Time Travel Review: A Secret Twice Hidden (Chronicles of the Harakaiian #8) by Shanna Lauffey

A Secret Twice Hidden
by Shanna Lauffey

Description:
Believing herself free of the torments of the past, Kallie seeks renewed tranquility in the past and present, but the events of the recent few years won't go away that easily. Someone from her past comes back into her life reviving an old friendship that unwittingly makes Kallie a target of a crazed gunman.

Meanwhile, distracted by studying the effects of a magnetic field to fold dimensions, Harlan Edmondson receives a surprise visitor. Mason is a man with a reputation for cold-blooded murder and he, too, wants answers to questions of time travel.

Behind the seemingly innocuous façade of a doctor and fellow scientist, Mason approaches Edmundson to seek explanations for the events that occurred over fifty years earlier that resulted in the birth of his son. Edmondson becomes an unwilling time travel guide when the secrets of the past meet with his future to reveal a convoluted temporal loop.


My Review:
This is the eighth episode in the Chronicles of the Harekaiian, the ongoing story of Kallie, a woman whose people have the innate ability to travel in space or time within the span of their lifetime.

As with previous installments, I enjoyed the nostalgia associated with Kallie’s travels, as well as the pictures sprinkled throughout the story in support of it. The photos really help fix you in the place and time, which I find helpful in a book where the main character has a range of decades in which to travel.

I also liked that Harlan gets more attention in this episode, and not just as a scientist and scholar. As for Kallie, her latest challenges come across a bit familiar, although her story is branching in a new direction. Her own thoughts on the matter point out the similarities. I’m interested in seeing where this ends up.

Overall, I enjoyed this installment. Recommended for folks who enjoy time travel, science fiction, and historical fiction.

One final note, these episodes are not meant to stand alone so the author doesn’t waste too much real estate in setting the backstory. New readers should start these from the beginning.

I received the review copy of this book from the author.

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About the Author:

Shanna Lauffey is a native Californian currently living in Europe. She spends her time between homes in Sweden, France and the UK. She writes Science Fiction, Urban Fantasy and Paranormal Romance in her spare time between attending university and travelling.

Her first novel, She-Wȕlf, was released 1st January 2012. A Science Fiction series involving time travel is in progress.

Follow Shanna on Amazon, Goodreads, and Twitter @ShannaLauffey.


Books by this Author:
Chronicles of the Harekaiian Volume 1 (Books 1-5)


Chronicles of the Harekaiian

New Release Announcement: Immortal Creators (#2 of The Immortal Writers) by Jill Bowers

Today I'd like to share the release of Immortal Creators by Jill Bowers.

Immortal Creators
by Jill Bowers

Publisher: Blue Moon Publishers

Description:
Sixteen-year-old author Scott Beck never wanted to be an Immortal Writer—not after his father was killed on a mission attempting to dispatch his own villain. Scott blames Shakespeare and the Writers for his father's untimely demise, but no amount of hatred will prevent the oncoming alien attack, which has come over to reality straight from Scott's book.

Scott is forced to collect his characters—an Air Force colonel, two of the best pilots on Earth, and an alien enthusiast from the year 2134—and defeat the alien king before Earth is obliterated by his ships. But an odd sickness Scott calls his Writing Fever might just kill him before the aliens have the chance.

Will Scott be able to defeat the monsters he created, or will the world end in flames?


My Review:
I'm excited that this is releasing and that I had the chance to review it ahead of time.

This is a great story, especially for anyone who's intrigued by the idea that an author's creations can be so real that they literally become real.

You can read my original review here.

About the Author:

Jill Bowers is a technical writer by day and a fantasy author by night. She is one of two composers-in-residence for the Westminster Bell Choir and has a great love for all music. She used to be the writer and host for the award-winning radio show Olde Tyme Radio on the Aggie Radio Station at USU and has dabbled in stage play writing as well.

Jill enjoys attending Utah's Comic Con and Fantasy Con and has an unhealthy attachment to Netflix. She lives in Utah and has a lovely dachshund that needs to lose weight because she probably doesn't get enough walks and is too cute to not feed. Jill attended Utah State University for their creative writing program, where she actually specialized in creative nonfiction rather than fiction. However, Jill loves delving into different worlds in fantasy and sci-fi novels and is excited to have people enter the worlds she has created.

Author Links:
w: www.immortalauthor.com/
t: @Jilliard08
f: facebook.com/immortalauthorjill
g: goodreads.com/user/show/2509616-jill-bowers
p: pinterest.com/jilliard08/
i: instagram.com/jilliard08/
y: youtube.com/channel/UC4FH9bS51qVga7rPot7awTw


Other Books in this Series:


You can check out my review of Immortal Writers here.

~~~

P.S. If this post looks familiar to you, no need to doubt your sanity. This post was rescheduled at the request of the publisher when release was pushed out to 18SEP2018.  

Classic Review: Moby Dick, or The Whale by Herman Melville

Moby Dick, or The Whale
by Herman Melville

Description:
"It is the horrible texture of a fabric that should be woven of ships' cables and hawsers. A Polar wind blows through it, and birds of prey hover over it."

So Melville wrote of his masterpiece, one of the greatest works of imagination in literary history. In part, Moby-Dick is the story of an eerily compelling madman pursuing an unholy war against a creature as vast and dangerous and unknowable as the sea itself. But more than just a novel of adventure, more than an encyclopaedia of whaling lore and legend, the book can be seen as part of its author's lifelong meditation on America. Written with wonderfully redemptive humour, Moby-Dick is also a profound inquiry into character, faith, and the nature of perception.


My Review:
Finally made it through with audio! I tried a few times before, but didn't get very far.

Very good book, and informative. The ending was fantastic. I don't know how I've managed to avoid spoilers for this, but it was quite an exciting finale.

There are its slow points, though. When Herman Melville says he's going to catalog all of the whales, he's going to catalog all of the whales. Still, there were some very interesting asides, and many, though about whales on the surface, have a rather deeper and profound message.

I can totally see why it has been described as an important book.

Anyhow, I really liked this as an audiobook. Recommended for fans of the classics, of whales, and of sea stories. Vast in its scope.

Borrowed this from the library. Took a little over two weeks to get through.


About the Author:

The writing career of Herman Melville (1819 - 1891) peaked early, with his early novels, such as Typee becoming best sellers. By the mid-1850s his poularity declined sharply, and by the time he died he had been largely forgotten. Yet in time his novel Moby Dick came to be regarded as one of the finest works of American, and indeed world, literature, as was Billy Budd, which was not published until long after his death, in 1924.

Romance Review: Helping Her Remember (Crawford Falls #1) by Kate Carley

Helping Her Remember
by Kate Carley

Description:
Kelly’s back.

How can two simple words make Dylan Bronstad’s heart ache and sing at the same time?

Even seven years ago, Kelly Anne Leeson had possessed that power. Back then, all Dylan wanted to do was drink and make love to her. Really, it was no wonder she’d climbed out of his bed and walked out of his life, leaving him with nothing but a nasty hangover and the lonely memories of their time together.

Today, Dylan’s life is on track. He’s sober with the support of his family and his tight-knit group of friends. But Kelly could derail all he’s worked to accomplish. Unfortunately, he can’t seem to stay away from her.

Lured by the offer of her dream job, Kelly returns home to Crawford Falls and the friends she’d abandoned a lifetime ago. Mending those broken relationships will require some honest answers and a fair amount of forgiveness.

But facing Dylan will take a lot more—like maybe a suit of armor to protect her battle-weary heart and the secret she fears she’ll never be able to keep.

While Kelly searches for a way to maintain the safe life she’s created for her son, Dylan works to remind her of the relationship they once had.

Just as they rekindle their relationship, secrets and half-truths threaten to destroy everything.

My Review:
Helping Her Remember is a tale of forgiveness wrapped up in a steamy package. Betrayal cuts deep, but the spark’s still there, and where there’s a spark, there’s hope.

I enjoyed Kelly and Dylan’s romance, particularly because it doesn’t come easy for them. I also dug their troupe of friends and am looking forward to seeing which of them will get their own books.

Dylan’s father and his challenges brought some heart into the story and also threw some monkey wrenches into the works. And of course, AJ was much more than a plot twist. He was sweet and added a dynamic that really upped the stakes for Kelly and Dylan, which in turn made the story more of a page turner.

Then again, this story did fall into some expected patterns, and I didn’t feel too surprised by the outcome. Most of the intrigue I felt was spawned by the supporting cast and side plots. Kelly and Dylan, although this was there story, seemed just a small part in a greater drama.

Overall, good story. I think fans of steamy romance with complications might dig this. It wraps up just fine as a standalone, but sets up nicely for the next in the series for those who want to read on.
I received the review copy of this book from the author.

Add it on Goodreads!

About Kate Carley:

How Kate Carley went from majoring in mathematics and computer science in college to writing steamy contemporary romance still remains a mystery. She broke out into the indie publishing scene in 2015 with her debut novel, Challenged, a 2017 RONE award winner. Two more books completed her romantic suspense trilogy, Changing Krysset.

With three published works under her belt, Kate is excited to launch her new contemporary romance series. Just like her first novels, the Crawford Falls series is set in a small town in Kate’s home state of Minnesota.

When Kate isn’t busy at her desk writing, you’ll find her dreaming up new characters and plotting perfect ways to make their lives miserable before giving them their happily ever after.

Author Links: Website | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads | Amazon | Instagram | Pinterest