Shorten
4. The Grace Painter by Mark Romang
5. Running into the Darkness by D. A. Bale
6. The Sound and the Echo by Dew Pellucid
7. Chasing Memories by Tia Silverthorne Bach
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10.

Chasing Memories

Chasing Memories

by Tia Silvertorne Bach

published by author

April 2013

ISBN 978-1484820544

Why Read?: Review

Challenges: YA/MG Fantasy, Self-Published, 100 Books in a Year

Shifter fans will enjoy Tia Silverbranche Bach’s new series, Tala Prophecy.  The first book, Chasing Memories, sets the stage for a solid YA paranormal series.

Reagan Cooper seemed to have the perfect life.  Almost a senior in high school, she was on the cheerleading squad, had two best friends, and a coveted boyfriend.  However, one camping trip changes all of that when the tent she is sharing with her younger brother is attacked by some wild animal and her brother disappears, presumably dead.  Reagan only has foggy memories of that night, coming back to her in bits and pieces.  Oddly enough, her grandmother seems to know something, but she only gets chances to talk to Reagan cryptically.  She does give Reagan a candle and a special amulet that seems to make Reagan feel better – well, except when the new boy, Rafe, is around.  Rafe may be new in town, but she seems to have his eyes set on Reagan, but why?  And what secrets is he hiding?  Could everything strange in Reagan’s life somehow be tied to the attack?

Bach does a great job with keeping the plot moving and portraying Reagan as a popular and real teen.  The storyline is engaging and everything a good YA paranormal needs to be.   However, some of the interaction between the characters, transitions between scenes, and information dropping seems stilted.  Despite these issues, which will probably be corrected as Bach grows with her craft, this is an entertaining novel.  Some scenes are highly polished and really deliver that “wow” factor.

I enjoyed Chasing Memories and look forward to what Tia Silverbranche Bach has in store nest in the Tala Prophecy series. 

Rating 3/5

The Sound and the Echoes

The Sound and the Echoes

by Dew Pellucid

published by author

2012

ISBN

Why Read?: Review

Challenges: YA/MG Fantasy, Self-Published, 100 Books in a Year

Young fantasy fans will find much to love with the world Dew Pellucid created in The Sound and the Echoes.  Some familiar fantasy elements mingle with new ones creating a world vastly different from our own.

Ever since Will’s sister disappeared in the lake when they were little, Will has had his two pets, Damien and Dia, for company.  His life is pretty normal – well, aside from the fact that his parents will not stop searching for his sister – until right before his 13^th birthday.  It is then that his pets tell him the truth about his sister…and about him.  Will is whisked away to the world of Echoes, semi-transparent twins to humans, whom they call Sounds.  He is heavily disguised because evil Echoes are out to kill him.  A law states that if a Sound dies, his Echo must be killed, and Will’s Echo just happens to the be the rightful heir to the throne.  With the help of his new best friend, Peter, Will must overcome many various obstacles to see his Echo ascend to the throne.

The world of the Echoes is a very unique one, as are many of the tasks Will must accomplish, although some are rather reminiscent of Harry Potter.  However, there are many characters that seem to come and go at random, and the evil Fate Sealers are very difficult to image.  Also, the plot tends to meander at times and all plot points do not necessarily lead to the ending.  These issues tend to throw older readers out of the story, but many young readers can look past these inconsistencies.

Dew Pellucid has penned a story that will easily entertain middle-readers. With a tighter storyline and solid characters, The Sound and the Echoes could be a wonderful fantasy to be enjoyed by all ages. 

Rating 2/5

Running Into the Darkness

Running Into the Darkness

by D. A. Bale

published by author

2011

ISBN 978-1-4661-6307-2

Why Read?: Review

Challenges: Self-Published, 100 Books in a Year

Running Into the Darkness is an intense thriller.  D. A. Bale really packs in a lot of action and intrigue.

After a major run-in with her boss during her second year of residency, Samantha Bartlett welcomes to the chance to get away.  Unfortunately, her reason for going away is the death of her grandmother who raised her since her parents' flight was blown up as she, a five-year-old at the time, watched.  However, she no longer feels safe in her childhood home as a mysterious man with sunglasses seems to be following her.  When they finally meet, her turns her world completely upside down, and Samantha is not sure at all about the new direction.

Bale has created a very kick-ass heroine in Samantha, but unfortunately, I never connected with her, making it very difficult to get lost in Running Into the Darkness.  Detective Joe Roberts, Samantha's childhood friend, was a much more relate-able character, and the scenes with him seemed to pack more punch.

As D. A. Bale's debut, Running Into the Darkness is not a bad attempt at suspense and a strong female lead.  I just need the character connection within all the action to ramp it up a notch.

Rating 2/5

The Grace Painter

The Grace Painter

by Mark Romang

published by author

2012

No ISBN

Why Read?: Review

Challenges: Self-Published, 100 Books in a Year

Mark Romang’s The Grace Painter is unlike anything the title could imply.  What sounds like a gentle, character-driven story of redemption is actually a high-speed thriller about redemption.

After discovering that his partner shot and killed his family, Matthew London leaves the NYPD and moves to Louisiana where he lives as Jon Rafter, a quiet fisherman and painter.  After living this peaceful existence for eight years, his life is turned upside when during a hurricane, he finds injured FBI agent Annie Crawford on the side of the road.  It seems she is on a mission to recover a kidnapped child from a family of known drug dealers who has kidnapped another child decades ago.  As the storm rages, the fight to rescue the child and take down a major drug cartel escalates as Jon gets dragged back into the sort of life he thought he has left well behind him.

Romang starts out with intense action that never lets up for long the whole way through the novel.  Even though the plot is mostly action-driven, Romang makes sure to also develop the characters along the way.  And while there is a Christian undertone to the whole story, the message is easily accessible to people of any faith.

Mark Romang does a wonderful job with the suspense in The Grace Painter.  I just wish the title gave more sense of the thrilling plot contained within.

Rating 3/5

Thrift

Title: Thrift
Author:  Phil Church

Publisher: n/a
ISBN: n/a

Why Read?: For Fun
Challenges: Why Buy the Cow, British Books, Self Published, 100 Books in a Year

Thoughts: With the title of Thrift, I really had no clue what to expect.  What I got was a funny story about a slacker teacher just trying not to get fired at a mediocre English academy.  There were a few slow parts, but most of it was just fun fluff.

Rating: 4 stars

2013 Self-Published Reading Challenge

Challenge:  Self-Published Challenge
Host:  Workaday Reads
2012 Level:  Sentence (5 books)  - COMPLETED!
2013 Level: Paragraph (10 books)

1. Echoes from the Infantry by Frank Nappi
2. Thrift by Phil Church
3. The Circle of Tivedon by Ryan Shorten
4. The Grace Painter by Mark Romang
5. Running into the Darkness by D. A. Bale
6. The Sound and the Echo by Dew Pellucid
7. Chasing Memories by Tia Silverthorne Bach
8.
9.
10.

Self-Published Challenge Recap

Challenge:  Self-Published Challenge
Host:  Workaday Reads
2012 Level:  Sentence (5 books)  - FAILED!
Thought:  I am really close to finishing the one, and I might be able to do so in the next few weeks.
Books:
1. The Nameless One by Kathryn Meyer Griffith
2. Veil of the Unknown by Kelly Leigh & Terri Lucas
3. The Liberation of Max McTrue by Kim Culbertson
4. Wraith's Forest by L. J. Leger
5. 

Initiate

Title: Initiate

Author: Tara Maya
Publisher: n/a
ISBN: n/a
Why Read?: For Fun
Challenges:  Why Buy the Cow? (Kindle), YA Mythology, Telling Tales, Self-Published, 100 Books in a Year

Thoughts: This is a very unique story with a lot of threads that lead up to one heck of a cliffhanger.  At first, it took a while to get into because it is told from so many points of view, but once everyone is introduced and the exposition is over, the story really picks up.

Rating: 4 stars

Self-Published Challenge

Challenge:  Self-Published Challenge
Host:  Workaday Reads
2011 Level: n/a
2012 Level:  Sentence (5 books) 


1. The Nameless One by Kathryn Meyer Griffith
2. Veil of the Unknown by Kelly Leigh & Terri Lucas
3. The Liberation of Max McTrue by Kim Culbertson
4. Wraith's Forest by L. J. Leger
5.