The Emerald Atlas (Books of Beginning) Review

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(More customer reviews)This is the kind of book that will have the reader glued to its pages until the exciting conclusion. I would equate this book to The Golden Compass, though easier to understand, Harry Potter, and The Hobbit. John Stephens, a television writer, really knows how to keeps his audience's attention. I swear, I could not stop reading this book, finishing all 400-plus pages in just over two days. I can't remember the last time I was so enthralled with a book.
The story is about the love of family, faith, and magic. The three main characters are siblings who have been taken from their parents ten years ago, forced to grow up in one orphanage after another, until finally ending up in an old mansion owned by a mysterious old man. Before they meet the old man, the children explore the house until they come upon a door that magically appears, leading fourteen Kate, and her twelve year old brother Michael, along with feisty eleven year old Emma, into a laboratory of sorts. There they find a mysterious green leather book with filled with blank pages. When Michael, who chronicles their lives in his journal, drops a picture onto one of the blank pages, the children are transported through time, finding themselves watching in horror as a beautiful witch threatens to drop a child into a lake.
I loved the back-story of how magic left the land, along with some real history thrown in for good measure. Stephens does a great job of adding depth to the story and for making believable and unforgettable characters.
Set in modern times yet full of magic, the Emerald Atlas is non-stop action with lessons of loyalty, love and the importance of family woven masterfully into a tale that kids of all ages will find hard to put down. Like Harry Potter, the Emerald Atlas can be read by children and adults alike. There is nothing in the book that you couldn't read to a young child and still find enjoyable yourself.
Stephens' triology starts off with such promise. I will be eagerly awaiting book two. I hope he writes quickly.

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Brazen Virtue (Sacred Sins) Review

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(More customer reviews)"Brazen Virtue" is a great romantic suspense novel, written in true Nora Roberts style.
Grace is a successful murder mystery author who is looking for some peace and quiet after a stressful book tour. When Grace discovers that her usually straight-edge sister Kathleen is earning extra money as a phone sex operator she is concerned. But because of the company's strict anonymity policy, she figures that Kathleen will be perfectly safe. Unfortunately, she couldn't be more wrong, as she returns home one night to find her sister strangled with the phone cord. It seems as though Grace has walked right into one of her books, only this time she is the dazed survivor.
Detective Ed Jackson, Grace's new neighbour is assigned to the case. But he is having trouble concentrating on anything but his attraction to Grace and his desire to keep her safe. Grace is determined to avenge her sister's death, so she sets up a daring trap to lure the killer to her. Ed doesn't like the idea one bit, and is concerned for this feisty woman he has fallen in love with.
But neither Grace nor Ed knows that Grace's trap has already worked and that this brilliant madman has turned his obsession to her. As the killer closes in it will be up to Ed to put things together and get to Grace in time to save her life!
This is a thrilling and fast-paced read with a lovely romance added to the mix. Grace and Ed will charm readers with their endearing quirks and mannerisms. This is a follow-up to "Sacred Sins" although it can easily stand alone (I read this one first and had no trouble following). This is a wonderfully entertaining book and I have no doubt that you will enjoy it!

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After a demanding book tour, superstar mystery novelist Grace McCabe decides to visit her sister, Kathleen, who's embroiled in a custody battle after a bitter divorce. Arriving in D.C., Grace is shocked to find Kathleen living in a run-down neighborhood and, hoping to afford a hotshot lawyer, supplementing her meager teacher's salary by moonlighting as a phone sex operator. According to Kathleen, Fantasy, Inc., guarantees its employees ironclad anonymity. But Grace has her doubts—which are confirmed one horrifying cherry-blossom-scented night when one of Fantasy, Inc.'s operators is murdered. As Grace is drawn to help solve the crime, her life turns into a scene from one of her own books. Yet as one of her biggest fans, investigator Ed Jackson, warns her: This isn't fiction. Real people die—and Grace could be next. For she's setting a trap for a killer more twisted than anything she could imagine. And not even Ed may be able to protect her from a rendezvous with lust and death.

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