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Monday, April 30, 2018

The Unremembered Girl


In the deep woods of East Texas, Henry supports his family by selling bootleg liquor. It’s all he can do to keep his compassionate but ailing mother and his stepfather—a fanatical grassroots minister with a bruising rhetoric—from ruin. But they have no idea they’ve become the obsession of the girl in the woods.
Abandoned and nearly feral, Eve has been watching them, seduced by the notion of family—something she’s known only in the most brutal sense. Soon she can’t resist the temptation to get close. Where Henry’s mother sees a poor girl in need, his father sees only wickedness. When Henry forges an unexpected bond with Eve, he believes he might be able to save her. He doesn’t know how wrong he is.
Eve is about to take charge of her own destiny—and that of Henry’s family. As both their worlds spin violently out of control, Henry must make an impossible choice: protect the broken young woman who’s claimed a piece of his soul, or put everyone he loves at risk in order to do the right thing.


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HALL WAYS REVIEW: You would think that since I have a bookish job that immerses me in the bookish world, I would have LOADS of time to read. Ah, the irony. Though I am blessed that my job requires reading of fabulous books, it’s very hard to find time to fit in books of my own choice. My work around is to always have what I call a “toothbrush book.” This book stays by the bathroom sink and gets read when I’m brushing my teeth or doing my hair or putting on make-up.  In the case of The Unremembered Girl by Eliza Maxwell, I ended up sitting on the bathroom counter for over an hour before breaking my rule and carrying it to the couch.  I didn’t get off that couch until the book was done…

OH MY GOSH, I had all the feels reading this story. ALL the feels. Revulsion. Sympathy. Empathy, anger, horror, hurt, indignation, shock, relief, worry… And I kept thinking, “WOW. Eliza wrote this.” Eliza (whom I’ve become quite fond of over the past few years) wrote this story straight out of her imagination, and it’s perfection. She nailed it. I told her all this and she was humble and sweet – because that’s how she is – but she also told me that she feels like her next book, The Widow’s Watcher, is better. Truly, if that is the case, I don’t think my little book-loving heart can take it.  (But we’ll find out since it’s coming on Lone Star Book Blogs tour end of May!)

Back to The Unremembered Girl.  It’s dark and profoundly sad. It’s grim and even gruesome at times; it haunts me.  Main character Henry doesn’t do the right thing; he doesn't act the right way. He's HUMAN. So many times, I thought, no, no -- don't do that, Henry. There's an easier way… this is gonna backfire. But Henry didn’t listen to me. He's often misguided in his sacrifices, but he always acts out of putting others' needs first. Always. His and Eve’s relationship is magnetic but not really explained. It just is, and we must accept that. This might bother some readers, but for me it worked. Sometimes life and feelings defy explanation.

The Unremembered Girl unfolds in a time period that is sketchy to grasp -- but I think that was good for where they characters are living in swampy Texas, where time kind of stands still a bit. Things remain the same and are done a certain way because it always has been that way.

The book is cleanly edited and very well written. I like that the very short chapters each encapsulate a specific event. You read, you reel, and then you return for more. The story is a bit addictive.

Thank you to the author, my friend, for providing me a beautiful print copy as a gift with absolutely no strings attached. I devoured it and give my honest opinion in the hope that others will read it and read this book and be moved by it.

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Eliza Maxwell lives in Texas with her ever patient husband and two kids. She's an artist and writer, an introvert and a British cop drama addict. She loves nothing more than to hear from readers. You can find her at theelizamaxwell@gmail.com

Sunday, April 29, 2018

Blood and Remembrance ~ Blog Tour, Review, & Giveaway!

BLOOD AND REMEMBRANCE
by
CHRIS MANNO
Genre: Contemporary Literary Fiction
Publisher: Dark Horse Books
Publication Date: March 3, 2018
Number of Pages: 321 pages

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Blood and Remembrance is the prequel to the award-winning Texas novel, East JesusThis new, stand-alone story rampages from the west Texas plains to Huntsville's Death Row and back. Cowboys, ranchers, driven oilmen, desperate convicts and headstrong women grapple with truths of the heart, of life, and the coming of age in a dramatic struggle you'll live yourself and never forget.



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HALL WAYS REVIEW

“’Well,’ Randy said, gauging the clouds stacking themselves to the west like a promise they couldn’t keep...”

You know how it feels when there’s an afternoon, late spring storm brewing -- the clouds are roiling, the pressure changes, there’s electricity in the air? There might be a little break in the heat or in the clouds, but the sky is darkening, darkening with a likely funnel or two in the works. The waiting makes you uneasy, anxious even.  THAT is how it feels reading Blood and Remembrance by Chris Manno.  Storms are swirling around the lives of a wide cast of characters, and it seems unlikely any of them will survive unscathed. 

Blood and Remembrance is the prequel to East Jesus, which I read about two years ago, and which I now need to re-read.  BAR reveals the juicy small-town tidbits that clarify how the characters ended-up in the lives they lead in EJ, some seventeen years later. Some characters were messed-up and dysfunctional from the start; others had some light and hope in their lives, and goals for bigger and better things. But the oppression and consequences of bad choices and lack of ambition dim or extinguish most everything good. 

Sound grim? It is. Just as East Jesus has a mind-blowing ending, Blood and Remembrance begins with a brutal, attention grabbing start that has the reader reeling. From Huntsville to Rattlesnake Gulch, Texas, the characters in the story are their own worst enemies and seem to be on a crash-course with their bleak destinies. Readers will find themselves wanting to shout, “DON’T DO IT,” over and over again. And since the story is told from multiple points of view, each chapter brings new opportunities and new train wrecks looming on the horizon.

“It ain’t a lie if you told ‘em both the same thing,” Shirl said with a hint of hope but a side of regret. “It’s just what they both believe to be true.” 

Grim? Yes. Bleak? Yes. Riveting? Absolutely. The characters are richly drawn and so real that you carry their troubles with you when you aren’t reading. Author Chris Manno fleshes-out the quirks and complications of each personality, and he layers those over descriptions of time and place that put readers right into the story. Manno makes liberal use of similes and metaphors, but sometimes the frequency takes the punch out of those that are superbly done. He writes some beautiful, truly lyrical descriptions and has some that are so familiar, I snorted at the recognition.

"Mrs. Hogg kicked the organ into gear with a wheezy note that chugged into the hymn like an engine flooded, tentative, ungraceful, but eventually firing and catching hold."

I had some trouble reconciling the timeline in BAR. With mentions of Texas Governor Connally, Old Sparky, Fort Worth’s Ol’ South Pancake House, T.V. shows, and songs playing on the radio, it seems the story is set in the early sixties. But EJ is set in 1968 or 1969, I think (really need to re-read), which doesn’t work with the ages of the characters. There are some places that I needed more information to sketch out some of the vague existing relationships and to explain why characters behave as they do. (Truly, I think character Verlene could have a prequel story to this prequel story!)

The Grammar Policewoman in me struggled a bit. (Curse or a blessing, the badge is always on.) I reviewed a "near final" ARC of Blood and Remembrance, and it was a long way from being ready for prime time due to numerous typos and usage errors. My hope (and expectation) is that the final version will be cleanly edited, but the SPAG issues detract and distract nonetheless. (I imagine I will buy a final print copy (*Must always have same format and complete sets on the shelf. MUST.*) and will update this review accordingly.

Whether reading Blood and Remembrance before East Jesus, or vice-versa, I highly recommend reading them back-to-back for a reading experience unlike any other. WOW. Even two years and literally hundreds of books later, East Jesus has stuck with me – and I fully expect Blood and Remembrance to do the same. 

Thank you to the author and Lone Star Book Blog Tours for providing me an eBook ARC in exchange for my honest opinion – the only kind I give. 


Chris Manno of Fort Worth, Texas, earned a doctorate in English from Texas Christian University and teaches writing at Texas Wesleyan University. 

East Jesus, his first novel, was named “finalist” (second place) for Best Fiction of 2017 by the North Texas Book Festival. The novel takes a close-up, visceral look at West Texas life in 1969 and the good folks who lived it, grappling with notions of family, patriotism and violence, both domestic and in a far-off, unpopular war. 

Blood and Remembrance is the prequel to East Jesus, tracing the roots of the main characters in both books, examining the harsh but classically All-American story of life in the Texas panhandle. 

Manno is also the author of a third novel, Voodoo Rush, winner for Best Fiction of 2018 by the North Texas Book Festival, and a collection of short stories titled Short Fiction for the Impatient Reader. Both books are available from White Bird Publications of Austin Texas. 


Website  ║  Facebook ║ Twitter Amazon Author Page


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THREE SIGNED COPIES!
(U.S. Only)
CLICK TO ENTER TO WIN!


VISIT THE OTHER GREAT BLOGS ON THE TOUR:
4/20/18
Promo
4/21/18
Review
4/22/18
Author Interview
4/23/18
Promo
4/24/18
Review
4/25/18
Promo
4/26/18
Promo
4/27/18
Review
4/28/18
Promo
4/29/18
Review



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Wednesday, April 25, 2018

Searching for Pilar ~ Lone Star Book Blog Tours Promo & Giveaway!

SEARCHING FOR PILAR
by
PATRICIA HUNT HOLMES
Genre: Contemporary Suspense / Thriller
Publisher: River Grove Books
Publication Date: April 10, 2018
Number of Pages: 320 pages

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Pilar, an innocent young wife and mother, is abducted during a fake job interview in Mexico City and forced into sex slavery in Houston. Can she survive the horrors of a world—one which many good Americans don’t see or ignore—long enough for her brother Diego to find her?


Searching for Pilar breaks open the secretive and dangerous world of sex trafficking, while exploring human nature and our connections to each another. Diego’s guilt transforms him from a rudderless youth into a man of purpose, and courage. While he searches, Pilar finds a strength that could save herself and a young girl who needs her. The themes of family, love, faith and the law intertwine in this action-packed tale of the Bayou City.



PRAISE FOR SEARCHING FOR PILAR:
“Patricia Holmes fictionalizes the heartbreaking reality of cross-border sex trafficking in her novel, Searching for Pilar. This cautionary tale should be required reading for high school classes to foster awareness, understanding, and ultimately solutions to this horrific epidemic.”  --Joanne F. Phillips, author of Revenge of the Cube Dweller.

“In Searching for Pilar, Patricia Hunt Holmes makes us aware of the terrible nature of sex trafficking in the context of a fast-paced, exciting Houston story that moves from affluence and glitz to barrio cantinas and the federal courthouse. The charitable, can-do nature of Houston is reflected in the wide cast of residents who help a young man on an extremely dangerous mission to find his kidnapped sister.  This book will be an added weapon in our fight against sex trafficking.” –Sylvester Turner, Mayor, City of Houston


Patricia Hunt Holmes spent 30 years as a public finance attorney with the international law firm of Vinson & Elkins LLP.   She was consistently listed in Best Lawyers in America, Texas Super Lawyers, Top Lawyers in Houston, and awarded the highest degree by her peers in Martindale Hubbell. She was a frequent speaker at national public finance and healthcare conferences.  Patricia has also served on the faculty of the University of Missouri-Columbia, University of Tennessee, and University of Texas Health Science Center Houston. She has written and published in the fields of intellectual history and law.

Patricia has been a member and board member of social service organizations in Houston that focus on helping women, including the United Way of the Texas Gulf Coast Women’s Initiative, Dress for Success Houston, and the American Heart Association’s Circle of Red.  She was a founding member and first board chair of Houston Justice for Our Neighbors, which provides free and low cost legal services to immigrants.  For the past five years, she has been taking writing workshops with Inprint, associated with the outstanding University of Houston Creative Writing Program.  She began to write Searching for Pilar in a workshop after learning that Houston is one of the biggest hubs for sex trafficking in the country.


Website  ║  Facebook ║ Twitter Goodreads ║ LinkedIn 

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GIVEAWAY! GIVEAWAY! GIVEAWAY!
THREE WINNERS! 
1st & 2nd Prizes: Signed Copy of Searching for Pilar + Mexican Necklace
3rd Prize: Signed Copy of Searching for Pilar + $20 Amazon Gift Card
(U.S. Only)
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VISIT THE OTHER GREAT BLOGS ON THE TOUR:
4/25/18
Excerpt
4/26/18
Review
4/27/18
Author Interview
4/28/18
Review
4/29/18
Guest Post
4/30/18
Scrapbook Page
5/1/18
Review
5/2/18
Excerpt
5/3/18
Guest Post
5/4/18
Review


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