Vivian Ho is a journalist who covered the criminal justice beat for the San Francisco Chronicle and served on the newspaper’s breaking news team for six years. She was recently selected as a Livingston Awards finalist for her work on “A Life on the Line,” a series of two articles covering the story of San Francisco resident Cecilia Lam, a victim of domestic violence who was killed by her boyfriend in 2014. The same piece also won first place for the 2017 California News Publishers Association Award for In-Depth Reporting, and was awarded the Asian American Journalists Association 2018 Written Journalism Award for General Excellence.
Before she joined The Chronicle in 2011, Vivian reported for the Boston Globe and the Worcester Telegram and Gazette. She has bylines in the Guardian, Topic, San Francisco magazine, the Muse, and Bustle. A New England native, Vivian graduated from Boston University in 2011.
Vivian Ho biography from Amazon
SYNOPSIS
Those Who Wander is the debut offering from Vivian Ho. The central theme is the brutal double murder committed by homeless kids. Morrison Haze Lampley, Lila Scott Alligood, and Sean Angold murdered twenty-three-year-old Audrey Carey and sixty-seven-year-old Steve Carter. Because of the murders, the homeless, drifters, and runaways of the Bay Area were persecuted by the San Francisco populace.
Vivian takes us on a journey both gritty and disturbing into the life and times of the growing homeless population of children and young adults in modern day America. She delves deep into the homeless subculture and exposes abuse, drug addiction, failed foster care and over tasked child protective services. She exposes the tragic, the good and the bad surrounding the homeless subculture in San Francisco.
CONCLUSION
An Insightful and disturbing examination of the profound challenges, suffering, and implications for society; from the minor and adolescent itinerants roving the streets, unloved and uncared for.
Always honest and brutally frank, Vivian Ho’s account of life for children on the streets in the present day United States is brutal; and the brutality extends beyond the affected children.
The quality of writing alone makes this book worth reading, but combined with the investigative journalism makes this an exceptional monograph. I can say with confidence that I fully expect Vivian Ho to become an esteemed and prolifically successful popular author in the years to come.
Skillful journalism, perfectly paced and combined with a compelling writing style make Those Who Wander an absolute must read. It is infectious from the first pages to the last. I highly recommended this book to anyone who enjoys a well written prose.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Rating: 4.5 out of 5.
OTHER BOOKS AVAILABLE ON KINDLEUNLIMITED
Don’t forget that Those Who Wander it is read for free for a limited time on KindleUnlimited
To learn about Joe Hill, check out our authors spotlight here.
NARRATOR
Stephen Lang is an American actor, playwright co-artistic director. He received a Tony Award and the Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actor. He is best known for his role in Avatar. He has a long and distinctive film and television career. He has done voice-over work on video games and narrates a wide variety of audiobooks.
SYNOPSIS
Heart-Shaped Box is a paranormal tiptoe though the life of a 50 something rock-star named Jude Coyne; aka Judas. Judas lives a semi-reclusive existence in Piecliff, New York. At the story’s inception, he has a small retinue consisting of his girlfriend Georgia and his loquacious Californian Personal Assistant, Danny.
Judas has a macabre occult and disturbing collection of objet d’art. At Danny’s suggestion, he decides to purchase another item for his assemblage from a popular online bidding site. It is an unusual item; as it is claimed to be a haunted suit. Unknowingly to Judas, the suit belonged to the stepfather of his dead ex-girlfriend. With the arrival of the artifact; a perfect storm of past and present events conspires together to propel Judas into a living nightmare.
The paranormal antagonist is a literal Swiss Army Knife of the supernatural realm. Craddock McDermott was the stepfather of Florida, who committed suicide after her breakup with Judas. The specter uses his life skills to bring hell into the head, heart and soul of Jude Coyne. In an all out blood vendetta from the grave; only the death of Coyne and his helpers will satisfy the lust for revenge. Judas seems ill equipped to defend himself. No matter how far or how fast he runs from McDermott, he can never escape. McDermott is not only behind him, but also in him; in his mind.
Florida’s decline after her breakup with Judas and the impact of subsequent events pulls at the heartstrings with just the right amount of pathos. I found the telephone call from Florida’s sister to be among the most chilling chapters of the book. Easy banter, quickly replaced with unrestrained vitriol and a promise of rightful revenge to follow.
CONCLUSION
Heart-Shaped Box is another winner from the pen of Joe Hill.
Overtly graphic, unflinchingly morose and disturbingly dark, the characters are perfectly sculpted. “The Devil is in the details,” as they say and this is never truer than when describing Heart-Shaped Box. It is every bit as much of a psychological thriller as a paranormal tale of terror. It is always unpredictable, atmospheric throughout with taut tracts that will haunt you in your dreams.
The narrator Stephen Lang was engaging and performed his role with some élan. He managed to bring a sophistication and an angle to the tale by enhancing the written word and bringing the characters to life.
Listening to Heart-Shaped Box, there is an inevitability and a fatality to the whole thing; a feeling that you are on an out of control roller-coaster in Christmasland. Most perverse of all is; you never want to jump off until the ride is over.
Does Judas manage to prevent the death of those who help or support him? I guess you will have to listen or read for yourself to find out.
The whole package works. Just lay back, listen and let the story take you with the help of a fine up and coming writer and a magnificent narrator. If you love skillfully written tales of horror with a twist why not let Heart-Shaped Box be your next audiobook journey? With Hill’s work, the chills come as standard.
Vicki Whiting was a third-grade teacher and now enjoys reaching children through the Kid Scoop page.
Jeff Schinkel illustrated Super Silly Jokes for Kids. He attended the Academy of Art University in San Francisco and loves teaching children how to draw.
SYNOPSIS
Super Silly Jokes for Kids is exactly what the title implies. The book is full of silly jokes, puns and riddles. The book covers a wide variety of topics. There are knock-knock jokes, jokes about animals, food jokes, school jokes and riddles.
CONCLUSION
SuperSilly Jokes for Kids is a great starter book for anyone looking to learn child friendly jokes. As with most silly joke books, there are some good jokes and there are a few lame jokes. Kid Scoop did a really good job of compiling these jokes and Vicki did a great job of editing.
The layout of the book is perfect for kids. Some jokes are straightforward; joke – answer. Some of the riddles have to be matched with the correct answer. Topics are generally combined together in sections.
The art is fabulous. The design is pleasing and entertaining.
⭐⭐⭐⭐
Rating: 3.5 out of 5.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
I would like to thank NetGalley and Happy Fox Books for affording me the opportunity to review Super Silly Jokes for Kids.
Steven Konkoly is a Naval veteran. He attended the US Naval Academy and served eight years on active duty. He earned his degree in English literature. He is a Wall Street Journal, Washington Post and USA Today bestselling author. His chosen genre for his work is thrillers.
SYNOPSIS
The Rescue is the first book in a trilogy. It is about a former CIA operative, Ryan Decker, that now runs an international mercenary force specializing in kidnap rescues. On this particular mission things go incredibly wrong. Ryan finds himself being incarcerated and in constant danger of being assassinated. Everyone he knows and their families, have been murdered in the most vicious of manners. His own wife and son are dead, and his daughter refuses to acknowledge his existence. He is all alone.
Somehow, he gets released from prison early and this is where the book really takes off. With the help of a private investigator, Harlow Mackenzie, he tries to unravel what happened years ago. Harlow just happens to be a girl his organization saved from the Russian Mafia’s child trafficking ring years ago; she never forgot the man who saved her. Chased by the Russian Mafia and another Mercenary group, they struggle to survive and uncover who masterminded his downfall.
CONCLUSION
Full of political backstabbing, cruel Mafia murder, another US spy firm maneuvering for military dominance and human trafficking; The Rescue has everything a thriller needs to be successful. Steven Konkoly has crafted a masterful thriller which will keep the reader engaged from beginning to end.
I must admit that when I started reading this book; I was not that impressed. However, after only the first chapter, I could not put it down. Steven’s writing reminds me a lot of Tom Clancy. The mystery, intrigue and thrills are non-stop. The battle between not-so-good and evil is full of twists and turns, thrill and suspense.
If you like a good spy thriller, then this is definitely a book for you.
Book 2 in this series is The Raid released October 8, 2019. Book 3 is The Mountain due to be released July 14, 2020.
⭐⭐⭐⭐
Rating: 4 out of 5.
OTHER BOOKS BY THIS AUTHOR
(These books are free to read or listen too with Kindle Unlimited)
“An inscape, a world of thought. In a world made of thought—in an inscape—every idea is a fact. Emotions are as real as gravity. Dreams are as powerful as history. Creative people, like writers, and Henry Rollins, spend a lot of their time hanging out in their thought-world. S-s-strong creatives, though, can use a knife to cut the stitches between the two worlds, can bring them together. Your bike. My tiles. Those are our knives.”
Joe Hill, NOS4A2 (October 31, 2013). Ch. The Librarian, Loc. 1417-1427
NOS4A2 is a horror novel written by Joe Hill. It is every horror aficionados dream. The central characters are Vic McQueen, an intuitive wild child with a penchant for two wheels, an infinite curiosity, a need for speed, and a special skill. Charlie Manx a sinister otherworldly psychic vampire. Bing is a sociopath with a dark past and darker future. Margret Leigh is a librarian with unique talents. Louis Carmody is a friend to Vic and father to their child. In addition are McQueen’s dysfunctional extended family.
When the story begins Vic lives with her parents in Haverhill, Massachusetts, not far from Lake Winnipesaukee; a favorite family getaway.
Victoria McQueen – AKA Vic or The Brat
NOS4A2 is a standout in every way as a horror product. Set in contemporary times. The key character, Vic McQueen, is an 8-year-old child living in Haverhill with her dysfunctional mother and father who are in a combative relationship. Vic is a wild-child with an extraordinary gift. She is an exceptional artist, but that is not her only trait. She soon discovers her other talent, a symbiotic relationship between her and her bicycle; her ‘knife’ (a psychic tool that can act as a portal via the Shorter Way over a psychic bridge to anywhere she wants to go). Together they can traverse the ethereal plane.
Hill’s novel steers us through the life of Vic from her days as a child, her teenage years and struggles, to her maturation. A life altering event; a clash with Charlie Manx, leads Vic on a personal and dramatic course that defines her life thereafter.
Charles Talent Manx – AKA Charlie Manx
Charles Talent Manx is the principal evil protagonist. He is a filicidal psychopath and mass killer. He has a distinctive overbite, ancient appearance, dresses strangely, and drives a vehicle from another era; a Rolls Royce Wraith. The Wraith is more than just a car, it is part of his Manx-scape, his inner-verse, it is his “knife.” The automobile is implicated in Manx’s unhealthy interest in children. He seemingly spirits them away in his Rolls Royce to his inscape, which he calls Christmasland. In an accident of synchronicity, Vic McQueen and Manx cross paths; from there the game is afoot.
Bing Partridge
Bing Partridge is a rotund, bespectacled man from Sugarcreek, PA. Bing was tried and convicted of parricide for both of his parents. He is a sexual deviant and fascinated with using sevoflurane (Gingerbread scented gas). Sevoflurane is one of the volatile gases that includes: halothane, isoflurane, and desflurane. Partridge employs the gas as an anesthetic to render his victims insensible. He utilizes a military gas mask, given to him by his father when he was a child, to prevent himself from suffering the analgesic affects.
Bing is Manx’s most recent assistant; there have been many over the years. Bing has a fascination for Christmas, gas masks, and mature adult women; although his interests range too much lower age groups. He is dull, has a complex range of paraphilias and appears to suffer from an insufficiency of intellect with elements of psychopathy, and sociological illness. Cunning like a fox and yet barely able to operate in society, Bing shares Manx’s abnormal love of Christmas and Christmasland. Bing can, and will, do anything to attain Christmasland with its promise of eternal life surrounded by gingerbread and all the accoutrements, including access to children.
Ms. Margret Leigh – AKA Maggie
Ms. Margret Leigh is a scrabble maven with a special bag and a spluttering stammer. Maggie has a sapphic nature and works as a librarian in a small town. She is fascinated with scrabble. Maggie has her own “knife,” involving the use of her scrabble bag. She can retrieve messages that aid her in seeing future events.
Louis Carmody – AKA Lou Carmody
Lou is Vic’s significant other and father to Bruce Wayne McQueen. He is an all-around nice guy, dedicated father, and part-time hero.
CONCLUSION
Joe Hill could be the best contemporary horror writer of our time.
NOS4A2 is a strong tale, perfectly paced, and totally engrossing. It has a stupendous narrative, is skillfully written with superior character definition, and has a compelling chronology. It is a mythos all its own and I would not be surprised if it becomes a timeless favorite of many horror story lovers.
NOS4A2 is replete with numerous literary Easter-eggs. He doffs his hat throughout the book to his illustrious literary family and references locations from their works. A reference to Shawshank is just one example. Notable locations: The House of Sleep, The Shorter Way, Manx The Sleigh House, the Graveyard of What Might Be.
I have seen the television show featuring a screenplay adapted from the book. My recommendation is that you should forget the show and read the book. The written form is far superior and elaborates much more than the TV version. There is simply no comparison between the two experiences.
I have already identified my next Joe Hill book and decided on his award-winning number one best seller Heart-Shaped Box. What will your next Joe Hill novel be?
Take a look below where I have provided a read-for-free link to four of his works on KindleUnlimited.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Rating: 5 out of 5.
OTHER BOOKS BY THIS AUTHOR
Other books by this author are included on his Author’s Spotlight here. There is a range of his works that are currently free-to-read on KindleUnlimited – as of 1 July, 2020. Select the image below to view:
This is the second book in The Grave Kingdom series. To read my review on the first book, The Killing Fog and to learn more about the author click here.
SYNOPSIS
This book continues Bingmei’s quest for survival. With the help of her friends, she continues a mission to evade the evil she unwittingly released in the first book. She has many adventures, experiences great loss and witnesses more unspeakable horrors.
This second installment in the series continues the battle between good and evil, but evil gets a counterpart. Now Bingmei and her followers not only have to evade one ancient evil entity, but two! Not just the entities themselves but the monsters they unleash from the “Grave Kingdom.” With their combined power they can control not only the living world, but the dimension of the dead as well.
Bingmei knows she is the only chance for the world to be rid of these evil entities and so do they. They will stop at nothing to kill her and continue their reign of terror for a thousand years to come. They will devour anyone who attempts to help Bingmei in their bid to capture or kill her. Bingmei must protect not only herself, but her friends. However, slowly she realizes it may not be possible to do both. She agonizes between protecting her friends and fulfilling her duty.
As they flee across the countryside, Bingmei and her little band of warriors and friends face off against an overwhelming foe. Battling not only their enemies but nature itself. From seemingly endless armies to magical beasts, they fight for survival and freedom.
Will she fulfill her duty? Will she protect her friends? Will she even survive? I guess we will find out in the next installment. What a cliffhanger!
CONCLUSION
The Buried World follows up on Jeff Wheeler’s The Killing Fog. This installment does not have as many epic battles as the first, but it has much more suspense. There are epic battles with magical creatures and objects; but there are many more moments where the suspense was too great to put the book down. I had to keep reading to see if Bingmei would escape, save a friend, or invoke some magic that would save the world.
Exceptionally written, Jeff has brought the characters to life and the environment into vivid detail. Each character has been constructed in such detail that the reader can not only see them in their mind, but envision them as actual living beings. He does a fantastic job of describing the environment. From the detailed palaces to the: monsters, the magic, the animals, the plains, or even the water; the reader feels as if they are there alongside Bingmei and her friends on this saga.
I genuinely enjoyed this second book in The Grave Kingdom series and I cannot wait for the next one to be released on 22 September, 2020: The Immortal Worlds.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Rating: 4.5 out of 5.
MORE BOOKS BY THIS AUTHOR
(These books are free to read or listen too with Kindle Unlimited)
Why not visit our Read For Free link to see all the wonderful children’s books. Simply click on the image above to see all the goodies this month on KindleUnlimited.
This is another novella by the eponymous Stephen King. This tale is taken from King’s 2008 Just After Sunset Collection. Whilst the narrative has the feel a Lovecraftian novel, it’s claimed that it’s actually inspired by Arthur Machen’s work.
The story is set in the familiar Kingeascian surreal world of Castle Rock, Maine. The story focuses primarily upon two key characters, Johnny Bonsaint and N. Johnny is a Psychiatrist and his client N is a 48 years old divorcee with children and a partner in a large accounting firm.
The account opens with a letter from Johnny’s sister Shelia Bonsaint Laclaire who discovered a manuscript in her brothers affects following his suicide. The case file holds a warning penned on it, to burn it. She foolishly ignores the instructions. Disturbed by the contents of the file, she enlists the assistance of Charlie, a distant family friend and associate from her youth. She asks him to read it and she gives him permission to burn the document should he feel it necessary. With the stage now set, the case file is revealed and what it contains is nothing short of nightmare fuel.
What follows is the account contained within the case file of a series of consultations by Doctor Bonsaint with his client N. The doctor initially concludes a simple case of Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD) and a mild case of insomnia causing sleep deprivation. The doctor also senses something else, but he isn’t sure of the cause.
Over the next few sessions, N reveals that he has repeatedly visited a location he calls Ackerman’s Field. In the first instance to photograph the beautiful location. It’s revealed that the standing stones have influenced him and exasperated his OCD symptoms. Thus, propelling him into an uncontrolled counting behavior, the outward manifestation of his anxiety disorder.
What follows could be considered a dive into the esoteric and abstract concepts of a Cosmic Monster verse. If this were not bad enough, what follows is far worse. King masterfully leads the reader little-by-little, teasing, tantalizing, and building the tension piece-meal until you are as engaged as the characters.
CONCLUSION
N is the best King Novella you never heard of. I love it that Castle Rock is back in the mix again. N is an ideal read for anyone in a hurry or on the commute. It is intriguing, compelling, and dark. N is a slow burner that captures your attention and then slowly reels you into the horror universe. Yet, another winner from the stable of Stephen King.
The 112 pages shouldn’t take you much more than two hours and twenty minutes to read. The audiobook is about two hours and seventeen minutes. If you haven’t heard the audiobook version, it is made PHENOMENAL through the spoken talents of Denis O’Hare et. al.
Jeff Wheeler is a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He majored in History at the San Jose State University. He worked at Intel while attending college but retired early to write full time.
With some of his best friends, they founded the electronic magazine Deep Magic. It is a magazine where new and aspiring authors can get their fantasy and science fiction stories published.
He started his writing career self-published with Amazon’s Createspace and the Kindle Direct Program. His works caught the eye of Publisher 47North and 2013 he became one of their authors.
SYNOPSIS
Bingmei was orphaned at a very young age. Luckily, she was taken in by a kind and noble woman who just happened to be the leader of an ensign. Under Kunmia Suun’s tutelage, Bingmei continues to expand her martial arts skills. While on assignment for the local King, Bingmei unwittingly awakens a terrible ancient entity who is unleashed on the world and only she can stop it.
The story takes place in the future after all history is forgotten. No one really knows who the Ancients where, why they built the “Great Wall,” or why they disappeared. All that is known is that they left great cities and magical artifacts behind. Unfortunately, when the artifacts are used, they summon the “Killing Fog.” The fog kills everything it touches, but does not destroy anything leaving the bodies as if they were in a deep sleep.
Bingmei has a naturally ability to use magic and is an exceptional fighter. She must use all her wit, skill, and abilities to stay ahead of the ancient entity determined to capture and kill her. With the help of her friends and colleges, she embarks on a mission of survival.
CONCLUSION
The Killing Fog is a very well written book. The author established the plot and characters from the start. The imagery is exceptional and the detail exquisite. The use of China’s history intertwined with the fantasy of the future adds to the mysticism of this tale.
Jeff Wheeler obviously did a lot of research for this series. The detail in his descriptions of people, places and things are brilliant. The reader has no problem imagining the places or the people in vivid imagery. He has created a fantasy world that readers will enjoy for many years.
I genuinely enjoyed this first book in The Grave Kingdom series and I cannot wait for the next one to be released on 23 June, 2020: The Buried World.
J. Scott Savage is a noted author and presenter. He was a teacher and developed Common Core-aligned projects for elementary school writing curricula. He routinely presents at schools across the country inspiring the youth of today to embrace their creativity. He has been nominated for several awards. You can learn more about him on his website here.
WHO IS THE TARGET AUDIENCE?
This book is intended for children 8-11 years old or grade level 4-6. I will testify that people of all ages will enjoy this story, as I am much older than 11 and I enjoyed this very much.
SYNOPSIS
The Lost Wonderland Diaries is a wonderful story about a young girl and her friend in Wonderland. Celia is the main character and she is dyslexic. She befriends a young boy named Tyrus who happens to be a book worm. Together they accidently get sucked into Wonderland. Their guide in Wonderland is a charming new character named Sylvan. She is a young rabbit, barely out of bunnyhood, and tasked with finding “Alice” to save Wonderland. Together they have many adventures.
Celia is the daughter of a librarian, which for her is a nightmare because of her difficulty reading. Due to her dyslexia, Celia has put more effort into learning mathematics. Tyrus is a bit of a book nerd with a giant imagination. Celia and Tyrus must combine her knowledge of math with his imagination and knowledge of books to solve puzzles and riddles while making their way through Wonderland and avoiding its hazards.
Something terrible is happening in Wonderland when they arrive. The characters are being turned into monsters! Celia, Tyrus and Sylvan must navigate a variety of hazards, puzzles and monsters not only to get home but to stop whatever is happening in Wonderland. With the help of some of the original cast of characters and a few new ones, they work their way through wonderland discovering not only what is happening, but they discover themselves in the process!
CONCLUSION
The Lost Wonderland Diaries is a magical book! J. Scott Savage does a superb job of bringing his characters to life. The story line is exceptional, intriguing, and educating. I love books that can entertain as well as teach, and this book does it all.
The little puzzles that the main characters have to solve are wonderfully crafted and educational. J. Scott Savage does a great job of introducing his readers to the problems associated with dyslexia and the difficulties coping with the disability.
I whole heartily recommend this book for anyone of all ages.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Rating: 5 out of 5.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
I would like to thank J. Scott Savage, NetGalley and Shadow Mountain for affording me the opportunity to reviewThe Lost Wonderland Diaries.
