Tuesday, January 28, 2014

Review of SAVAGE PAYBACK

Review of SAVAGE PAYBACK

Written by Seumas Gallacher

Reviewed by Author Roy Murry

Action packed is what I call SAVAGE PAYBACK. With revenge in his mind, an ex-SAS agent puts into motion a crime wave the leads to the theft of a major jewelry district and the death of a many good people.

This thriller keeps you trying to stay ahead of ISP, International Security Partners, and Interpol’s endeavors to curtail or eliminate the vengeful perpetrator and his paymaster, who wants ISP destroyed man by man.

There are enough moves made based on greed and payback by the participants that the reader will be entrenched in the story.

Mr. Gallacher has presented his followers, of which I’m one, with an excellent follow-up to other ISP novels that reveal what may be happening in the world of international crime – human, drug, and the diamond trade. He takes the “What if?” and makes it seem plausible.

Do the governments of the world have their own outside groups to take care of business like ISP? If they don’t, is one needed? In this and other novels with ISP being the enforcer of the law, using unconventional means, the job gets done. And, Mr. Gallacher makes it entertaining with little melodrama.

SAVAGE PAYBACK is a quick read. I read it in one sitting last night while on my sick bed. It kept my mind on the story and not on my flu. I’m better for it.     



Monday, January 27, 2014

Interview with Seumas Gallacher

Interview with Seumas Gallacher
Author of 
SAVAGE PAYBACK
      

Questions by Author Roy Murry


Hi, Seumas, how’s your self-publishing experience developing these days?

Hello, Roy. First of all, thanks a bundle for inviting me back onto your blog page. It’s an honor to be allowed a second visit to talk with you. The indie publishing adventure rolls on apace, with the third title in the Jack Calder crime thriller series, SAVAGE PAYBACK, recently up on Amazon. It’s still a terrific buzz being involved with this wonderful, global quill-scrapers family on the Web. The down-loads on all three titles have exceeded my wildest expectations.

What are you writing now?

The story lines for the Jack Calder franchise are a long way away from being exhausted. The current work in progress is KILLER CITY, with more lethal immersion in fighting international crime syndicates.


Have you changed the style and content much from the first book in the series, THE VIOLIN MAN’S LEGACY?

As a matter of fact, yes, the story lines have taken on a grittier, and at times, harsher reality, where the good guys get their share of setbacks. Combating heavy-hitting international drug-trafficking syndicates is a perilous activity. I like the way that has developed, and readers share that they also like it.

Remind us what your books are about?

THE VIOLIN MAN’S LEGACY and VENGEANCE WEARS BLACK were the first two in what has now developed into the Jack Calder series. SAVAGE PAYBACK carries on in the same mode as the first two. The novels spin around a trio of Ex-SAS commandos who form their own specialist security firm. The stories involve international crime, drug peddling, people trafficking, murders, arson, and all these cuddly things bad people get up to when they’re not being angels. It’s not about the SAS a la Andy McNab, because being former commandos; these guys are not bound by the usual terms of engagement when they set about the bad lads.


Where do you get the ideas for the stories?

When I was corporate trouble-shooting in the Far East, part of my career involved looking after a financially-distressed shipping company, which needed clearing out of some serious criminal elements. During the course of that engagement, I received death threats which resulted in me being protected with an armored car and a squad of armed bodyguards. These were trained by a former SAS officer who also was a personal friend. I guess that’s where the concept started.


I know you’re an avid social networking proponent. Do you have any tips for other authors with regard to that?

Yes. These days, it’s important to recognize that writing the stuff is only the beginning. The ‘building the platform’ of a social media network is vital. The most enduring way to do that is by reciprocating constantly. Get into the habit of helping other writers through Re-Tweeting on Twitter, sharing on Facebook and so on. ‘Paying it forward’ is a gratifying feeling. The global writing family is the biggest-hearted bunch of people I've ever known. I spend about half of my ‘writing business’ time on the social networks and the other half on the writing.

Blog                : seumasgallacher.com
Twitter            : @seumasgallacher
Email              : seumasgallacher@yahoo.com


Tuesday, January 21, 2014

Review of Souvenir

A Collection of Short Fiction
By Mary O Paddock

Reviewed by Author Roy Murry

Souvenir is the first in Ms. Paddock’s short collection of stories and poems, which deals with a pregnant woman’s day that seems to have reoccurring and insightful events. FUM, the last in the collection, has reoccurring events, which are more psychologically upsetting than the first.

The stories that are told in between by Mary also leave you thinking, which is one of my past times. Each has its uniqueness, not necessarily with a beginning or an ending, but leaves you to your imagination, a pleasant way to end a reading. This I find to be the heart of a good writer of stories.

I particularly liked the story “Wrong number.” I have heard similar versions, but Ms. Paddock’s take on it I found amusing. And, she starts it off with a quote from Sigmund Freud. Need I say more?

Mary Paddock’s stories are all well thought out and have a point to make. I won’t be presumptuous and state my thoughts, because they are many and would confuse a reader.

There are fourteen shorts and a hundred thoughts that will arrive into your brain when you read this collection. I stopped reading a number of times and pondered. I believe a woman would understand more because of the liked circumstances entwined.

Souvenir is something to think about when looking  for thoughtful and pleasant reads.



Her website that can point you toward the various sources and is a great place to find updates as well as ways to get in touch with her: http://maryopaddock.com/


Monday, January 20, 2014

Interview with Mary Paddock

Interview with Mary Paddock,
Author of Souvenir,
A Collection of Short Fiction

Interviewed by Author Roy Murry


Can you tell me a little about yourself?
I was born in Houston, Texas, but have spent the majority of my life in Ozarks.  I’m the mother of four boys (all teens and young adults) and I’ve been married to my closest friend for nearly twenty-five years.  We live near Table Rock Lake in SW Missouri with a larger than average number of dogs and cats.

In 2010, after twenty-plus years of homeschooling and seeing the last boy off to public high school I decided it was time to finish my own formal education. I’m an English major at Missouri State University. When all is said and done, I want to teach creative writing.

I’m an obsessive gardener, love to read (everything—from sci-fi to literary fiction), camp, collect flea market china, and walk my dogs.    

Do you remember the first story you wrote?
The first story I remember writing as a kid was about an Indian Princess who ran away to join the circus because she wanted to be a lion tamer and she didn’t want to marry the Indian Brave her father had picked out for her.  (Had there been circuses that accepted runaways then, I most assuredly would have run away to one, because I desperately wanted to be a lion tamer or an elephant trainer).

I wrote my first “novel”, when I was about thirteen. It was about a homeless woman who was hitchhiking across the country I was raised in the 70s when one often saw people doing this and knew people who’d done so and lived to tell the tale).  Along the way she met and fell in love with two different men. Though I wrote other stories during those years as well, I wrote and re-wrote that particular one more than once throughout my adolescence, adding to it and editing it as I matured.  


Were you inspired by someone or something?
I’ve been inspired by lots of someone’s and something’s.  While growing up I was surrounded by “outside the box” thinkers and creative people.  When presented with a problem or a need, their go-to-solution was to make it themselves. 

Want a better doll? Make it yourself. Have a better kitchen floor? Learn to cut and lay your own tile. Want to have a better song - Write it (and sing it) yourself. Produce a better painting or carving? You’ve got it—do it yourself.  

So it stands to reason that when I wanted to read a story about a young woman who finds a stray dog with an unusual talent (Fassen Files), that I’d write the story I wanted to read.   

What do you like about writing a story?
I am addicted to two things—I love the high of stumbling into a new idea and piecing together something that works—it’s like meeting new people or starting a new job, only without all the inherent risks. 

And I love the satisfaction of coming to the end of a story. I’ll be honest, finishing a novel is an angst-ridden experience and I’ve been known to put off writing those last pages for months (even years) because I struggle so much worrying about getting it right, but once I’ve typed those final words, whatever they might be, I  know I’ve done something that is—for me—monumental.  This never gets old.

Can you tell us about your book?
My newest book, entitled Souvenir, is a collection of short fiction and poetry largely focused on women who are dealing with ordinary problems in extraordinary ways.  I am proudest of the newest piece in the collection, “FUM” which is a look at what would have happened if the Giant’s wife, in Jack and the Beanstalk, decided to leave him.

What genre best fits for the book?
It is largely literary fiction, but I’ve also included a couple of pieces that are probably best known as magical realism aka fantasy.  For those who’ve read my previous works, they need to know that this one is very different—largely more serious and not quite as much of the fantastic.

Are you working on something new at the moment?
I’ve just finished a novel I’ve entitled Bright about a middle-aged mother of three who had an affair and is attempting to mend her marriage. Her lover doesn’t take the break up well at all and decides that “if he can’t have her nobody can”, but his goals extend beyond killing Hannah. He wants to kill her family as well. However, he does not count on love being more powerful than death.   You can expect it to be a while before this one makes it to market as I plan to follow my own advice in number 4—as stated below.

Do you have any tips for aspiring writers?
    Read. Read everything. Take risks and read books you don’t even think you’ll like. Don’t skip the badly written works either—see if you can determine why they’re bad. The same goes for well-written works.  Know what works and why. 
2     
     Write—write a lot. Consider short fiction or poetry first because you stand a better chance of finishing what you start. Think—if you write a short story every week, that’s 52 stories. In all those stories—you’re bound to write a handful of stories worth re-working. Too, it’s also easier to publish short fiction than it is longer works.  Once you’ve had a piece or two published, you’ll never quit. It really is a heady experience.
3  
            I think it was Stephen King who once said that the difference between a writer and someone who wants to be one is that the writer finishes what they start. This is a habit you must get into if you really want to be a writer. As often as possible, make yourself see your work through to the conclusion, even if you’re fairly sure it’s junk. 
4    
     Seek out and embrace no-holds-barred, objective feedback. As a writer you don’t need your ego stroked nearly as much as you need honesty.  Learn how to re-write and re-write again until your work is the best it can be.

Where can people go to read your work?
All of my work can be found on Amazon. Sing and Fassen Files (two previous works) can also be found at a variety of eBook stores, including Barnes and Nobles. Amazon offers free samples. For the time being, if you have a Kindle, you can read Souvenir for free.

I have a website that can point you toward the various sources and is a great place to find updates as well as ways to get in touch with me: http://maryopaddock.com/

Do you have anything to add?

Yeah. I want to thank those who’ve already bought my previous works as well as those who’ve written reviews. And I’d also like to thank you Roy for extending the generous invitation to come here and talk about my work and writing your own review as well.  It means more than you know.  

Tuesday, January 14, 2014

Review of Orion's Belt

Review of Orion’s Belt,
Birth of the Hunter
Written by John Peter Ferris

Reviewed by Author Roy Murry

Another super hero is born in one Johnny Orion, Mr. Ferris main character. He is an endearing ex-Navy S.E.A.L., who, because of his physical and readiness abilities almost dies in saving another’s life.   

At the moment of his demise, Orion is brought back to life, using super biological technology never injected into a human. As with Superman, his strength and new persona develop into an action figure.

He has an incredible support team, mostly his ex-Navy cohorts and a medical research corporation to support his endeavors of fighting evil where it may appear.

Mr. Ferris has put much thought into this first book of a series for futuristic and adventure readers to enjoy. His detail is immense and at times overwhelming, but worth the involvement. It’s the basis for future Orion adventures that needs to be outlined.

Orion’s Belt is an easy to read story of good over evil. Good doesn’t always overcome, but Johnny Orion and his A-Team will fight off any enemy of those in the right.

The other main characters have their strengths and help propel the story along when they’re sent to save New York City from an attack, but it is Orion who saves the day.

If you like super heroes and their adventures, this series is for you. Mr. Ferris has found his niche and will shine.

http://



amzn.to/1niyQ2s

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Monday, January 13, 2014

Interview with John Ferris

Interview with John Ferris
Author of Orion's Belt
Birth of the Hunter

Interviewed by Author Roy Murry

Can you tell me a little about yourself?

I'm a former construction mason & carpenter. I'm a father & grandfather to the best kids out there. My passion is in motorcycles, and modern day & futuristic science.

I was a member of the Armed Forces (USN) in the early 70's. From that time, I involved myself in reading & researching different sciences throughout the world. I always had the passion for writing, but raising a daughter on my own took preference.

Back in 2010 an injury from 36 years ago forced me into retirement. That is when I started on my Sci-Fi thriller that I was dying to write.

Do you remember the first story you wrote?

Not really, in school I was really good at using my imagination in my writing in my early years.

Were you inspired by someone or something?

Oh definitely, since I was young I would read H. G. Wells, Jules Verne, Isaac Asimov, Robert Heinlein, Philip K Dick, and other renowned Science Fiction authors.

What do you like about writing a story?

I love envisioning my work on the silver screen as I write, and then even act out the character parts to reveal the intense dialogue, I bring to my readers.

Can you tell us about your book?

The book is the 1st in my trilogy series that starts with the lives of two different people who have endured separate tragedies, and then to become involved with each other to triumph as one. To emulate it all, it is a continuous thrill ride full of twists and turns that will definitely capture my way of writing.

What genre best fits your book.

Sci-Fi Fantasy thriller, no question about it.

Are you working on something new at the moment?

I'm currently working on the 3rd installment of the "ORION'S BELT" trilogy. "Full Moon Fever". The story comes full circle.

Do you have any tips for aspiring writers? 

Sure do. If you're passionate enough in what you're trying to do, then keep forging ahead. Only if the passion is what you need to portray comes out, it will sooner or later catch the interests of those who feel it too.

Where can people go to read your work?

Amazon has it in paperback & kindle. Barnes and Noble have it on Nook and Kobo.com has it on e-reader.

Do you have anything to add?

I've only just started in my journey into the literary world of Science Fiction. But my main thing is to show my beliefs and philosophy in what I write. I hope in all this it will bring an epiphany towards knowledge and reflect possibly a thought of empathy & strive for the good of all mankind. Maybe my writing will scratch part of the surface.

Saturday, January 4, 2014

Review of Prince of the City

Review of Mackenzie Brown’s
Prince of the City:
     The Cat’s Whiskers


Reviewed by Roy Murry, Author

Bombs are dropping, people are dying and missing, animals are roaming the city of Liverpool, England during World War II. This is the background for the start of Mackenzie Brown’s thrilling series, featuring the great-grandson of an African prince, Vic Prince.

A fast pace introduction into his new series, Mr. Brown places his character in a world of suspense that begins with a lost cat of a wealthy client and the missing son of another. Brown leads the reader on the trail of adverse events that keep him interested.

This novel is easy to read the adventure. Vic Prince tells his story introducing the reader into an international crime world of interesting characters. Hitler’s troops are planning the takeover of Europe, while the day to day living in fear surrounds and intertwines both of Vic Prince’s cases.

It’s a good beginning of a series that keeps the reader awake and interested. Mackenzie knows how to lead the reader on to his story’s twists and turn. And he leaves the reader hanging on the edge with no other choice but to purchase book #2 in this full read. Purchase:  https://amzn.to/359kxaY

Wednesday, January 1, 2014

Interview with Mackenzie Brown

Interview with Mackenzie Brown
Author of Prince of the City

Interviewed by Author Roy Murry


A little about myself:
I was born and raised in Liverpool, UK, and these days live just outside the City with my wife, two daughters and pet cat. 

My inspiration for writing was borne out of wartime stories shared with me by my grandfather and personal hero, Angus Mackenzie Brown, a character featured in a book I hope to release in 2014.

I have many interests including running that helps me keep mind and body together. Literature is my passion though and I love to read and write.

I've published four novels to date and I’m soon hoping to release part two of the Prince of the City series – Nine Lives, after the process of proof reading and editing has been completed.

I feel genuinely humbled by the help and support afforded to me by fellow authors and feel part of a global writing community.

Do I remember the first story I wrote?
The first proper story I wrote was called ‘The Bearded Man’ and it charted a particular story my grandmother shared with me. It was a traumatic incident from her childhood and features in a book about my grandparents due for release in 2014.

Was I inspired by something or someone?
As stated above I was inspired to try and write after hearing my grandfather’s wartime stories. Previously I’d favored sketching as a pastime and was told I was rather good at it.

What do I like about writing?
I think I’m an improving story teller and I love a challenge. But my favorite part of the process is reading and editing the first draft. A rough first draft means I have a raw material to work with and I enjoy trying to improve upon it.

Can I tell you about my book?
Prince of the City is a homage to the works of Raymond Chandler and the like.  It’s a nior thriller with a nod to the United States, but set firmly in the City of my birth, Liverpool. Vic Prince is the great grandson of a man brought to Liverpool on the last ever slave ship and he lives in the black community during wartime 1940. 

Unable to enlist because of flat feet and asthma, Prince works as a private investigator and becomes embroiled in case that involves national security.  Five books are planned in the series, the second to be released in early 2014, but this book introduces 

Prince and a variety of characters featured in forthcoming releases. Prince is a man of high moral standards, who often finds himself dealing with those who do not always follow the same code. I’m pleased with the finished article and early reviews have been very good.

What genre fits best for the book?
Pulp fiction, detective story, crime thriller series, historical fiction, hard boiled thriller.

Am I working on something new at the moment?
Once Prince of the City #2 – Nine Lives is released, I plan to rewrite a book charting the early lives of my grandparents. The Book is called Annie’s War and takes place between 1914 and 1945. Then I plan to write part three in The Prince of the City series.

Do I have any tips for aspiring writers?
If you start something, particularly a first draft, complete it, even if you’re unhappy with the results. Once the first draft is completed, then the real work starts, honing and improving your raw material.

Get someone you trust to give you an honest review before you release it and take criticism on the chin, trust me it will make you a better writer in the long run.

Get your work proof read, edited and formatted before release. If you want somebody to pay for your work, they’ll expect all the three mentioned as a minimum, and even then they still might not like your work.

Where can people go to read my work?
Go to my website http://mackbrown.weebly.com/ where there are links to my books. Alternatively all of my books are available for Kindle at the following worldwide links;

Prince of the City #1 – The Cat’s Whiskers viewBook.at/CatsWhiskers-B00FJ6MT3G

Lost Boys (The Black Knight Series #1) viewBook.at/B00BUVICVW

The Shifting  viewBook.at/TheShiftingTheShiftingTrilogy

The Book of Souls (An Imelda Stone Adventure #1) viewBook.at/TheBookOfSoulsAnImeldaStoneAdventure
 They’re all available in paperback format at Amazon. US links for the USA are as follows;





And Finally;

I’d just like to thank Roy Murry, a fabulous author and reviewer for this opportunity to showcase my work. His support is always gratefully appreciated and reciprocated as often as possible.
My social networking sites;
*Twitter: @mackbrownbooks



*Mackenzie’s website is: http://mackbrown.weebly.com/

*Mackenzie’s Blog: http://mackenzie-brown.tumblr.com/