Daughters of the Dragon: A Comfort Woman's Story
William Andrews
MADhouse Press
Minneapolis, MN
ISBN: 978-0-9913958-5-9
Trade Paperback
2013
$ 12.99
339 pages
"It is your fear that will prevent you from becoming who you are meant to be."
Being a Korean child adopted into a Caucasian household, Anna frequently felt that she did not belong. People would make comments to her parents while her parents always insisted that they were a "real" family beautifully showing their unconditional love to their daughter. Anna realized that the parents who raised her and were completely devoted to her but she always wondered about her "birth" parents.
After completing three years at Northwestern, Anna still didn't have a major. When her mother
passed away from pancreatic cancer, she dropped out of college due to money and her lack of focus. She decided to visit Korea to find her "birth" family and her father insisted on accompanying her on this journey.
Anna's first stop was an orphanage which unfortunately had no information to assist her. With feelings of defeat, leaving the orphanage was disappointing. When an elderly woman approached her, forcing a small package into her hands explaining in English that she needed to meet with her at an address inside the package to tell her a story.
This story and the package were to change Anna's life forever.
The story started in 1943 when Korea was again occupied by the Japanese being subjected to their rule. Two sisters, Ja-hee and Soo-hee had grown up living and working on their family farm. With the Japanese occupation, their father was forced to leave the home a year ago to work for the war effort in a steel mill. Now the family received orders for the two girls to also leave for another town to work in a boot factory. Their mother was realistic enough to know that she would likely never see her daughters again. Soo-hee, the older sister was given a family heirloom, a two-headed dragon comb with five toes.
This begins the story of the comb and the two sisters.
With Ja-hee being only fourteen-years-old the reality was shocking. There was no boot factory. These young teens were to be comfort women, meeting the sexual desires of the Japanese soldiers. If they refused or caused problems, they were killed.
Even surviving this time, these women were further condemned by society throughout their entire lives.
William Andrews has written a poignant, heart-wrenching fictional tale based on the many stories of comfort women. He beautifully found a true voice for both Anna and Ja-hee making the reader feel as if they are the character.
His initial motivation stemmed from his daughter who he adopted from Korea. He superbly interviewed former comfort women and is committed to telling their story as they weekly protest in Korea outside the Japanese Embassy requesting acknowledgment of the atrocity and an apology.
Daughters of the Dragon won the IPPY (Independent Publishers Book Award) in the historical fiction genre for 2014. He also won the Mayhaven Award for his novel, The Essential Truth.
Daughters of the Dragon is a story about humanity educating readers in an effort to never allow history to repeat itself. In every war there are numerous perspectives which we have no idea of how they were involved with a conflict and to understand point-of-view. All of these are needed to truly understand any war.
One of the best written, enticing, intriguing novels I have ever read is Daughters of the Dragon.
Monday, August 11, 2014
Wednesday, August 6, 2014
Stillwell
Stillwell: A Haunting on Long Island
Michael Phillip Cash
Red Feather Publishing
New York, New York
ISBN: 978-1484196090
Paperback
2013
$ 12.99
232 pages
Any young family with one parent suffering from cancer has immense challenges that few people can really comprehend. Sometimes just maintaining a career, a marriage, and raising three children is overwhelming.
For Paul Russo, this is his life.
Paul has been a successful real estate agent in the Long Island area. Fortunately, his financial situation is healthy enough that he can take off time to be with his dying wife. However, a year with cancer treatments, death, and three children can be taxing on anyone financially, physically, and most of all, emotionally.
His wife, Allison was diagnosed a year ago with a brain tumor. Keeping a household running smoothly usually fell on Allison's shoulders, but now Paul must do everything possible to keep the family together. Allison and Paul were blessed with the twins, Jesse and Veronica and their younger sibling, Stella. Without Allison, Paul knows that he must return to work while helping each of the children and himself through their grief. He quickly realizes that to meet everyone's needs, including his own, this seems like a never-ending insurmountable task.
Not being active in real estate for the past year has made it more difficult to work with new listings and fortunately an old friend contacts Paul about selling their 200-year-old family mansion name Stillwell. With a phenomenal location but the house not in the best of condition. He quickly wonders if this is a blessing or a curse especially when he hears the rumors about the house being haunted due to two tragic deaths.
How do you sell a haunted mansion? If he is able to accomplish this sale, at least this would solve his current financial issues.
Stillwell does more than just haunt the locals. The house haunts Paul and his children in their dreams causing them not to be able to eat or sleep. In the nightmares, a demon is holding Allison's spirit as hostage. What is strange is how much Allison resembled one of the tragic residents from years ago. How do you stop this nighttime haunting of the minds?
Stillwell is considered to be a horror story, but in reality, it is a well-written story of love and caring. The strength of this novel is its phenomenal grasp of the characterization. Each person is realistic with daily struggles looking for any positive aspect in their lives as they move through their grief.
Michael Phillip Cash grew up and continues to live in his beloved Long Island creating wonderful horror stories that are more than blood and gore but show the best of humanity.
Stillwell won the award of being a finalist in horror by ForeWard Reviews in 2013. However, this is much more than a horror story, this is a human story of grief, caring, and love that is an outstanding novel by the masterful storyteller, Michael Phillip Cash.
Michael Phillip Cash
Red Feather Publishing
New York, New York
ISBN: 978-1484196090
Paperback
2013
$ 12.99
232 pages
Any young family with one parent suffering from cancer has immense challenges that few people can really comprehend. Sometimes just maintaining a career, a marriage, and raising three children is overwhelming.
For Paul Russo, this is his life.
Paul has been a successful real estate agent in the Long Island area. Fortunately, his financial situation is healthy enough that he can take off time to be with his dying wife. However, a year with cancer treatments, death, and three children can be taxing on anyone financially, physically, and most of all, emotionally.
His wife, Allison was diagnosed a year ago with a brain tumor. Keeping a household running smoothly usually fell on Allison's shoulders, but now Paul must do everything possible to keep the family together. Allison and Paul were blessed with the twins, Jesse and Veronica and their younger sibling, Stella. Without Allison, Paul knows that he must return to work while helping each of the children and himself through their grief. He quickly realizes that to meet everyone's needs, including his own, this seems like a never-ending insurmountable task.
Not being active in real estate for the past year has made it more difficult to work with new listings and fortunately an old friend contacts Paul about selling their 200-year-old family mansion name Stillwell. With a phenomenal location but the house not in the best of condition. He quickly wonders if this is a blessing or a curse especially when he hears the rumors about the house being haunted due to two tragic deaths.
How do you sell a haunted mansion? If he is able to accomplish this sale, at least this would solve his current financial issues.
Stillwell does more than just haunt the locals. The house haunts Paul and his children in their dreams causing them not to be able to eat or sleep. In the nightmares, a demon is holding Allison's spirit as hostage. What is strange is how much Allison resembled one of the tragic residents from years ago. How do you stop this nighttime haunting of the minds?
Stillwell is considered to be a horror story, but in reality, it is a well-written story of love and caring. The strength of this novel is its phenomenal grasp of the characterization. Each person is realistic with daily struggles looking for any positive aspect in their lives as they move through their grief.
Michael Phillip Cash grew up and continues to live in his beloved Long Island creating wonderful horror stories that are more than blood and gore but show the best of humanity.
Stillwell won the award of being a finalist in horror by ForeWard Reviews in 2013. However, this is much more than a horror story, this is a human story of grief, caring, and love that is an outstanding novel by the masterful storyteller, Michael Phillip Cash.
Tuesday, August 5, 2014
When Dreams are Calling
When Dreams are Calling
Carol Vorvain
Amazon Digital Services
ISBN: 978-97301-66255
Paperback
2014
$ 16.50
238 pages
"And this is a story about change: What it brings into our lives and what it takes out of it; a story about pain, disappointment, frustration, loss but also about courage, love, lust, faith and kindness, a story about dreams and our power to make them come true.
The story of a permanent traveler."
When Dreams are Calling is the loosely based events of author, Carol Vorvain who recorded her dreams, wishes, desires, and travels into this book in the hopes of letting others learn of the life lessons which guided her.
Growing up in Romania, Dora learned numerous lessons while discovering that her day-to-day life wasn't fulfilling her dreams. She made the choice to relocate to Canada, completely packing up her life in pursuit of a possible new career, a new life, and hopefully a new love. Quickly she learned that moving does not always solve all your problems and challenges, as this move became only the first, but not the last time of completely relocating in another country.
"Grandma told me loneliness is a demon that blinds your eyes, petrifies your hear and kills your spirit." These wise words guide Dora as she searches for whatever she feels is missing in her life without really understanding what that is.
All of us have made numerous mistakes and some hasty choices throughout our pasts which have taught us some lessons about life while at the same time helping up to develop our own character and learning to define who we have become and why.
For Dora, her life appears to be exciting to outsiders. Sometimes it really is but at other times, she realizes that her current situation is not what she really wants. Added to that, she is uncertain of what she really wants.
What makes Dora different from most of us is that she doesn't just dream of relocating, she actually completely moves to another country immersing herself in the country with her job or career as well as the people. During her travels though, she learns numerous lessons which are listed after each short adventure.
Some of these lessons involve love and attempting to find the balance between loneliness from the lack of love as compared to love that is suffocating overwhelming every breath. She always realizes and values the importance of books in her life as guides through her dreams and reality. Also well-stated are learning the differences between adapting and belonging.
Many of the lessons learned in this small novel are from the voice of knowledge and experience.
For example, "Nobody remembers your mistakes better than your child, followed closely by your spouse." When reminded of my past errors, I usually turn my failures into a lesson for them to learn from my mistakes so that you can completely own your own mistakes.
What motivates someone to completely uproot themselves to another country?
Read When Dreams are Calling.
What is one book you can read that might help you learn from other's mistakes so that you can completely make your own creative errors of life? Read When Dreams are Calling.
Carol Vorvain
Amazon Digital Services
ISBN: 978-97301-66255
Paperback
2014
$ 16.50
238 pages
"And this is a story about change: What it brings into our lives and what it takes out of it; a story about pain, disappointment, frustration, loss but also about courage, love, lust, faith and kindness, a story about dreams and our power to make them come true.
The story of a permanent traveler."
When Dreams are Calling is the loosely based events of author, Carol Vorvain who recorded her dreams, wishes, desires, and travels into this book in the hopes of letting others learn of the life lessons which guided her.
Growing up in Romania, Dora learned numerous lessons while discovering that her day-to-day life wasn't fulfilling her dreams. She made the choice to relocate to Canada, completely packing up her life in pursuit of a possible new career, a new life, and hopefully a new love. Quickly she learned that moving does not always solve all your problems and challenges, as this move became only the first, but not the last time of completely relocating in another country.
"Grandma told me loneliness is a demon that blinds your eyes, petrifies your hear and kills your spirit." These wise words guide Dora as she searches for whatever she feels is missing in her life without really understanding what that is.
All of us have made numerous mistakes and some hasty choices throughout our pasts which have taught us some lessons about life while at the same time helping up to develop our own character and learning to define who we have become and why.
For Dora, her life appears to be exciting to outsiders. Sometimes it really is but at other times, she realizes that her current situation is not what she really wants. Added to that, she is uncertain of what she really wants.
What makes Dora different from most of us is that she doesn't just dream of relocating, she actually completely moves to another country immersing herself in the country with her job or career as well as the people. During her travels though, she learns numerous lessons which are listed after each short adventure.
Some of these lessons involve love and attempting to find the balance between loneliness from the lack of love as compared to love that is suffocating overwhelming every breath. She always realizes and values the importance of books in her life as guides through her dreams and reality. Also well-stated are learning the differences between adapting and belonging.
Many of the lessons learned in this small novel are from the voice of knowledge and experience.
For example, "Nobody remembers your mistakes better than your child, followed closely by your spouse." When reminded of my past errors, I usually turn my failures into a lesson for them to learn from my mistakes so that you can completely own your own mistakes.
What motivates someone to completely uproot themselves to another country?
Read When Dreams are Calling.
What is one book you can read that might help you learn from other's mistakes so that you can completely make your own creative errors of life? Read When Dreams are Calling.
Warriors
Warriors
Ted Bell
William Morrow
Harper Collins Publishers
New York, New York
ISBN: 978-0-227938-5
Hardcover
2014
$ 27.99
467 pages
"We dance not only to a different drummer, but to an entirely different orchestra."
These are the words of Lord Alexander Hawke, British counterspy, and fictional hero of the novels written by action and adventure author, Ted Bell. Lord Hawke does not always play by the rules. He understands that frequently the rules or the drumbeat need to be changed to accomplish what needs to be done. This requires a close-knit group of friends and acquaintances who realize the dangers to themselves and others, while at the same time valuing the respect and expertise of each person. Lord Hawke is the one person who can get done what needs to be done.
When a brilliant scientist working at Cambridge University is tortured to death by ancient and little known Chinese methods, who can discover the reason he was killed, why, and who would actually be capable of this?
When the President of the United States dies and those burying him at Arlington Cemetery are attacked by a drone, who investigates this crime? Who would have the nerve? Who would want to purposefully start a war?
Are these two events connected?
A brilliant military technician and inventor is celebrating a family birthday when both parents and their two children mysteriously disappear. Where are they? Are the wife and children being used to control the scientist, forcing him to work against his own country by threatening his family?
Warriors is the story surrounding all these events into the fast-paced action/adventure tale of Lord Hawke and his staff revolving around the idea of China having the next level of technical military advancements bringing about a new world dominance with the countries of the United States and England having no idea of how to protect or defend against these new weapons. With the persistent race of newer and better military technology, the idea of the United States no longer being the dominant power, definitely is unsettling.
Warriors is lightning-paced with hardly a second to breathe from page to page. The characters of previous Ted Bell novels unite in Warriors with two new characters introduced. Because of this, the novel spends time developing the new characters and expects the reader to know the recurring ones including their personal relations and friendships. I would recommend to someone who has not read Ted Bell books, to read at least two of his many earlier books before reading Warriors.
Warriors is a fast-paced, action-adventure thriller for all those who enjoy breath-taking escapades barely squeaking by with their lives.
Ted Bell
William Morrow
Harper Collins Publishers
New York, New York
ISBN: 978-0-227938-5
Hardcover
2014
$ 27.99
467 pages
"We dance not only to a different drummer, but to an entirely different orchestra."
These are the words of Lord Alexander Hawke, British counterspy, and fictional hero of the novels written by action and adventure author, Ted Bell. Lord Hawke does not always play by the rules. He understands that frequently the rules or the drumbeat need to be changed to accomplish what needs to be done. This requires a close-knit group of friends and acquaintances who realize the dangers to themselves and others, while at the same time valuing the respect and expertise of each person. Lord Hawke is the one person who can get done what needs to be done.
When a brilliant scientist working at Cambridge University is tortured to death by ancient and little known Chinese methods, who can discover the reason he was killed, why, and who would actually be capable of this?
When the President of the United States dies and those burying him at Arlington Cemetery are attacked by a drone, who investigates this crime? Who would have the nerve? Who would want to purposefully start a war?
Are these two events connected?
A brilliant military technician and inventor is celebrating a family birthday when both parents and their two children mysteriously disappear. Where are they? Are the wife and children being used to control the scientist, forcing him to work against his own country by threatening his family?
Warriors is the story surrounding all these events into the fast-paced action/adventure tale of Lord Hawke and his staff revolving around the idea of China having the next level of technical military advancements bringing about a new world dominance with the countries of the United States and England having no idea of how to protect or defend against these new weapons. With the persistent race of newer and better military technology, the idea of the United States no longer being the dominant power, definitely is unsettling.
Warriors is lightning-paced with hardly a second to breathe from page to page. The characters of previous Ted Bell novels unite in Warriors with two new characters introduced. Because of this, the novel spends time developing the new characters and expects the reader to know the recurring ones including their personal relations and friendships. I would recommend to someone who has not read Ted Bell books, to read at least two of his many earlier books before reading Warriors.
Warriors is a fast-paced, action-adventure thriller for all those who enjoy breath-taking escapades barely squeaking by with their lives.
The Quick
The Quick
Lauren Owen
Random House
New York, New York
ISBN: 978-0-8129-9327-1
Hardcover
2014
$27.00
544 pages
Surprisingly, most people have some knowledge about vampires. For being fictional characters, in general, we have common "facts" about their existence such as their aversion to silver and holy water and that they must be "invited" into a residence. For creatures that do not exist, we certainly do have quite a bit of knowledge.
What if there is some truth to their existence? Wouldn't that be more sensible? Is the idea of a vampire all legend, or is there some small grain of truth?
In the last part of the nineteenth century much of England was beginning to change. Many families who had inherited grand estates were beginning to feel the financial pinch of daily upkeep for appearances of grandeur.
For Charlotte and James Norbury, this was true as they spent much of their childhood isolated at the crumbling family estate outside of London. Charlotte being older, took it upon herself to educate her younger brother since they were motherless and their father was frequently absent only coming home to die.
Fortunately, James was able to attend Oxford and discovered a love for reading and writing poetry. However, poets do not usually profit financially. While attending a play in London, James saw the brilliance of Oscar Wilde and immediately dreamed of becoming a playwright.
Dreams don't pay bills.
James was fortunate in that a friend of his knew of an aristocrat who was looking for a roommate. It seemed the perfect solution. This new acquaintance though opened James to the world of the upper echelon of people who are not always as sincere as they seem. Besides that, there are numerous secrets that are intriguing to his natural curiosity.
When James no longer answers the letters from his sister, Charlotte, she waits for quite some time until she decides that she must go to London to find, or rescue, her little brother. What she didn't plan on finding were the back alleys where the notorious Jack the Ripper was becoming infamous.
The Quick is an unusual novel in that the paranormal almost sneaks into the story without being obvious. Charlotte's search for her brother is the basic thrust of the novel catapulting the naïve spinster into the dark back streets with the corrupted, immoral and poor people of the time intertwining vampires and the undead into the mix.
In much the same unsettled style of Erin Morgenstern's The Night Circus, The Quick is a haunting tale. Except for Charlotte, most of the characters are realistically flawed and not likable. The writing style is at times rambling, but there is an unusual undercurrent that keeps the story flowing and making it impossible to put down.
The Quick is a haunting tale with a fresh twist making this story memorable.
Lauren Owen
Random House
New York, New York
ISBN: 978-0-8129-9327-1
Hardcover
2014
$27.00
544 pages
Surprisingly, most people have some knowledge about vampires. For being fictional characters, in general, we have common "facts" about their existence such as their aversion to silver and holy water and that they must be "invited" into a residence. For creatures that do not exist, we certainly do have quite a bit of knowledge.
What if there is some truth to their existence? Wouldn't that be more sensible? Is the idea of a vampire all legend, or is there some small grain of truth?
In the last part of the nineteenth century much of England was beginning to change. Many families who had inherited grand estates were beginning to feel the financial pinch of daily upkeep for appearances of grandeur.
For Charlotte and James Norbury, this was true as they spent much of their childhood isolated at the crumbling family estate outside of London. Charlotte being older, took it upon herself to educate her younger brother since they were motherless and their father was frequently absent only coming home to die.
Fortunately, James was able to attend Oxford and discovered a love for reading and writing poetry. However, poets do not usually profit financially. While attending a play in London, James saw the brilliance of Oscar Wilde and immediately dreamed of becoming a playwright.
Dreams don't pay bills.
James was fortunate in that a friend of his knew of an aristocrat who was looking for a roommate. It seemed the perfect solution. This new acquaintance though opened James to the world of the upper echelon of people who are not always as sincere as they seem. Besides that, there are numerous secrets that are intriguing to his natural curiosity.
When James no longer answers the letters from his sister, Charlotte, she waits for quite some time until she decides that she must go to London to find, or rescue, her little brother. What she didn't plan on finding were the back alleys where the notorious Jack the Ripper was becoming infamous.
The Quick is an unusual novel in that the paranormal almost sneaks into the story without being obvious. Charlotte's search for her brother is the basic thrust of the novel catapulting the naïve spinster into the dark back streets with the corrupted, immoral and poor people of the time intertwining vampires and the undead into the mix.
In much the same unsettled style of Erin Morgenstern's The Night Circus, The Quick is a haunting tale. Except for Charlotte, most of the characters are realistically flawed and not likable. The writing style is at times rambling, but there is an unusual undercurrent that keeps the story flowing and making it impossible to put down.
The Quick is a haunting tale with a fresh twist making this story memorable.
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