Book Discovery: Debut Authors Books

I'm writing this post at 1.30 in the morning. Wondering what I am doing at this hour when everyone else is sleeping on their beds? Well, I am completing my assignment for tomorrow's presentation. A last minute work as usual. Okay, lets just forget about that. I've been busy lately. I haven't finished any book this week which is quite a disappointment. However, I manage to discover a few books to be added to my TBR piles. Both of the books are from debut authors which I discovered through bookreporter.com , lets check it out!

The Mourning Hour

by Paula Treick DeBoard

A family's loyalty is put to the ultimate test in this haunting and unforgettable debut. Kirsten Hammarstrom hasn't been home to her tiny corner of rural Wisconsin in years-not since the mysterious disappearance of a local teenage girl rocked the town and shattered her family. Kirsten was just nine years old when Stacy Lemke went missing, and the last person to see her alive was her boyfriend, Johnny-the high school wrestling star and Kirsten's older brother. No one knows what to believe-not even those closest to Johnny-but the event unhinges the quiet farming community and pins Kirsten's family beneath the crushing weight of suspicion. Now, years later, a new tragedy forces Kirsten and her siblings to return home, where they must confront the devastating event that shifted the trajectory of their lives. Tautly written and beautifully evocative, The Mourning Hours is a gripping portrayal of a family straining against extraordinary pressure, and a powerful tale of loyalty, betrayal and forgiveness. -Goodreads

Sandstorm 

by Alan L. Lee

Lurking in the shadows, away from any government oversight, a secret partnership has been formed between an Israeli spymaster pulling the strings of the most efficient killing machine the Mossad has to offer and an exclusive billionaire boys club that wants to dictate the New World Order. In their pocket is a powerful U.S. senator who aspires to the presidency. Success means vast wealth and increased power, and they’ll stop at nothing to succeed. CIA operative Nora Mossa is trained to kill when the situation calls for it. She’s also capable of disappearing into thin air. Being efficient, deadly, and beautiful, however, won’t be enough to protect her after her mentor Erica Janway is assassinated in her Maryland home. With everyone in the Agency suspect, Nora turns to the only person capable of keeping her alive while she uncovers the truth behind Janway’s demise—her former lover and ex–CIA agent Alex Koves. That is, if he will even speak to her. With danger lurking in every corner of the globe, Koves and Nora must stay alive long enough to piece together the clues to a deadly plot capable of killing thousands in the Middle East. And the clock is ticking….-Goodreads

 Both sounds interesting and I'm so looking forward to read them. But for now I am hitting the sack. Have to wake up early for work. So, I wish you great weekend. Zzzz.....

Book Review: The Peculiar by Stefan Bachmann

Title: The Peculiar | Author: Stefan Bachmann

Series: The Peculiar Book #1

Genre: Fantasy, Adventures, Middle Grade

Format: Kindle e-Book

Date Finished: June 7, 2013

CoffeeNCrackers Rating: 2 Cups of Coffee

  "Don't get yourself noticed and you won't get yourself hanged."

In the faery slums of Bath, Bartholomew Kettle and his sister Hettie live by these words. Bartholomew and Hettie are changelings--Peculiars--and neither faeries nor humans want anything to do with them. One day a mysterious lady in a plum-colored dress comes gliding down Old Crow Alley. Bartholomew watches her through his window. Who is she? What does she want? And when Bartholomew witnesses the lady whisking away, in a whirling ring of feathers, the boy who lives across the alley--Bartholomew forgets the rules and gets himself noticed. First he's noticed by the lady in plum herself, then by something darkly magical and mysterious, by Jack Box and the Raggedy Man, by the powerful Mr. Lickerish and by Arthur Jelliby, a young man trying to slip through the world unnoticed, too, and who, against all odds, offers Bartholomew friendship and a way to belong. - Goodreads

My Review

First off, I really liked the cover, the clockwork bird. Story-wise I have a mixed feeling about this book. I like the whole idea, faeries, clockwork devices, the changelings, peculiar, and magic. However, the story turned out just okay and way below my expectation. The ideas which I think very brilliant and inventive are not well delivered resulting in a monotonous read. Is it because this is a middle grade book? Well, I reckon it is, because I have a feeling that the middle graders will love this book a tad more than I do. 

Bartholomew and his sister Hettie are changelings a.k.a the "Peculiars". Their mother keeps them away from the society in fear that people will know who or to be exact what they really are. Mr Lickerish is hunting down the peculiar children to unlock the door to the fairy world. Nine children die mysteriously and the door Hettie is the next changeling abducted by Lickerish, and Barthe has to save her. Together with Mr Jelliby, who accidentally knows Lickerish's secrets, they go on an adventure to save Hettie. 

I have to admit that "The Peculiar" is a well written story. Yes well written indeed. But the issue here is, the author plays a lot with difficult and bombastic words which make it difficult for me to understand the story. The sentences are too well structured and I don't think that the descriptive storytelling and poetic language that Bachmann uses to narrate this is a brilliant idea. Consider this is an adventure story, an outgoing and reckless narration would suit it better, or so I thought. I can see that Bachmann focuses more on the world development and missed out the importance of the character development which make the characters a bit dull.

Will I recommend this book to middle graders? Well yes, of course! Despite of all the flaws stated, I believe that "The Peculiar" would be a promising read for younger readers. Considering the fact that Bachmann has written this book when he was just 16 year old, more credits should be given to him.

FOOTNOTE: This review is linked up to Saturday Situation hosted by Candace of Candace's Book Blog and Lori of Pure Imagination.

Book Review: Golden Boy by Abigail Tarttelin

Title: Golden Boy | Author: Abigail Tarttelin

Series: Stand Alone

Genre: Contemporary Fiction, Family, Sexuality

Format: Kindle e-Book

Date Finished: June 1, 2013

CoffeeNCrackers Rating: 4 Cups of Coffee

The Walkers are hiding something, you see. Max is special. Max is different. Max is intersex. When an enigmatic childhood friend named Hunter steps out of his past and abuses his trust in the worst possible way, Max is forced to consider the nature of his well-kept secret. Why won't his parents talk about it? What else are they hiding from Max about his condition and from each other? The deeper Max goes, the more questions emerge about where it all leaves him and what his future holds, especially now that he's starting to fall head over heels for someone for the first time in his life. Will his friends accept him if he is no longer the Golden Boy? Will anyone ever want him — desire him — once they know? And the biggest one of all, the question he has to look inside himself to answer: Who is Max Walker, really? - Goodreads

My Review

  

What will I do if I am in Max Walker's shoes? That is the question I ask myself once I finished reading this book. Little did I know about intersexuality, however Abigail Tartttelin, with her incredible writing talent, surprised me with "Golden Boy". This is definitely a gripping novel of gender and identity, which plays with the readers emotion and at the same time gives the readers a new perception of gender conflicts exist in the society. 

Max Walker is an intersex, but it was not a big issue for him. He was all athletic, brilliant, handsome, a perfect child to his parents, an idol to his brother, and a charming boyfriend to the schoolgirls. He was a "Golden Boy" .But, in one terrible night he was raped by his childhood friend, Hunter. The rape scene was the hardest part to read, it was awful that I even closed my eyes, as if I can feel the pain myself. 

"He's too big. The stretching snaps, stops, and turn to splitting. I can feel skin tearing down there" 

To make things worst, Max even got pregnant. This accident rocks his world so hard and everything around him crumbled apart. His parents argued a lot and his relationship with Sylvie was broken up. He was forced to make one hardest decision after another and it was really heartbreaking. 

At the beginning of the story, Daniel, Max's little brother mentioned that he wanted to write a story about his brother. So I was a bit skeptical as I thought "Oh, no! Will this be a story told from a seven year old POV?" However, I am glad that Abigail chose to tell the story from multiple points of view. For this kind of story, I really think that a multiple narration is brilliant because readers can understand the conflicts highlighted from different perspectives. For example, from Max's eyes I think that his mother's decisions were mostly wrong, especially when Max asked her to stop the abortion and give him more time to think over but she just ignored it. But when reading from Karen's perspective I kind of understand what made her to come into such a decision. Well, being a parents is not easy.

Some people may not like Karen and Steve, Max's parents, because most of the decisions they made seems wrong and selfish, but all they did is just to keep their children and family safe. When Steve runs for the election, he put his family away from the limelight. I thought that all he cares is his reputation and his chance to be elected will be effected if Max's secret becomes public, but actually Steve is doing the right thing because if the secret leaks out, it will do more damages to Max's life. I liked Max's girlfriend, Sylvie. She's so understanding, and matured. Definitely, not an average girl. And they look so cute together! But the reason I give this book four stars instead of five is because there are several characters which supposed to give more impact to the story are underdeveloped. For example Archie, one of Max's doctors, and of course Hunter. I wish that I could get to know him more. 

"We thought we understood gender - the idea of men and women as finite concepts with boundaries between each other, but lately I have come to understand that we are only just beginning to comprehend what 'gender' is, what it means to be allocated a certain gender, how much that informs the person a child becomes.." - Dr. Archie

All in all, I really enjoyed "Golden Boy". One of my favorite reads this year. This book gives me a new perception of gender issues. Gay, lesbian, bisexual, transsexual, all these I considered as a spectrum of mental disorders. But, intersex is just a totally different issue. Totally recommended for teenagers and adults alike. 

FOOTNOTE: This review is linked up to Saturday Situation hosted by Candace of Candace's Book Blog and Lori of Pure Imagination.

Exclusive Author Interview: Susan Crandall

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Susan grew up in a small Indiana town. Her younger sister admitted that she'd be writing secretly. This admission leads to her being her sister's editor. They co-authored four novels, none of which were published. Her sister stopped after the four, but Susan was totally addicted and continue. She is married to a guy from the same town she grew up and they have two grown children. 

Webpage | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads

Hi, readers! Today Coffee& Crackers are so excited to welcome Susan Crandall, the author of a to-be-released novel, Whistling Past the Graveyard to the blog and have a fun interview session talking about her previous profession, favorite writing spot, running away from home, racism, her novel: Whistling Past the Graveyard and the exclusive sneak peek of her future project! Give a big applause to my guest, Susan Crandall, everybody!

*****

C&C: You were a dental hygienist before right? So, how did you become a writer and what are the differences between these two professions

Susan Crandall:   

Yes, I was a dental hygienist.  As that profession required a science degree, there isn’t any education overlap.  However, being a good writer often comes from being a good observer of people. I think my previous profession provided a good opportunity to study all kinds of people. 

I’ve always been an avid reader and love playing with words, but never considered trying my had at writing a novel until my younger sister decided to write something and asked me to help.  Once I got started collaborating with her, I was totally hooked.  She has since gone on to a career in real estate, but I’m still writing.

C&C:  What inspires your writing and where you spend  most of your time writing? some writers prefer to write on the beach or beautiful places. Do you have any favorite place?

Susan Crandall:  

Everything around me fuels my writing; people, relationships, current events, history.  There is never a shortage of ideas and inspiration when you open your eyes and your mind to what’s happening around you. I love to write outdoors.  I have a balcony off my office that’s my favorite place.  My main requirement is absolute solitude.  I can’t write with other people around me.  I know some folks like writing at cafes and such, but I’m far too distracted in a place like that.

C&C:  In your latest novel, Whistling Past the Graveyard, the story is narrated from a nine year old, Starla's point of view. Why you choose a little girl character? And how you put yourself in a little girl's mind? Is it difficult?

Susan Crandall:  

I always put a lot of thought into my characters and how they’ll interact with my plot before I begin writing any book.  For this coming-of-age story I wanted to give a perspective of the world seen directly through the eyes of a child—not as an adult reminiscing about an event that happened to her when she was a child.  I chose her age carefully, old enough to be beginning to look at the world outside of her own experience, old enough to be able to take care of her own basic needs, and yet young enough that this awakening to the wider world is just beginning and her impetuousness isn’t curbed.  I chose the time period and setting carefully as well.  Foremost among my reasons for these choices was the need for a time before an organized network that immediately begins searching for a missing child.  In the early 1960s small towns, kids Starla’s age regularly went out to play all day long and no one knew exactly where they were.  Also, I wanted it to be a time of change in our society; giving me a lot of fuel for conflict and drama. 

I really enjoy writing youthful characters and had a great time working on Starla’s story.  It did take a few chapters before I found the true rhythm of Starla’s voice, but once I found it, she was a joy to write.  And yes, it did take some discipline to keep my adult perceptions and voice out of it.  Using this unfiltered child’s point of view gave this story it’s flavor, but occasionally I struggled with how to present certain views so the reader understood that Starla was misunderstanding.  When you only have a nine-year-old’s words, a nine-year-9-old’s understanding, you have to figure out ways to convey deeper meaning to the reader.

C&C:  Just wondering, have you ever run away from home? 

Susan Crandall:

No!  Starla is much braver (and more impulsive) than I was as a child.

C&C:  About the racial segregation you highlighted in the book, did you do any special research on it? In this modern world, I believe racism still exist, what say you about this? 

Susan Crandall: 

I did a great deal of research.  Fortunately, the sixties was a time period of mass media, so I found a lot of first-hand accounts, film footage and the like to draw from.  I have to say, the film footage was the most compelling—I was able to see actual events as they were happening. As for racism in modern day, I feel we have made progress, but are far from the idyll of perfect equality, perfect harmony.  And of course, it varies widely around the world.

C&C: For me, Whistling Past the Graveyard will be a huge success. So, what will come next? Any new project in progress?

Susan Crandall:

Thank you! I do have another project brewing.  It takes place during another pivotal era in U.S. history, the 1920s.  It will have a youthful narrator, but one much nearer adulthood than Starla.  Sixteen-year-old Henry is the son of a German immigrant who suffered a great deal of anti-German sentiment during WWI.  Henry is falsely accused of a crime and goes on the run with a WWI veteran barnstorming pilot.  This story is still in the very early stages, but is beginning to take shape nicely.

C&C: Thank you Susan!

Susan Crandall:    

Thank you so much for this interview and your kind words about Whistling Past the Graveyard.

*****

ABOUT THE BOOK

When Starla is grounded on the Fourth of July, she sneaks out to see the parade. After getting caught, Starla's fear that her grandmother, Mamie, will make good on her threats and send her to reform school cause her to panic and run away from home. Once out in the country, Starla is offered a ride by a black woman, Eula, who is traveling with a white baby. She happily accepts a ride,with the ultimate goal of reaching her mother in Nashville. As the two unlikely companions make their long and sometimes dangerous journey, Starla's eyes are opened to the harsh realities of 1963 southern segregation. Through talks with Eula, reconnecting with her parents, and encountering a series of surprising misadventures, Starla learns to let go of long-held dreams and realizes family is forged from those who will sacrifice all for you, no matter if bound by blood or by the heart. - NetGalley

FOOTNOTE: Whistling Past the Graveyard will be published on July 2nd, 2013 by Gallery Books. Pre-order this book : Amazon | Barnes&Noble | IndieBound. I received the e-ARC copy from Netgalley.com  for review [Read MY REVIEW]

The Friday 56: The Storyteller by Jodi Picoult

The Friday 56 is a fun weekly meme hosted by Freda of Freda's Voice. I'm currently reading Jodi Picoult's latest novel The Storyteller. This is a heavy reading as Picoult tackles yet another thought provoking issue, the aftermaths of the Holocaust.

Death walked next to me as I trudged down the street, whispered into my ear as I washed my face, embraced me as I shivered in bed. 

Book Review: Only Time Will Tell by Jeffrey Archer

Title: Only Time Will Tell | Author: Jeffrey Archer

Series: The Clifton Chronicles #1

Genre: Historical Fiction, Drama | 

Format: Paperback, 450 pages

Date Finished: January 1, 2013

CoffeeNCrackers Rating: 4 Cups of Coffee

A secret past. A hidden destiny. A battle for the truth. 

The epic tale of Harry Clifton's begins in 1919, in the backstreets of Bristol. His father was war hero, but it will be twenty-one tumultous years before Harry discovers the truth about hiow his father really died and if, in fact, he even was his father. "Only Time Will Tell" take a cast of memorable characters from the ravages of the Great War to the outbreak of the Second World war, when Harry must decide wether to take his place at Oxford, or join the fight agains Hitler's Germany. In Jeffrey Archer's masterful hands, you will be taken on a journey that you won't want to end, even after you turn the last page of thisunforgettable yarn, because you'll be faced with a dilemma that neither you, nor Harry clifton could ever have anticipated. -Back Cover  

My Review

When I first read a book from Jeffrey Archer, "Paths of Glory", I was so fascinated by the author's style of storytelling. It remains as one of my all time favourite by the author. A few other books I read after that, "The Prisoner of Birth" and "Shall We Tell the President?" were as powerful. So, "Only Time Will Tell" is another solid proof that the author is one of the best master storyteller of his kind. The book is not only a great story of preserverence of Harry and his mother Maisie Clifton, but it captures the life and times of United Kingdom  in that era beautifully.

Though I find out the whole idea and concept: fight between rich and poor, a mother whose willing to do everything for her son's future, family secrets that connected the characters together and worst break them apart, which make the core of the story is quite typical and outdated and have been used in many books, however it is the style of writing which differs the book from others. Each of every part of the story starts in a diary style which brings the reader to understand the feeling from each of the character's point of view. Each part of the book brings reader to understand the story from different perspectives without confusing the reader. At first, I thought that it's repetitive nature might make me loose my interest. However, as the story goes along the way, I really think that it is done brilliantly as the questions arise from the previous part are being answered in the next chapters.

Another strong aspect of this story is how well each of the characters is developed by the author. Besides Harry and his mother Maisie, other characters whose really fascinate me are Giles and Old Jack Tar. Their relationship with Harry clifton sometimes makes me a little bit emotional and brought lump in my troat. Giles for me is a very good friend which everybody wishes they have, and Old Jack Tar is a good father figure with bunch of advice and wisdom. Another strong character in this book is Hugo Barrington, whose willing to do anything to bring harm to each of every characters in this story. I have to admit that, he is one of my favorite villain.

In a nutshell, this is the story that will make you thinking how good is good and how bad is bad. Since this is the first book of the pentalogy, I'll be reading more of Harry Clifton's life in future. I highly recommend this book to anyone who enjoys vivid characters and a coming of age story that highlights the best and worst in poeple.

FOOTNOTE: This review is linked back to the Saturday Situation, a fun weekly meme co-host by Candace at Candace's Book Blog and Lori at Pure Imagination.