The Travelers by M.T. Bargeman

In The Travelers by M.T. Bargeman, Lady Robin of the Other Place needs the help of two humans. One is Twila a green witch whose mission is to wake the Great Phoenix to help with the fight of the Red Dragon. The second is her brother Joseph who is to lead the armies to fight the Red Dragon. She sends two of her faithful servants to retrieve them from our world. Eugene and Cynthia go to collect them and find it more difficult than they thought. Once they are all together they ride to King Hern to get their individual missions. Can they save both worlds?

I like the characters that M.T. Bargeman brings to The Travelers. They are in-depth and you can actually see them in your mind. The book itself in well written and any fantasy lover will love to lose hours of their life to live in the world that she invented. What I didn’t like was the way she left you hanging at the end to see if they won the war of the Red Dragon. I am hoping that she has plans for a sequel.

4 bookmarks

Carol A. Langstroth, Manager,
Mind Fog Reviews

MOTIVATE TO CREATE BY NATE HENDLY

This book is a non-fiction directive to motivate writers. The author offers a number of good ideas for writing and tips for finding one’s creativity, but not so much ideas that motivate someone to actually write. For example, the suggestion that novices have the appropriate books is helpful but not motivational. He does have a section called “What This All Has To Do With Motivation,” which seems to pull together these ideas but still lacks the title designation of “motivation.”

I also noted a large number of noun / verb / noun agreement errors (“When an editor turns down a story pitch, it’s very tempting to solicit them for advice,”) and incorrect hyphenation for adjectives (Page 64, for example - Heather Cook, author, horse-trainer and much published freelance writer in Calgary, Alberta. This should read “Heather Cook, author, horse trainer and much-published freelance writer in Calgary, Alberta.) For someone who makes a living selling his work as a writer, I was surprised to see these kinds of errors when he proposes that novices take writing classes, using the analogy about driver’s education.

The structure of the chapters is organized and easy to read. The author uses good personal stories and anecdotes from others as well to make his points. However, his lengthiest section of the book is called “A Word About Working As A Writer,” which goes for six pages under various headings. Most of this is very anti-freelance – reasons not to write.

As an author, I was disappointed not to read something beyond Paul Lima’s theory of hating to be financially devastated if writing were to fail him.

2 bookmarks
Reviewed by: Valerie Conrad, BS, BSN
Mind Fog Reviews

Fragile Dreams by Viviane Brentanos

Viviane Brentanos’s Fragile Dreams is a very romantic love story about Ellie who is recovering from cancer and realizes that there is more to life than what her marriage has become. She starts to fall for Michael who is half her age but mature beyond his years.

This story was very engaging and endearing from the start until the finish. I had to read it all in one day because I couldn’t put it down. This is not your typical woman who falls for a younger guy romance. Every woman idealizes about such a romance in their lives. I do recommend this book to those that do find a younger man’s love a bit more endearing in the long run!

4 bookmarks
Carol A. Langstroth, Manager
Mind Fog Reviews

Luminous Nights by Michele Hart

Luminous Nights by Michele Hart is a about a Space Captain, Rachel Waters, who is forced to take a man with questionable motives and a past. The man “Jack” goes by many names but finds that maybe he still has a soul with Rachel. Can Rachel show this man that revenge isn’t always the right way?

While I enjoyed reading Ms. Hart’s book, I knew that I had read similar stories before. I also enjoyed the background she put into her characters, I felt like I knew them personally but felt that the book seemed to drag on at spots. Still a good overall read for the Sci-fi nut in your household.

3 bookmarks
Carol A. Langstroth, Manager

The Rewritten Word: How to Sculpt Literary Art No Matter What the Genre by Aggie Villanueva

The Rewritten Word: How to Sculpt Literary Art No Matter What the Genre by Aggie Villanueva is a self-help guide geared to helping writers with their writing experience. She offers practical advice and resources to use while editing their own works of art as she has had some books published already and knows what a writer goes through in that editing process.
Aggie Villanueva really explains what writers should watch for in editing their own work. She uses her own experiences of what editors wanted and how she now edits her books. Writers should benefit from reading this guide.

3 bookmarks
Carol A. Langstroth, Manager
Mind Fog Reviews

First Christmas by Diana DeRicci

Diana DeRicci’s First Christmas is a love story between two paranormal shape shifters names Lyndon, who is a Cougar, and Jason, who takes a wolf form.

I think this work of Mrs. DeRicci is a wonderful love story for the gay community. It is a gentle romance that shows a softer side of love. I do wish that there was more of a climax to the story. Over all a decent read on a cold winter day.

2.5 bookmarks

Draven’s Crossing: Mind Games by Diana DeRicci

Draven’s Crossing: Mind Games by Diana DeRicci is an unusual book about Jackal who is a dreamweaver helping Torger solve the murders that are happening in Draven’s Crossing. During one of his dreams he finds Kristof a vampire who was assaulted. Will Jackal help Torger solve the murders? And what is happening between Jackal and Kristof?

Mrs. DeRicci really wrote a book that is completely different than her normal novels. I like the way she brought the world of the non-humans to live in harmony while some humans have difficultly with living with the non-humans. For those that are looking for a different M&M this would be for you.