Halloween Howler (Super Speed Sam Book 10)

by Monty J. McClaine

 

My little granddaughter and I just love the Super Speed Sam stories which feature Sam the superhero basset hound and his family, dad, Marty ( I mean Monty) McClaine, his wife, their young son Jack whose always getting into trouble, and little Molly, Jack’s younger sister.

 

This special Halloween Howler story brings all the excitement of Halloween, and the theatrical abilities of Super Speed Sam together in a story which will captivate every child who reads it, just like it captivated my granddaughter when she visited the other day.

 

The stage is set straight from the start for an exciting Halloween night in the McClaine household, all the family are cleverly dressed in suitably scary costumes, and their English neighbour, after telling them about the tradition of Guy Fawkes in the UK have promised some amazing fireworks.

 

Everyone is looking forward to a fun evening, however Sam is a little sad at being kept indoors. The family know that fireworks will scare him and it is for his own good, however he decides to watch the proceedings from Jack’s bedroom window, and it is a good job he does…

 

Times have been hard for the wolf pack which live in the local woodlands, and hunger has forced them into the outskirts of the town. Keeping to the shadows the wolf pack nervously creep about searching for something to eat. Of course, they don’t know its Halloween night, and they can’t know the difference between the sound of fireworks going off, and sound of the guns which cruelly hunt and kill them.

 

When they unwittingly arrive in the McClaine garden, scared and very defensive, Sam is instantly alerted to his family’s danger, but what can he do, and will his super powers be enough to overcome these wild animals and save his family?

Excitement and fun is the name of the game in this wonderful children’s book which celebrates this special ‘scary’ night of the year.

 

Available from Amazon https://www.amazon.co.uk/Halloween-Howler-Super-Speed-Book-ebook/dp/B07HLPR8YG/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=halloween+howler&qid=1569417509&sr=8-1

THE STARLIGHT CLUB 10: LOVE, ROMANCE, AND MURDER IN ANAHEIM 

by Joe Corso

 

Bobby has driven up from Florida to spend Christmas with his daughter Lynn, her husband Ted, and their three children in Connecticut. These are special times as the years go by for Lynn and Bobby to spend time together, and for Lyn to hear tales of the glory days of the famous Starlight Club in Brooklyn, New York.

 

This story begins in 1962 with an unpleasant patron causing Ernie the bartender to take physical action against him. However, it appears that there is more to this incident that at first meets the eye, and when Red hears who is behind the problems and that the reason behind it is money laundering, he realises that it is time to take the matter in hand. Surrounded by loyal men who do what they must do in this underground world, Red realises that it is also important to keep the police and judicial system happy with pay-outs to smooth over any problems, even if is becoming increasingly expensive.

 

Meanwhile Joey is asked to once again look after movie mogul daughter June Morganstein in Los Angeles, something he is happy to do as he is madly in love with her. After an attempt on her life, Joey gets to the bottom of the mystery of why she needs protection and discovers that she has a gambling addiction which has got out of control. However, calling for assistance from other members of Red’s workforce unveils dirty deeds at the gambling club she frequents, and the owner’s alliances with villains and a Mexican drug cartels.  Seizing the opportunity to nip trouble in the bud Red and his men take matters into their own control, with the unofficial backing of the new Captain of the 10^th Precinct Captain Lou Garner.

 

Reading the Starlight Club series is a real delight, within the pages of each of the books you are transported back in time to Brooklyn, and into a world where crime bosses rule the streets and yet are respected, even by the law. Through Red, Trenchie, Joey and all the characters who have been so important to the structure of the stories the everyday lives, loves, dangers and even celebrities of the time come alive. The comradeship these brothers in arms share, dangerous and often deadly activities, and underhand dealings are revealed. However, running through every story are strong veins of loyalty and respect which span generations.

 

Whether you are looking to read a really good story, love crime and gangster novels, or enjoy this period of history, I can guarantee you will not want to put down this exciting story, and it will leave you wanting more.

 

Available from Amazon https://www.amazon.co.uk/STARLIGHT-CLUB-10-ROMANCE-ANAHEIM-ebook/dp/B07X2D2KNF/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=the+starlight+club+10&qid=1569417139&sr=8-1

Swampwise

by Okefenokee Joe

 

When I finished reading this incredible book, I turned to my husband and said, “WOW, how can a review ever give this book the acclamation it deserves?”

 

The author had his first real taste of nature and the natural world when he was sent aged 9 to the YMCA Camp Carson, in the beautiful Appalachian Mountains. At first he missed his mum and dad, however, before long, it was the wildness and natural world of Camp Carson he craved when back home. He loved being amongst the natural world, discovered a fascination for it — especially snakes. With this came, a deeper understanding of God’s work in giving us the wonderful natural world, which is all around us.

 

After a successful career as a singer/songwriter/entertainer for over twenty years, burnt out and tired of the Nashville scene, his marriage in tatters, he cancelled his remaining shows. A broken man, at the age of 41, in desperation, while others would have started on the way to ruin, he remembered those years he had spent at camp in childhood, and the love he had of camping. Searching for answers and with only a tent and other essentials provided by a friend, he set off in his jeep into the swamps of South Central Florida. Alone with his thoughts, he began to ask God for guidance and became one with nature. He learned how to trap and sell snakes, surviving by his skills, he was beginning to find inner peace.

 

It was the offer of work by another friend who managed the famous Okefenokee Swamp Park near Waycross in Georgia which was to take him onto the next stage of his life.

 

The great Okefenokee Swamp is in the south east of Georgia. It is not really a swamp and contains many small islands. Covering about seven hundred and fifty square miles, it is a large designated wilderness area east of the Mississippi River, and is an area of outstanding natural beauty, with all its wildlife protected by law. Heaven indeed, and the place which the author would call home for the next nine years. And what an interesting nine years they were.

 

Through the vividly descriptive writing of this talented man, we the readers are treated to some amazing stories and observations about the animals who live with, and around him. We discover how he befriends the abandoned dog, who is to become his canine companion Swampy before he moved to the park in South Central Florida, and how the next day Swampy appeared in the jeep ready to go with him on the adventure to his new home. Indeed, it is Swampy who finds the little calico kitten Skeeter, who becomes part of their small family, in the picnic area of the park.

 

However, we also learn through these tales of the animals, which are truly wild and live alongside him, and through his example realize that their territory is not automatically ours to walk over and claim. As he says, true wild animals are born to be self-reliant and self-sufficient; it is the way God intended them to be.

 

I loved the way that throughout this amazing book the emphasis is on understanding nature, living with it, respecting it, and recognizing that the creatures around us have just as much right to be on this earth as we do. There is so much to learn at the turn of every page, and even more if you read between the lines and take away from it the understanding that the natural world is out there for all to enjoy.

 

However, in the natural world there is also cruelty, and the author doesn’t hide this side from his readers; after all, ‘nature is not cruel, it is just sublimely indifferent’ as anyone with a pet cat will tell you.

 

After over nine years at the Okefenokee Swamp Park, ‘Okefenokee Joe’ as he had become known decided to spread the word, and for over four decades he has done just that. He has delivered his “Earth Day Every Day” message to school children of all ages, bringing along with him a selection of native venomous and non-venomous snakes, to help as visual aids, and in teaching the children to be ‘swampwise.’ He has written, recorded and sang songs praising all God’s creations, and now he has written this truly amazing book, and I for one am in total awe of what this man has achieved.

 

The author has also released an audiobook “Swampwise Secrets Songs and Stories from the Land of the Trembling Earth!” and will soon be releasing “Snake Hunter Snake Talk.”

 

In Summary: Throughout this amazing period of his life the author learned how to be ‘swampwise’ – really looking at, studying and taking notice of his surroundings. In this modern world, where ‘Mindfullness’ is very much the ‘in’ word, how I wish more people could be like the author and learn to appreciate the amazing natural world around us the same way. Highly Recommended!

 

Available from Amazon https://www.amazon.co.uk/Swampwise-Okefenokee-Joe/dp/0997337109/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=swampwise&qid=1569417232&sr=8-1

I Is God: The Journey Begins

by Geir Gigja

 

This deeply psychological book, is the methodical reinterpretation of the metaphor of the Bible. The author Geir Gigja was born in Iceland, a country known since ancient times as the land of fire and ice, the gateway to heaven and hell, the beginning and the end. Since childhood he has had a fascination with language, its influences on the bible and Icelandic sagas, and the different meanings which can be attributed to words. Then as a young man an accident resulted in him being in a coma, that period of time, when he was aware yet unable to communicate led him to a lifetime’s journey of discovery and to the meaning of ‘I,’ and the culmination of this is this book, I IS God.

 

The author believes that ‘I’ is our inner spirit, the ‘us’ which makes each one of us unique, even before consciousness, when we were in a state of oblivion, the time when we were a very small child, that time when we existed, but before our state of awareness arrived.

 

By explaining why I IS God, the author believes that his readers will be able to use their new awareness and understanding to discover for themselves the true meanings of some of the classic biblical stories such as the Garden of Eden, Cain and Abel, the Flood of Noah, and the Tower of Babel.

 

Because the uniqueness of each person’s I, no one can see the I which lies within every one of us, it is our very being, our essence. He explains that all everyone or thing else sees as us, is in fact simply our image, a representation of us and not who we are really are.  Its presence is with us always as we evolve throughout our lives, awakening our minds, making us conscious of the decisions we make, and of the resulting consequences of them, and in doing so it continually influences our destiny, making us the people we are.

 

In conclusion: This is an extremely thought provoking and enlightening book. “I IS God” is the first book in a series, and I eagerly await its sequel which is called “Out of The Mist: The Story of Abraham and the Twelve Tribes.”

 

Available from Amazon https://www.amazon.co.uk/God-Journey-Begins-Geir-Gigja-ebook/dp/B07XPDKLPK/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=I+IS+God+by+Geir+Gigja&qid=1569417366&sr=8-1

Odell’s Fall

by Norman Bacal

 

As soon as I opened the first page of this exciting legal thriller I knew I wouldn’t be able to put it down. Straight away the lead character Odell Moore’s incredible presence and power as one of New York’s most successful lawyers captured my attention. Little did I realise that underneath the formidable, confident, presence which is Odell’s face to the world, lies a much more complex character, one which continues to unravel and offer new surprises right until the very last page.

 

The story begins with a celebration, it’s champagne all around as the lawyers at the prestigious international firm TGO congratulate themselves on having won the “Bounty” deal, and as their leader Odell Moore, affectionately known as The General, must celebrate this a major victory with them.

 

However today Odell’s mind is elsewhere, it is with his new wife, beautiful southern belle Dee. The couple have just returned from their secret wedding in Vegas and Dee is on her way to break the news of their marriage to her parents. How will her mother react, and what impact will their marriage have on her father, a deeply racist Alabama senator, when he learns her new husband is an African American?

 

Odell’s rise to the top of his profession has been achieved by sheer determination and he has fought for recognition and respect every step of the way. This is the way it is if you want to succeed in this business, in a profession which is ruthless, cut throat even. However, Odell is not the only one fired with a deep hunger and ambition. Jackson Sherman, Odell’s young underling, is hungry for success, sure of his own potential and unwilling to let anything get in his way. His rise through the ranks at TGO seems destined to succeed, but will it? When the seeds of doubt are planted in Jackson’s mind he discovers his darker side, a side which will stop at nothing in order to succeed.

 

The author’s best-selling first book “Breakdown” told the story of the rise and fall of the iconic Canadian law firm Heenan Blaikie, and in this his first work of fiction he uses his vast experience in the world of law to treat his readers into a glimpse of what life is really like for these high achievers, the glitzy and glamor, the toll on relationships, and what really happens in their lives both inside and outside the boardroom.

 

This story is a modern day take on Shakespeare’s famous tragedy Othello, and Odell like Othello  is soon to learn that you can trust no-one, and when you are sitting high up on your pedestal, there are plenty of people who are watching, and waiting for you to fall.

 

I just loved this exciting fast-paced thriller. Right from the first page there’s a wonderful mix of excitement, revelation and expectation as the plot evolves and new discoveries about the characters are made. Highly recommended!

 

Available from Amazon https://www.amazon.co.uk/Odells-Fall-NORMAN-BACAL-ebook/dp/B07WR1GMVB/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=odells+fall&qid=1569417436&sr=8-1

 

Barbecue Blunder (Super Speed Sam Book 8)

 

by Monty J. McClaine

 

Everyone loves a barbecue, and what’s more fun than a barbecue party? This is what the McClaine family thought, although the barbecue they were arranging was for a sad reason, they were saying goodbye to their good neighbours Pete and Sally Johnstone, and their five year old son Matthew, who were moving away.

After all the busy preparations, the day arrived, the barbecue was set up, and mum had made her special burgers. Dad Monty was of course in charge of the barbecue, and the guests were arriving bringing their contributions to the event.

What a lovely atmosphere, the adults were laughing and talking, and the children playing at the bottom of the garden and drinking soda, everything was perfect! The only one who was a bit sad was Sam their basset hound, his young master was busy playing with the other children, not him. So, as dogs do, he settled down in a shaded area for a nap.

However, we all know that dogs have a sixth sense, and sure enough, when harmless playing led to a dangerous situation Sam was awake in a flash. Jack was in danger, what could he do?

Now we’re great fans of Super Speed Sam in our family, but new readers are about to discover that this is no ordinary basset hound (If there is such a thing.) Sam is a superhero, with powers given to him one Christmas Eve night when he helped Santa Claus, but that story is in book 5 and is called Santa’s Rescue Dog. In a flash, the clever canine susses out the situation, acts, and saves the day!

However, as can often be the case, things happen so quickly that Sam’s actions are misread and instead of hero, he becomes a villain who injured his young master. Luckily though, their neighbour Pete had seen what really happened, and he puts the record straight, earning the canine hero a magnificent treat!

My granddaughter just loved this book, yet another wonderful story in the Super Sam Series which never fail to amuse her, and yet subtly impart important life lessons. Highly recommended.

 

Available from Amazon https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B07G36CGDQ/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_hsch_vapi_tkin_p1_i6