Publisher: Blove Publications
Genre: Mystery/Thriller
Pages 303
Storms of Malhado
Storms of Malhado by Maria Elena SandoviciMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
Synopsis
Galveston Island, Texas, September 2008
Katie doesn’t believe in ghosts.
And she certainly doesn’t believe the rumors that her family’s home is haunted, despite its tragic history: two young women who lived there in different eras died in hurricanes – one during Hurricane Carla in 1961, one during the Great Storm of 1900, the greatest natural disaster to befall the United States.
But that was the past. A fact Katie reminds herself of when she returns to Galveston to await Hurricane Ike with her parents and boyfriend in her family’s Broadway mansion, hoping to rekindle her flailing relationship. While Katie is not afraid of the ghost stories she’s heard, she is afraid of the monster storm approaching. As even die-hard Islanders evacuate, her fears grow. Fear of the looming hurricane. Fear that she’s talentless as a painter. Fear that her relationship with her boyfriend is already over. As Katie struggles against her fears, the past whispers to her of the women who died there, and the haunting similarities they share with Katie’s own life.
Through three different timelines, Storms of Malhado weaves a story of Galveston’s past, underscoring its danger and isolation, as well as its remarkable resilience, its capacity for both nostalgia and reinvention. Full of contradictions, at once insular and open to the world, Galveston Island is as much a character of the novel as Katie, Suzanne, Betty, their lovers, and their confidantes.
Book Review
Katie doesn’t believe in ghosts.
And she certainly doesn’t believe the rumors that her family’s home is haunted, despite its tragic history: two young women who lived there in different eras died in hurricanes – one during Hurricane Carla in 1961, one during the Great Storm of 1900, the greatest natural disaster to befall the United States.
But that was the past. A fact Katie reminds herself of when she returns to Galveston to await Hurricane Ike with her parents and boyfriend in her family’s Broadway mansion, hoping to rekindle her flailing relationship. While Katie is not afraid of the ghost stories she’s heard, she is afraid of the monster storm approaching. As even die-hard Islanders evacuate, her fears grow. Fear of the looming hurricane. Fear that she’s talentless as a painter. Fear that her relationship with her boyfriend is already over. As Katie struggles against her fears, the past whispers to her of the women who died there, and the haunting similarities they share with Katie’s own life.
Through three different timelines, Storms of Malhado weaves a story of Galveston’s past, underscoring its danger and isolation, as well as its remarkable resilience, its capacity for both nostalgia and reinvention. Full of contradictions, at once insular and open to the world, Galveston Island is as much a character of the novel as Katie, Suzanne, Betty, their lovers, and their confidantes.
Book Review
Three lives. Three chances. Three storms.
I have to say I was pleasantly surprised by this book. I honestly wasn't quite sure if I would like it. I chose to review it because, I thought it would be a fun way to visit a place, Galveston, where I spent many a summer as a child and two I wanted to read this ghostly story. If you know a little of Galveston's history, you know it is rife with Ghost or ghostly tales. How exactly would the author weave a story that has romance, ghosts, and three significant hurricanes to make landfall in Texas - The Great Storm of 1900, Hurricane Carla and, Hurricane Ike?
Well, color me surprised when the story truly turned out to be about reincarnation, not a ghost or three. The story opens with Katie, her parents, and her boyfriend all gathering at their mansion in Galveston to weather Hurricane Ike in 2008. Katie is a bit neurotic, but not really sure why. Katie's father believed the mansion was haunted, but neither Katie nor her mother had ever experienced any such thing. My overactive Gemini mind kept coming up with different scenarios, but none so fantastic as the reality. In meeting the three women- Suzanne, Betty & Katie-at the center of this story, we find that they all have some interesting similarities. They were all artists. They all wanted men who were unobtainable. They were all wildly dissatisfied with their lives. Suzanne wanted more than the confines of high society. Betty wanted more than her mundane existence. Katy just wanted something.. anything that stopped her anxiety and grounded her.
I like that the author left these little bread crumbs of familiarity for the reader to pick up. My favorite was "He's no good for me. He's no good for himself." I swear it's something that I've said in my own life. Each woman had a female counterpart that coddled and pacified her on some level. I also like that as I read I would go on google and refresh my memory of certain real-life events i.e. the devastation each Hurricane inflicted in Southeast Texas. I absolutely loved how the author revealed the connection between all three stories and their characters.
Now what didn't work for me on any level was the ending. Yes. My questions were answered, but I was enjoying the ride and it seemed to put together. Hmmm, I'll probably think of a better term once I've sat with it some more.
All in all, this was a good read that moved quickly and transitioned well, which can be hard to do when constantly switching time periods. The story was simply well written. The story also had the added benefit of touching on a few elements that added realism to the story like interracial relationships, racism, and adultery. I would recommend this story to anyone.
This book was on tour recently with Lone Star Book Blog Tours. See my post here.
I have to say I was pleasantly surprised by this book. I honestly wasn't quite sure if I would like it. I chose to review it because, I thought it would be a fun way to visit a place, Galveston, where I spent many a summer as a child and two I wanted to read this ghostly story. If you know a little of Galveston's history, you know it is rife with Ghost or ghostly tales. How exactly would the author weave a story that has romance, ghosts, and three significant hurricanes to make landfall in Texas - The Great Storm of 1900, Hurricane Carla and, Hurricane Ike?
Well, color me surprised when the story truly turned out to be about reincarnation, not a ghost or three. The story opens with Katie, her parents, and her boyfriend all gathering at their mansion in Galveston to weather Hurricane Ike in 2008. Katie is a bit neurotic, but not really sure why. Katie's father believed the mansion was haunted, but neither Katie nor her mother had ever experienced any such thing. My overactive Gemini mind kept coming up with different scenarios, but none so fantastic as the reality. In meeting the three women- Suzanne, Betty & Katie-at the center of this story, we find that they all have some interesting similarities. They were all artists. They all wanted men who were unobtainable. They were all wildly dissatisfied with their lives. Suzanne wanted more than the confines of high society. Betty wanted more than her mundane existence. Katy just wanted something.. anything that stopped her anxiety and grounded her.
I like that the author left these little bread crumbs of familiarity for the reader to pick up. My favorite was "He's no good for me. He's no good for himself." I swear it's something that I've said in my own life. Each woman had a female counterpart that coddled and pacified her on some level. I also like that as I read I would go on google and refresh my memory of certain real-life events i.e. the devastation each Hurricane inflicted in Southeast Texas. I absolutely loved how the author revealed the connection between all three stories and their characters.
Now what didn't work for me on any level was the ending. Yes. My questions were answered, but I was enjoying the ride and it seemed to put together. Hmmm, I'll probably think of a better term once I've sat with it some more.
All in all, this was a good read that moved quickly and transitioned well, which can be hard to do when constantly switching time periods. The story was simply well written. The story also had the added benefit of touching on a few elements that added realism to the story like interracial relationships, racism, and adultery. I would recommend this story to anyone.
This book was on tour recently with Lone Star Book Blog Tours. See my post here.
The Tenant's Wrath
The Tenant's Wrath by Gabriel NomboMy rating: 3.9 of 5 stars
Synopsis
In the 34th century, when earthlings start to interact with aliens, some aliens take advantage of interplanetary mobility by harnessing wisdom from earth's very wise ancestors. How do they employ our ancestors to benefit their wrathful nature?. The reporter has everything.The reporter does thorough research on aliens' culture including their science, daily life, food style, theology,landlord-tenant relationship, education system, and others. Then, he writes a report which he forwards it to his fellow earthlings. It takes only a month for the emailed reports to reach planet earth.
Book Review
This is not your typical science fiction book. Memento Mori, Exoplanets? Well, this daft punk styled science fiction delves into unexplored planetary systems in a time continuum unapologetically distant from ours.
Memento Mori, a planet whose inhabitants share genetic similarity with ours, "humans," possesses advanced bits of technology that makes Earth's 33rd-century technology laughable.
However, one
very unpleasant phenomenon lied in Earth's internet system. Earth's websites
bore unpleasant nudity that stretched into memento mori's society with a
ferocity that threatened their civilization. And this angered memento's
principles. They swore to put an end to this malignant virus from an
unpredictable species, threatening to reshape the status quo!
I like how the author transits from aggression to progression when the Memento's set out to discover the marauders that plagued their websites. When they discovered it was our Earth and landed, they were intrigued by "it." So, this facilitated a change of ideology from that of conquest to a partnership. The author has a good way of transiting from hate to love, and it's quite admirable.
As the book
progresses, it unravels into the perspective of Setifokasi. Setifokasi is just
like any earthling resident on Memento Mori. He lives in a landlocked territory
on the exoplanet and is a lad filled with dreams of the good life. This spurs
him on a dreamcatcher's conquest of self-sustenance.
The whole
science fiction drama revolves around Setifokasi's drive to become a model
citizen. He entangles himself with the complexities of his planet, while
constantly seeking to explore what's out there, "the unknown."
Our honest review of the Tenant's wrath? After going through the entire 429 pages of this book, we give it a 3.9-star rating. Please feel free to purchase this book in the link below, and leave a comment for us at the comment section about your thoughts on the book. See you at the next review.
Thank you to guest reviewer Chukwunonso R. Anozie (Gregoryreacher)
Storms of Malhado Book Blog Tour
STORMS OF MALHADO
by
MARIA ELENA SANDOVICI
Genre: Historical Fiction / Ghosts
Publisher: Independently
Published
Date of Publication: March 26, 2020
Number of Pages: 252
Scroll down for the giveaway!!
Through three different timelines, Storms of Malhado weaves a story of Galveston’s past, underscoring its danger and isolation, as well as its remarkable resilience, and its capacity for both nostalgia and reinvention. Full of contradictions, at once insular and open to the world, Galveston Island is as much a character of the novel as Katie, Suzanne, Betty, their lovers, and their confidantes.
PRAISE FOR STORMS OF MALHADO:
“Taking place entirely on a beautifully moody Galveston Island, Ms. Sandovici weaves three simultaneous stories with ease. With a timeless tale, ethereal language, and complicated characters, readers will be entranced by this modern ghost story. How many times can the past repeat itself? How do we recognize people through generations? The author tackles this topic amid a backdrop of violent nature and intangible dreamscapes."
—Courtney Brandt, author of The Queen of England: Coronation, Grand Tour, Ascension”Three women, three great storms, and one house haunted by forbidden love and frustrated ambition. Get ready to be swept away by Sandovici’s foray into Galveston Island’s tempestuous history in this tale of lives intertwined across time.”
—Donna Dechen Birdwell, author of Not Knowing
CLICK TO PURCHASE
Three lives. Three chances. Three storms.
I have to say I was pleasantly surprised by this book. I honestly wasn't quite sure if I would like it. I chose to review it because, I thought it would be a fun way to visit a place, Galveston, where I spent many a summer as a child and two I wanted to read this ghostly story. If you know a little of Galveston's history, you know it is rife with Ghost or ghostly tales. How exactly would the author weave a story that has romance, ghosts, and three significant hurricanes to make landfall in Texas - The
Great Storm of 1900, Hurricane
Carla and, Hurricane Ike?
Well, color me surprised when the story truly turned out to be about reincarnation, not a ghost or three. The story opens with Katie, her parents, and her boyfriend all gathering at their mansion in Galveston to weather Hurricane Ike in 2008. Katie is a bit neurotic, but not really sure why. Katie's father believed the mansion was haunted, but neither Katie nor her mother had ever experienced any such thing. My overactive Gemini mind kept coming up with different scenarios, but none so fantastic as the reality. In meeting the three women- Suzanne, Betty & Katie-at the center of this story, we find that they all have some interesting similarities. They were all artists. They all wanted men who were unobtainable. They were all wildly dissatisfied with their lives. Suzanne wanted more than the confines of high society. Betty wanted more than her mundane existence. Katy just wanted something.. anything that stopped her anxiety and grounded her.
I like that the author left these little bread crumbs of familiarity for the reader to pick up. My favorite was "He's no good for me. He's no good for himself." I swear it's something that I've said in my own life. Each woman had a female counterpart that coddled and pacified her on some level. I also like that as I read I would go on google and refresh my memory of certain real-life events i.e. the devastation each Hurricane inflicted in Southeast Texas. I absolutely loved how the author revealed the connection between all three stories and their characters.
Now what didn't work for me on any level was the ending. Yes. My questions were answered, but I was enjoying the ride and it seemed to put together. Hmmm, I'll probably think of a better term once I've sat with it some more.
All in all, this was a good read that moved quickly and transitioned well, which can be hard to do when constantly switching time periods. The story was simply well written. The story also had the added benefit of touching on a few elements that added realism to the story like interracial relationships, racism, and adultery. I would recommend this story to anyone.
Sandovici is a 2008 graduate of John Ross Palmer's Escapist Mentorship Program, a program that teaches artists business skills. She resigned from her tenured academic position in December 2018 and opened her own private gallery space. Her previous works of fiction are Dogs with Bagels, Stray Dogs and Lonely Beaches, Lost Path to Solitude, The Adventures of Miss Vulpe, and Lone Wolf. She is also the author of Stop and Smell the Garbage, a volume of poetry in the voice of her dog, Holly Golightly. You can follow her daily adventures on her blog HaveWatercolorsWillTravel.blog.
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ONE WINNER receives a signed copy of Storms of Malhado
MAY 21-31, 2020
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Murder She Wrote 1 & 2
Synopsis -
Murder She Wrote is a tale of loyalty, lust, and betrayal. What happens, when one is in love with the flesh and loyal to that of what can make her feel again, the thrill of it all. What happens after the betrayal? What do you do with the anger, the need for revenge, and the hurt. Young Jamal has the world at his fingertips, will it slip away as he tries to love what doesn't love him? Follow along, this gritty-street tale as you see what leads one to kill another.
Book Review
This was a quick and gritty tale of the streets and love. This was raw. The young lovers are hit with drama early on with death and betrayal. The scene with Meech sets the tone for the book and I loved it honestly. Jamaal was a standout character. He like so many of our young men are vulnerable and tough all at the same time. Taylor captured the duality perfectly. He also captured another truth someone to the one you love can be your downfall as you'll see as you meet the woman at the center of this story. The content felt genuine. The pace was quick. I'm fully interested in what happens next.
Now for the technical, I would be me if I didn't mention that there are multiple issues that need to be addressed through editing. That's what prompted my rating. With a good scrub, this could be a 5 star short series. I recommend this to anyone short on time, but wants "all the smoke".
You can get your copy below and support the author by leaving a review.
Blog Tour Stop with a Freebie Alert- She's The One
★ ★ ★ FREEBIE ALERT ★ ★ ★
She’s the One, a sexy, opposites attract romance from New York Times bestselling author Erin Nicholas, is FREE for a limited time only!
Download your copy for FREE today!
Sometimes you see love clearly. And sometimes it has to smack you in the face.
When a stranger walks up and punches him in a bar, Ryan Kaye assumes there's a good reason. And a one-night stand with his best friend’s older sister, Professor Amanda Dixon, is a really good reason.
Except that it never happened.
She says she’s sorry for the lie, but he doesn’t want an apology... He wants the night.
The last thing Amanda needs is to add to her long list of commitments. But when tempted with the chance to fulfill a few fantasies with the hot paramedic she's had dirty dreams about forever, she can't resist.
One night is surely enough time for a renowned playboy like Ryan to teach her a few fun things. Thank goodness it isn't enough time to fall in love...
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It Was Only One Damn Night
It Was Only One Damn Night by Lady LissaMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
Synopsis
When Marcus married Melina years ago, the one thing she always promised him was that she would give him children. Neither of them realized that would be easier said than done. Struggling to make sense of the situation and with Marcus putting all the blame on Melina, their marriage becomes strained. A night out with the guys allows Marcus to relax and enjoy himself without thinking about the problems he and his wife are dealing with at home. However, that one night has consequences no one was prepared for.
Kalisha thought she had met her knight in shining armor. After a steamy night with the handsome stranger, she gives him her phone number. As the months go by with no word from the man she had hoped would give her a lasting relationship, she finally gives up. However, God has a way of sending us messages to teach us lessons when we least expect them.
Book Review
Well, we all know what's done in the dark eventually comes to light. And if poor Marcus didn't know, he's about to know. This book moved quickly and brought what I needed today and that was the drama on all fronts.
As usual, the author managed to touch on some pretty real topics to get you thinking i.e. infidelity, infertility, etc. This story was a solid plot, good character development, and content. There were a few technical issues, but hey I still read this in one sitting and I'm on to book two. Will God get Marcus' prayers be answered? Will Porsha's handling of Chandler's "business" work out in her favor?
View all my reviews
Redhead in a Blue Convertible
Redhead in a Blue Convertible by Ivan ScottMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
Synopsis
Buckle up. The ride is about to begin...
British doctor Sarah Farnsworth's life spirals out of control when she loses a patient during surgery, then soon after, loses herself.
When it looks like she will be lost forever, the road of fate leads her to a blue convertible owned by the mysterious Billy Caldwell.
She is informed Billy has twenty-four hours to get out of town and needs her help to get all of his affairs in order.
But why does he have to leave? And what is the big hurry?
As they drive around Atlanta in Billy's ragtop, visiting the people and places dear to him, Sarah realizes the crisp, October air has breathed new life into her due to her new friend.
What she doesn't realize is Billy has been watching her. For years.
And someone has been watching Billy. For decades
Book Review
When surgery goes awry, Sarah takes a break from her duties as a surgeon. Sarah is a talented young woman who had been the victim of verbal abuse all of her life. The abuse stayed with her long after the abuse was no longer physically a part of her life. A colleague and friend presents Sarah the opportunity to earn some serious money just to drive a "friend" around for 24 hours. Naturally, I thought of the infamous movie with Julia Roberts.
Scott takes us on an easy journey between Sarah and Billy, the gentleman she'll be in charge of driving around for those 24hours. I'll admit the story took a minute for me to get into initially and there were a few lulls throughout the almost 4 hours of listening. While Sarah was leery of Billy's motives. He took us on a trip down memory lane before he had to leave town. I loved seeing Sarah come to terms with the fact that she won't be able to stay away from her calling of saving lives for long. Did I mention that Sarah is British? I think Scott does a good job of capturing the dialogue as well as moving through Atlanta's high society. (not that I would know much about that lol). While I would not have chosen this particular narrator for this story, the audio production was well done. The narrator didn't capture the sense of urgency when needed for me. His lack of emotion didn't set the right tone at times.
Scott does a good job of creating a charming, humorous tale with a side of mystery. I would recommend this to anyone who may need a good laugh with a few tears. You can get your copy below and support the author by leaving a review.
View all my reviews
Thou Shall Not Run...
Thou Shall Not Run... by Sabrina B. ScalesMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
Synopsis
Even the saved struggle when navigating their way through love. This much could definitely be said for the Fold Family’s middle child, Jadalynn.
Having met when they were just twelve years old, Jadalynn and Andrew experienced some of their best and worst moments together. Falling in love was inevitable as they grew older and remained close. And falling out of love was just as certain when the two finally bumped heads.
After a lengthy separation based on a lack of communication, fate and the hand of God himself brought the two back together, forcing them to either continue running from love or stop and surrender to it.
Book Review
Jada and Jet were running circles around a relationship. Well, mostly Jada was running from what was to be her future. The story opened in an unforgettable way with a baptism of the youngest Fold family member and an "oatmeal" incident. The story was filled with humor, drama, denial and the "word". This story was okay for me.
3.5 rolled to a 4
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