Air Riders Review and Author Spotlight

REVIEW

Air Riders is written by Echo Fox and is book 3 in the Equilibria Series.  It is featured around the main character of Tai who is from a race of people that live in harmony with the wind. 

The Zephyrus build things with wind, create wind weapons from any semblance of a sound and live in a world with two other races.  There are the less flying creatures known as the Daiku who seem to resemble some sort of flying reptile that are a defensive breed by nature.  Then there are the ground bound Riku who are described as fast and reptilian like  that will attack either Daiku or Zephyrus for food if they are within reach. 

Air Riders starts out with a Prologue that shows us the character of Aiko going through an intense defensive and emotional time.  As I woman I felt for Aiko and was intrigued by her as a character.  This prologue painted a picture of her which would stick with me through at least the first third of the book.  Following the prologue we are immediately introduced to Tai, who is a young up and coming leader in the Hunting Wing who has proven his skills in hunting and earned much respect.  He is pledged to bond with a beautiful Zephyrus from the Teaching Wing named Keiko. 

Tai lives and breathes his hunting wing and can only be distracted by his love for Keiko.  The Daiku have all of a sudden begun attacking the Zephyrus, which leaves me as a reader quite suspicious and also throw the entire lives of the Zephyrus into chaos.  Tai must do all that is in his power to defend his love and his people from succumbing to the attacks coming from the Daiku, but more importantly those coming from within his own people. 

I did not read the first two books and initially I thought that they may have answered some of the questions that I had within Air Riders, however as I have looked into them, they seem to overall be standalone books about entirely different races and main characters with only an end game lead up in common.  With that being said I want to talk about the few negative aspects I felt were found within Air Riders.  There were many things that were described that seemed to need to be assumed by the reader, whereas I would have liked to have gotten a better grasp on things.  For instance, the other Zephyrus, there was not much talk about their living arrangements, how they would communicate across distance and what would happen to them during the coming together of the battle.  I also was never able to fully grasp just how many people we were talking about.  In a way, I found some of the Zephyrus qualities akin to Native Americans had they held mythological beliefs.  Although many of the Daiku and Riku are talked about, it was hard to get a really clear picture of exactly what they would look like, for me anyway.  Lastly I felt as if they Zephyrus were a bit TOO ignorant and unquestioning of anything going on or of all the people who wound up missing.

Brilliant points to this novel will first start with the sheer genius possessed by Echo Fox in her creation of many aspects of this world.  The air elements and how many things that she utilizes them within her story were wonderful.  It was nice to use a familiar religion base that was not overbearing but still was able to shed light onto some of the beliefs and culture of the Zephyrus.  Tai and Keiko was real, as was the pain that was felt by Aiko in the rare moments that it was glimpsed.  The end held a big shocker for me and I definitely found myself with tears in my eyes.  Echo did a superb job of creating relatable characters with real personalities.

Overall I give this book 4/5 stars.  It was definitely a wonderful read, it could use a tad bit of extra explanations within the story for lesser aspects but overall it is a solid good book.  I would love to read the first two books in the series as well as any that follow.  I highly recommend her writing style and her genuine sense of great story telling.  This book held aspects for any interested in fiction, mythology, fantasy, romance, suspense, mystery, young adult, etc. 

Author Spotlight

Synopsis of the book:

Tai is in love and he wants to fly across the mountain shouting it to the skies. He is ready to share his life with Keiko, when a strange event turns his world upside down.

The Daiku, long-time prey of Tai’s tribe of Zephyrus, start fighting back. With the whole tribe in danger from the reptilian creatures that roam the dark forest below, Tai must put all his knowledge of hunting to the test to help safeguard his people.

With the Daiku becoming an ever more erratic threat, control of the hunters is given to a fast-rising star of the Hunting Wing, Aiko, and for a while all seems to be going to plan. The Daiku can be defeated and Tai can finally live his life with Keiko.

However, is everything as it seems? Is Aiko really the Zephyrus’ salvation? Or will Tai need to gamble everything – and everyone – he loves for the greater good?

See the book trailer on Youtube

Excerpt:

Tai closed his eyes and was transported back into his memory. He remembered the rush of cold air over his shoulders, pressing against his head as he rose through the hair. He was following Keiko,
upwards, towards the Ororan undulating through the sky above the mountains.

Keiko dipped through the gossamer curtain, the waves of light flickering over her skin and casting rose pink tones to her hair. A glimmer of soft sea foam green swept over her shoulder as she glanced
back over her shoulder at Tai.

‘Race you!’ she called.

Tai grinned and summoned a wind to bear him along but before he could gain on her, she flipped; diving deep into the curling colours, riding the air faster and faster, disappearing from view behind
a deep purple wave of light.

Blinking in shock at her speed, Tai shook his head in wonder and then jumped onto the back of the wind he had summoned.  Whooshing through the air, Tai clashed through the delicate ripples of
colour. He raced along on the wind, glimpsing the ground in the distance as he flew above. 

Every other second or so he caught a glimpse of Keiko’s long white blond hair whipping fast around a pattern of deep pink or coloured pale green as she dove alongside a curtain of moving light. She
was so fast!

Tai felt an exhilaration bursting in his chest, he was smiling so widely he could feel his cheeks begin to ache in the cool air rushing over his face. His own white hair flickered around his neck and
back as he flew. He wondered briefly what they would look like to anyone down below.

-How did you make Hunter when you’re so slow?- Keiko’s voice snickered joyfully in his ear as she darted over a shimmering wave of lilac. She laughed, he could hear that without her pushing her voice to his ear, and blew him a kiss.

Determined to catch her; Tai stopped chasing and dropped through the light like a stone. He plummeted down, feeling his adrenaline spike as he went into free fall through the glimmer. Catching
himself in a bundle of warm air, Tai eyed the wheeling and dipping Ororan above him and spied Keiko following the movements of the light ahead of him. Sneakily, he flew straight underneath the colours, watching to see where the next ripple would place Keiko.

Smiling, he rose up through the air and appeared directly in front of her, catching her startled face just before she crashed into him.

He wrapped his arms around her, holding them both still in the air as she pummeled his shoulder.

‘You cheated! Couldn’t catch me after all, huh?’ she squealed, laughing.

‘What do you mean I cheated?’ sputtered Tai. ‘I think you’ll find I’m the one who tracked you down and caught you. And that’s why I made Hunter.’

She curled into his chest, allowing him to carry both of them through the soft streams of colour as they descended back to the ground. Tai alighted and started to stoop, to put Keiko back on her feet
but she stopped him. Her hand crept up his arm and caressed the side of his face and they looked at each other.

Tai saw himself reflected in her violet eyes as she leaned forward and planted a sweet kiss on his lips. Tai felt his heart race and he hugged her tighter.

‘I think I may be falling in love with you Tai.’ whispered Keiko in his ear.

He smiled and kissed her again.

‘I know I’m in love with you.’ he murmured. ‘Absolutely, irrevocably, in love with you.’

Buy Links:

Amazon Amazon UK 

About the Author:

Echo Fox lives in a sleepy town in the south of England with her partner and supremely fluffy cat. She studied Classics and Archaeology at university and is forever inspired by the myths and legends of the past. Echo finds the best writing fuel is freshly baked cookies and she is always 100% more productive on a sunny day.

Connect with the Author:

• Twitter 
• Facebook 
• Website 
• Mailing List
• Amazon Author Page
  
• Goodreads
  
• 1st book Wave Singers on Amazon
  
• 2nd book Earth Drummer on Amazon
• 1st book Wave Singers on Goodreads
  
• 2nd book Earth Drummer on Goodreads
  
• 3rd book Air Riders on Goodreads

Giveaway:

Win a $20 Amazon gc (open internationally) or an arrow charm necklace (restricted to residents of the USA or UK). This giveaway will run 10/1/14 – 10/29/14. Enter through Rafflecopter! 
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The Glass Heart Girl

Book Review

The Glass Heart Girl is written by Michelle Diana Low and is a book about statutory rape and the painful recovery process that Alena goes through in order to find a way to open her heart up completely to the man that she loves years later.  

The concept of this book is very exemplary and the base of the story is definitely well done.  Unfortunately I spent a lot of time, especially in the first third of the book wondering why so many common words that could have been used were instead interchanged with weird sounding thesaurus words.  There is a scene in which Alena and Phillip first meet and are kissing and it’s calling their mouths orifices…  I wasn’t sure if I should be picturing myself in a laboratory or in a porno….  I kept thinking back to the movie “10 Things I Hate About You” and how the counselor Miss Perky was trying to write an erotic romance novel and coming up for different names for sexual parts.   

I feel like there is definitely a wonderful story in here, but it is still in need of some major editing.  Alena’s trauma that she is going through when described is very realistic and believable when she is in her mind reliving past memories.  This part of the writing was superbly done.  Also the romance with Philip was a bit over the top and seemed geared for a younger possibly immature mindset, but this could tie into the sexual trauma that can be a result of how many people’s minds in love do not fully progress past the point of sexual trauma without healing, if ever.  

What was the biggest negative for me in this book was the way that Alena would sexualize and describe herself with such confidence one second and then immaturely cry and shut down and refuse to talk to Philip about anything.  I felt that there were two different people here and two different story lines that weren’t completely syncing up in a believable manner.  Then you throw in the in love with my friend vibe from the roommate Becca.  I get that the title of the book is glass heart girl, but there was no need to keep constantly saying that she had a glass heart, it did start to get a little old.

Most positive aspects of the book for me were that the characters are all wonderfully described in that you can see them in your mind as people and they have real human emotions, not just words on a page.  The trauma in Alena’s mind and the flashbacks again were wonderfully written and Michelle obviously has skill in this department.  

Overall I find myself giving this book a 3.5/5 stars.  I wanted to love it so much, but it felt so raw to be still.  The flow was constantly being interrupted for me.  The immature feel of the relationship would have been more believable if this would have been a book about a younger girl in high school as opposed to a college age woman (in my humble opinion).  Throw away the thesaurus and let your own words flow!  This got better as the story progressed, but in the beginning it really was breaking up the natural flow of the writing of the story.  There is no need for constant renaming of regular body parts such as mouths into orifices, it just sounds weird.  I would definitely read more by Michelle in the future and would love to see this book finely polished and to read more from her as she develops as an author.  If you are into romance, young adult, sensitive topics, real-life issues, fiction, this book is for you.

Blurb:

On the surface Alena has a wonderful life – she’s a bubbly, vivacious 20 year old woman enjoying university with bestie, Becca, her quirky Californian housemate and Phillip, her amazing boyfriend. But beneath all that happiness there is pain, a despairing sorrow and a heart cut so deep that it might never heal.   She is a wounded woman, psychologically trapped between two worlds – a realm of darkness and desolation and a life of love, hope and freedom. The man, who controlled, manipulated and mistreated her as a child, is a malignant shadow – a dangerous spectre lurking in the backdrop, who is hell-bent on destroying and consuming her. But now she must find the strength to fight for liberation. Banish the demons forever and embrace true love, before she is devoured by the spirits of yesterday.    This is a powerful and riveting story of one young woman’s courage, bravery and determination to overcome a distressing and traumatic childhood and welcome a new life with the man she truly loves.

See the book trailer on Youtube 

Excerpt:

Chapter 3

The Heartthrob

A tall, dark, handsome guy breezes into my dorm room, his long brown  cardigan swooping across the scope of the generous space. I’m sitting on my bed, eyes closed, heart open, feeling the coolness of his sexy ambiance rushing onto my face. It feels refreshing, delightful, satisfying. Slowly, I ease my eyes open halfway, and my glance moves to the doorway, where the presence of an ebony shadow stands proudly, absorbing the light from the corridor. It makes me feel weak in the knees, like a damsel in distress whose superhero has come to rescue her from the tedium of uni life: studying, essays, exams and heavy assignments. My face brightens, and I welcome the distraction.

Quickly, my eyes fully open; my heart races. I know who this sexy 20-year-old guy is. I am so happy he has come. I cannot breathe for a few moments, and I push my hands firmly into the bed, leaving a dent, my imprint of love, in the malleable covers. I lift my body up vertically with these sturdy hands, and swing my bottom, back and forth, using the strength of my body weight to keep me balanced. I stare deep into his eyes, rendering him speechless at the sight of my light acrobatic performance. I’m excited! He knows it. He can see my enthusiasm shining through my eyes.

I am completely stimulated by this luscious visitor, and I can see  his eyes  nearly bursting with fervour. He wants to touch me, I can tell.  But he is much too far away to do more than enjoy my body from a distance. He licks his lips, staring readily at my breasts, nature’s  kind gift to men. I move into his line of vision like an ocean’s soft, iridescent current, and moisten my thin, red lips, desperate for him to come closer. Slowly, teasingly, he ambles towards me, his custom-made jeans with diamond studs at the sides hanging loosely down, sagging at the bottom. The waistband of his blue Calvin Klein boxer shorts is clearly visible, more than adamantly insisting on his sexual prowess.


Buy Links:

Please note: All who want to pre-order need to register first on BNBS – www.britainsnextbestseller.co.uk. Once they register, they can make their order. When readers pre-order the book, they can opt to become supporters, by ticking (checking) the relevant box on the pre-order page. If they do this, they will then be listed as a supporter – their name is added to the supporter list, which is visible to all who go on the page.

Britain’s Next Bestseller

About the Author:

I was born in East London and have lived there most of my life. I started writing stories at six and have enjoyed writing ever since. In 2005 I graduated from Roehampton University and it is then that I found my literary voice. I began writing professionally in January 2014, when my novel ‘Heaven Calls For An Angel’, was published by a digital publisher. I wrote this book as a tribute to a friend who sadly died of cancer. My latest novel, The Glass Heart Girl, I published as an indie author at first. But then I got discovered by a publisher and I am on the verge of landing a book deal.

Connect With The Author:
Website
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Giveaway:

Enter to win one of five autographed posters of The Glass Heart Girl!  Open internationally. The giveaway will run 10/12/14 – 10/19/14. To enter, simply leave a blog comment on the tour post, and please make sure to include a valid email address! Winners will be randomly selected and contacted by the author after the tour is over for delivery. To increase your chances of winning, simply follow the tour and comment at each stop.

Spotlight on Jennifer Ott

About the Book:

Quote:

“You and I are now time itself, not just the city,

The whole world is taking part in our decision.

We are more than just the two of us now.

We embody something.

We are sitting in the People’s Square

And it’s full of people with the same dream as ours.

We define the game for all.

I’m ready.”

Wings of Desire

Wim Wenders

Peter Handke

 
Blurb:
From the outside, starlet Olivia Hammond has it all—fame, fortune and a Hollywood hunk boyfriend. No one suspects her rising self-doubts and anxieties. In order to escape the realities of her chaotic world, she dives into an Oscar quality role of a young woman trapped in the horrors of postwar Berlin. It is here that Olivia feels most comfortable.

Her real and fictional lives collide when the director casts Dimitri Malakhov, a Russian porn star, as her costar. She immediately fears her image and reputation will be tainted. Personally and professionally, she must face what frightens her most—exposing herself, her fears, her imperfections and her desires to the world.

The experience of filming the movie with Dimitri and being on location in Berlin destroys her prejudices and judgments. It shatters all her illusions and perceptions. When liberated from her own confines, her life and love truly shine.

Manchmal das Herz muss zerstört werden, um zu heilen.

Sometimes the heart needs to be broken in order to heal.

Excerpt:

Wings of Desire

The theater was surprisingly crowded for a weekday afternoon. Olivia wondered if the patrons were tourists or Berliners. From the voices, she heard they were mostly native. Olivia paid for their tickets. Dimitri bought a round of beers and the two found seats in the darkened theater.

Both were sullen and quiet as other people entered to watch the movie. Olivia listened to the soft German whispers. She glanced at Dimitri, who seemed a mile away. There was no doubt his mind was on Daniella. It had to be the worst feeling, making love to a man knowing he loved another woman. Guilt, shame and overwhelming disappointment shrouded her once liberated mood.

Soon after the movie began, Olivia started to cry, but it wasn’t the movie. She felt as though she was watching her own life. Why am I me?  Why am I not you? Who am I? The questions were so complex, yet so simple. If the questions were so simple, why are they so hard to answer?

She didn’t remember when sadness annexed her life, but she was able to see it in pictures and hear it in her voice. She became crass and blunt. What was it that made me this way? Was it really Trent? I care for him. He is a good man. Is it movies? Is it the fans, the media? There was really no one she could blame her angst on; it just existed inside her. Numbness arose when there was no release. Sex became unfulfilling. The limelight ceased to excite. Designer gowns did not differ from ten-dollar rags. The movies she made no longer inspired.

Wings of Desire character Marion struck her deeply—the winged beauty on the trapeze. She flew so high and with ease for everyone to admire, but inside she was haunted by sadness and fear. No one saw her pain; she never showed it, yet every performance she thought of letting go and falling to her death. Every performance was a near act of suicide. This is my life, Olivia thought.

Buy Links:
Amazon

About the Author:

 

Inspiration comes from watching way too much Monty Python.  The abstract and the absurd way of looking at normal life, not only offers humor, but questions many problems in society in a light-hearted manner. If we can laugh at ourselves, if we can laugh at life, problems do not seem quite so difficult to tackle.  In fact, problems are not as complicated as they seem; everything is very simple. If you can laugh atit, write about it and read about it, most likely one would think about it.

Author Jennifer Ott has written several satire fiction, Wild Horses, The Tourist and two non-fiction books Love and Handicapping and Ooh Baby Compound Me! She recently published, Serenidipidus and Edge of Civilization. She also is the host of the SuperJenius Internet Radio show on Artist First radio Network.

Jennifer Ott lives in Long Beach, California, enjoys the sun, the sand, the surf and lots of Mexican food.

Connect With Jennifer Ott:

Facebook

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Website
The Super Jenius Show
Youtube

Giveaway:

There are two giveaways on this tour! Enter to win a $50 Amazon gift card through Rafflecopter. Open internationally! Then, enter to win one of two print copies of A Soul To Shine through Goodreads! This giveaway is restricted to residents of the US, UK, Australia and Canada. The giveaways will run the length of the tour.



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Goodreads Book Giveaway

A Soul To Shine

by Jennifer Ott

Giveaway ends October 10, 2014.
See the giveaway details
at Goodreads.

Enter to win

Book Blast for A Cat Taught Me That

Blurb: Catnap often. Don’t be a stalker unless food is involved. Despite the rumor, it is okay to be curious! A Cat Taught Me That is filled with humorous advice and the wisdom of elder cats that includes information on how to get more out of life, and how to avoid common pitfalls along the way. Cat lovers will enjoy the adorable photographs and cute illustrations throughout.

Celebrity cat ‘Awesome Louie’ provides insight with his gritty cat interviews, as well as sage advice with his “Mewsings” column. Short essays from the cat-lady author will bring smiles to the faces of
readers who have learned that “Not All That Glitters is Gold” and “To BeKissed By a Cat” can have unintended consequences.

Excerpt:

“A Little Indulgence is Okay”

I’m Louie and I’ve been told I have a problem with cat treats. Of course, a problem is in the eye of the beholder. In my eyes, loving cat treats isn’t a problem unless I run out of them.

After I was rescued, I learned three things about my caregiver and new best friend. First, food was readily available day or night; I would never be hungry again. Second, I was now living in a house that was warm and cozy; freezing outside in the winter was highly unlikely. Third, I learned about this tasty food called “snacks”. I would come to love it when my caregiver announced the magical words with enthusiasm – “Kitty treats!”

When I was first introduced to this fabulous dining experience, the flavors included turkey, beef and chicken. Eventually catnip and dairy-flavored treats entered the scene. Once I tasted those little
nuggets of goodness, I was hooked.

I perfected the sad kitty face, which is subtle and very effective when done properly. The trick is to look longingly at your target and try not to blink. Raise a paw in a slightly pathetic manner towards the treat container as the caregiver opens it – a classic move.

While my owner swears that she may check me into a clinic for cats with food addictions, she is more purr than hiss. I know that the next time she comes home from the pet store with kitty snacks, she’ll rattle the bag because she knows I’m listening. I’ll come racing into the kitchen like a furry, 16 pound bowling ball on steroids, and she’ll loveme for it. And give me treats.

Take it from me, you can never be too furry or have too many treats!

Buy Links:

Amazon Createspace Barnes and Noble

About the Author:

Charlotte Gerber began her writing career penning content articles on the Internet. Her articles have appeared on LoveToKnow.com and the New York Times/About.com Disability site, as well as numerous other outlets.She is also the author of Murder in Middleton and I Dream of Zombies
(Rose Lee’s Zombie Adventures series).

Charlotte lives in upstate New York with her husband Gregg, two teenage children, one dog and ten rescued cats.  She is a disability advocate, a supporter of animal rescue missions and the U.S. Military.

Connect With the Author:

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Spotlight on Donna Galenti

Blurb:


A HIDDEN ELEMENT:


Evil lurks within…

When Caleb Madroc is used against his will as part of his father’s plan to breed a secret alien community and infiltrate society with their unique powers, he vows to save his oppressed people and the two children kept from him. Seven years later, Laura and Ben Fieldstone’s son is abducted, and they are forced to trust a madman’s son who puts his life on the line to save them all. The enemy’s desire to own them—ordestroy them—leads to a survival showdown. Laura and Ben must risk
everything to defeat a new nemesis that wants to rule the world with their son, and Caleb may be their only hope—if he survives. But must he sacrifice what he most desires to do so?



Excerpt:


She trembled beneath him. Color rushed back into her. Her bruises faded. She arched her back and gasped.

He held her to him. Her breath infused his neck with warmth.

“I just wanted to set you free,” he whispered.

“Caleb,” she whispered. “How did you save me?”

He pulled her up and put his robe on her. He would pay for losing it later. He had stowed his extra one nearby. “It doesn’t matter. You must go. Head to the road and away from town. You must reach another town andask for help. Before night comes. Tell no one about this. Pretend you have no memory. Find a church. Someone will help you.”

She looked at him with watery eyes. “My children.”

He grasped her arms. “I will watch over them. You need to go. Now.”

She just stared at him. He shook her. “We’ll both die if you don’t.”

She nodded and hung her head. Caleb lifted her hair away from her face. It shone dark gold in the sun flickering through the trees.

She pushed her hands in his robe pockets and then drew out a piece of paper. He watched her unfold it and read it. He knew it by heart, this last poem he could give her like he’d once given her his love.

She read the last two lines aloud. “Wrapped up in my heart with no place to go. Come, unwrap my heart and set me free in you.” She looked up, a solitary tear rolled down her cheek. “You unwrapped my heart too, Caleb Madroc.”

He pulled her close. Pine cones plunked around them. The wind blew a sweet, mournful song through bare branches. Yellow swirled down. The last dying leaves of autumn. In that moment he believed they were together, out for a walk in the woods before heading home to mate by the fire. A normal life. Somewhere else. Not here. He bent down and kissed her. At first, she didn’t move and then she pressed herself into him. He stroked her hair and took her mouth as a token then he let go and
pushed her off him.

“Go. Now. Be free!”

She stared at him with wild eyes and stumbled away, his poem clutched in her hand. Then she turned and ran. His cloak flowed behind her,  protecting her. He watched her go. He unraveled his full heart and sent  it with her. It did him no good in this place.

He wanted to leave with her, but he had to think of their sons. If he left, his father would kill them. The sun faded behind clouds. He still had work to do. He headed for the tree line to dig a fake grave. He  pushed the image of the hand in the bog away. He didn’t want to know why it was there—or who put it there. There was just one person who would, but he couldn’t face that now.

It was time for his punishment for saving Thomas from humiliation.

His father would add to Caleb’s scars. Those scars Caleb could suffer with.


The scars of Rachel and his sons seared his heart forever.

Buy Links: Purchase Book 2 in the Element Trilogy, A Hidden Element
Purchase Book 1 in the Element Trilogy, A Human Element

About Donna:

Donna Galanti writes murder and mystery with a dash of steam as well as middle grade adventure fiction. She is the author of books 1 and 2 in the paranormal suspense Element Trilogy, A Human Element and A Hidden Element, the short story collection The Dark Inside, and Joshua and The
Lightning Road (Books 1 and 2, 2015). She’s lived from England as a child, to Hawaii as a U.S. Navy photographer. She now lives in Pennsylvania with her family in an old farmhouse. It has lots of writing nooks, fireplaces, and stink bugs, but she’s still wishing for a castle again—preferably with ghosts.


Connect With The Author: Website
Blog
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Goodreads


Giveaway:

Giveaway through end of 9/30. U.S. only.

• 1 (#) winner(s) will receive [(1) Grand Thriller Prize: Bundle of 10 e-Books donated from these bestselling thriller authors David Morrell, Allison Brennan, M.J. Rose, Steve Berry, Eric Van Lustbader, Hank Phillippi Ryan, Doug Preston, Alan Jacobson, Allan Leverone, Jenny
  Milchman] (approximate retail value or “ARV”: $100)

• 1 (#) winner(s) will receive [(1) Super Get Mind Blown Prize: 2 signed paperbacks by NY Times best selling author Heather Graham, The Following Season 1 on DVD, Book on Conspiracies & Secret Societies, Inception on DVD] (approximate retail value or “ARV”: $100)

• 1 (#) winner(s) will receive [(1) $100 Amazon Gift Card] (approximate retail value or “ARV”: $100)

• 1 (#) winner(s) will receive [(1) Bundle of 5 Thriller e-Books from Imajin Books authors] (approximate retail value or “ARV”: $100)

• 1 (#) winner(s) will receive [(1) Paperback of Donna Galanti's A Human Element, Book 1 in Element Trilogy] (approximate retail value or “ARV”: $100)

• 1 (#) winner(s) will receive [(5) e-Book copies of Donna Galanti's short story collection The Dark Inside] (approximate retail value or “ARV”: $100) 
  
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Spotlight on God on Trial by Sabri Bebawi

Blurb:

Convinced that God is a negative force, tormenting the helpless human race, an ailing English professor becomes determined to put the deity on trial.  But when he’s diagnosed with schizophrenia, he soon succumbs to the damning madness and brutally stabs and kills his wife. And in the deadly manhunt that ensues, he is ultimately shot dead by the police.   This prompts his grieving sister to follow through his life’s mission to bring God to justice.

See the Book Trailer on Youtube!

Excerpt:

He’s now back home in California. It is another night. That
tantalizing sensation overtakes his natural senses again. Growing up, he always felt a sense of discomfort that was unrelated to his illnesses, and he still feels it now. He never has been able to identify the source of his severe and unusual discomfort. He wonders whether it was his family, religion in general, or society, with its unscrupulous culture.

He thinks of his parents. “Sadly, They were at odds,” he hears himself utter. “And rightfully so.”

His mother was at home, taking care of five kids, and his father was
either working or endlessly playing. His mother had a tender soul. She was simple, affectionate, and caring, and loved her children dearly. The child in him sees her before him as a pretty young woman with fair skin, brown hair, and large brown eyes. She stands by his bed; she is neither too tall nor too short and neither too slim nor too heavy, but she is mysterious. Though his mother probably never knew it, she has had an immense impact on his life that continues with him until this moment of certain hallucination.
 
He becomes fully awake. It is 2:25 a.m. He gets up and decides to make a cup of espresso forte. After breaking a couple of coffee cups, spilling coffee all over his kitchen counter and floor, and mumbling a few expletives, he cleans up. Now he is calm; now he will taste the fruit of his coffee-making adventure; he places the cup on his desk and starts to write.  
I’m not sure my parents’ odd relationship had any effect on me. I was a happy child tormented by religion and religious people’s
hallucinations. I was tormented by Egyptian hypocrisy. I’ve seen a great deal of hypocrisy, child abuse, infidelity, abuse of women, and abuse by the government, churches, and mosques.  
He hears the voice of his mother; during his childhood she always
read to him in bed before he went to sleep. Now she reads from the
Bible. In both her wisdom and lack of awareness, she reads from the Book of Genesis and the Book of Revelations. This exposure to apocalyptic writing at a very young age has had a profound effect on him.
 
Being imaginative, and in this phantasmagoric state, he now experiences the same fright he experienced as a child. He returns to bed and suddenly falls asleep but is soon awoken by one of his many epileptic seizures. His body shakes uncontrollably, and his tremors seem to have a mind of their own.

As his attack gradually dissipates, he thinks of the savagery of God and questions why a peaceful God would be so cruel and nasty. These thoughts make him feel even more terrified. Since childhood he has been petrified of that entity referred to as “God.”

At age seven or eight, he developed an obsessive-compulsive disorder.  He’d repeat the phrase “God forgive me” to himself all day until he went to bed. He kept this a secret because he had no idea how his mother, siblings, or Zakia would react. He remembers that he often went to Zakia, who was a Muslim, and asked her to hold him. She would oblige, and he would feel protected, even from that savage God.

He gets out of bed. It is 3:42 a.m. He makes another cup of espresso forte and sits at his desk, thinking. Again he writes.

This phase simply shaped my feelings about whether God does indeed exist. I often thought I’d be better than him or her or it, for I would not be as cruel, brutal, or malicious. Today I am an agnostic, and I can’t get myself to understand why anyone would believe in such a God as depicted in the holy books, including the Bible.

In addition to the Bible, there were other sources of great damage.  Egypt is an Islamic country. I was exposed to and forced to learn about Islam and its holy book, the Quran, which is like the Bible in its
catastrophic content. I was forced to learn about the Islamic laws, Sharia, even though I was a Coptic. I did so in schools, and I did so in everyday affairs. I was even forced to memorize and recite verses from the Quran, which also had a negative impact on me.

The daily prayers announced over loudspeakers, and coming from all directions, were a frightening experience for me. Everywhere in Egypt, between each mosque there is a mosque, and even that wasn’t enough. The radio broadcasted Quran readings repeatedly. Even today the memory of these sounds brings a deep downheartedness to my soul.

I remember Sheikh Omar Abdel-Rahman, the blind cleric who’s in a North Carolina prison now for conspiring to commit terrorism. His mosque was right behind our house. I remember Abdel-Rahman’s Friday sermons. He’d curse the Christians, Jews, and Americans (I don’t know why he cursed Americans) publically over a loudspeaker that echoed miles away. The sheikh would scream in a screeching, deafening voice, “May God burn them and displace their children, and may God burn their houses.” The congregation would repeat, “Amen.” And the pattern would continue.

This persisted for a long time. We were so used to it, however, that it didn’t bother us much. The amazing thing is that Sheikh Abdel-Rahman was a friend of my father’s. He often visited my father at his law firm and spent hours talking with him. My father considered him a harmless, kind man.

Well, for once my father was wrong. The sheikh always has been a terrorist, and he put his evil spirit into action. Fortunately he’s in prison now. I hope he never gets out.

He stops writing for a minute and wonders how the United States allowed that savage man to enter this country. Where was American intelligence?  Didn’t they know how radical Abdel-Rahman was? This was simply bizarre.  But the United States government overlooks such things so often that he
wonders whether the word intelligence is fitting at all.

His mind is racing, and he grows exhausted with the burden of thoughts.  Hoping for a few minutes of sleep, he goes back to bed. His hope materializes, or perhaps he thinks so; at the very least, he is
semi-asleep.

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About the Author:

The middle of five children, Sabri Bebawi was born in 1956 in the town of Fayoum, Egypt, where he attended law school at Cairo University. He then left Egypt for the United Kingdom. He was invited by Oxford University, where he spent some time, and never returned to Egypt. A few years later, after living and working in England, Italy, France, and Cyprus, he took refuge in the country he loved most, the United States.

In California he studied communications at California State University, Fullerton, then obtained a master’s degree there in English education. Later he worked at many colleges and universities
teaching English as a second language, freshman English, journalism, and educational technology. He did further graduate work at UCLA and obtained a PhD in education and distance learning from Capella University.

Although English is his third language, he has published many works in English on eclectic topics. It has always been his ambition to write novels, and this is his first attempt. As English is a foreign language to him, the task of writing a novel has been challenging.

As a child, Bebawi struggled to make sense of religions and their contradictions; in fact he grew up terrified of the word God. As he grew older and studied law, as well as all the holy books, he developed a more pragmatic and sensible stance; the word became just that—a word.

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