Featuring CassaFire by Alex J. Cavanaugh

Every Wednesday from today onwards, I would feature a book by a fellow author here on Amlokiblogs. 

I begin with Alex J. Cavanaugh, my co-host for the A to Z Challenge, and an author-hero in blogland,with his Amazon best-selling science fiction - space opera/adventure, Cassafire. 

Part of a series, the Library Journal finds that Cassafire "delivers on the promise of its predecessor, combining military action sequences and political intrigue with strong, memorable characters."  I've read the series, and I agree.


Elevator Pitch:
Byron is content with life on the exploration vessel. When the ship investigates alien ruins, he is saddled with training a talented, feisty female pilot. Add the adoration of a young scientist, and a threat from space, and Byron feels invaded on every level. All he wanted was his privacy…

Teaser Excerpt:

Aware he needed to assist Athee with her harness, Byron stepped away from the door. Unable to locate her, he frowned. The other two passengers were secure in their seats and gave no indication as to her whereabouts. Alarmed, Byron peered into the cockpit. Athee now sat in the co-pilot’s seat, her harness in place and eyes scanning the control panel. Concerned, he entered the cockpit. She looked up and smiled.

“Your controls still amaze me,” she said, her eyes reflecting childish wonder. “So much information to process.”

Hesitating, Byron grasped the back of her seat. “You’ve been in a shuttle before?”

“Of course. The previous shuttle pilot even gave me a ride over the valley.”

I bet he did! Byron thought, staring at the attractive young woman. “Well, you need to go take a seat with the other passengers.”

Athee tossed her hair aside and eyed him expectantly. “I thought I’d ride in the cockpit with you.”

“That’s probably not a good idea.”

“Why not?”

“That’s the co-pilot’s seat.”

“Do you have a co-pilot?”

“Well, no…”

“Then this seat is open.”

Byron sighed in exasperation. Releasing her seat, he ran his fingers through his hair. This woman is too stubborn for her own good, he thought.

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Buy Cassafire:  B&N, Amazon

I urge you to go buy the entire series and tell me how you liked it in the comments!
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P.S.: Email me at atozstories at gmail dot com in case you want Your Book featured.

Does Your #amWriting Scare You?

I often sit and write with other writers. We use writing prompts and then let loose on paper. Last week, my friend put down her pen in the middle of her writing, drank up her entire cup of coffee, and shivered a little.

When I asked her, she said, my writing scared me just now. I was going someplace frightening with it, so I stopped.

I told her the place in writing where it frightens you, moves you, angers you is a good place to go, creatively. If you can harness that energy and spill it on paper, magical things often happen.

I believe this both from my experience and from what I have read of others'.

Have you ever written from a place that frightens you?

Love, in Theory

I've recently been reading more novels than short stories, but this anthology was a gift: Love, in Theory, by E.J. Levy.

From the book's blurb:

In ten captivating and tender stories, E.J. Levy takes readers through the surprisingly erotic terrain of the intellect, offering a smart and modern take on the age-old theme of love—whether between a man and woman, a man and a man, a woman and a woman, or a mother and a child—drawing readers into tales of passion, adultery, and heartbreak. A disheartened English professor’s life changes when she goes rock climbing and falls for an outdoorsman. A gay oncologist attending his sister’s second wedding ponders dark matter in the universe and the ties that bind us. Three psychiatric patients, each convinced that he is Christ, give rise to a love affair in a small Minnesota town. A Brooklyn woman is thrown out of an ashram for choosing earthly love over enlightenment. A lesbian student of film learns theories of dramatic action the hard way—by falling for a married male professor. Incorporating theories from physics to film to philosophy, from Rational Choice to Thorstein Veblen’s Theory of the Leisure Class, these stories movingly explore the heart and mind—shooting cupid’s arrow towards a target that may never be reached.

Here's an excerpt:

She felt the immensity of the spinning world beneath her, all its poignant possibility, and felt again the tremendous sense of promise she had known in her youth. Irrational, misplaced, the hope grew in her like the child she was carrying, and by the time Renee realized what was happening it was too late. Only later would she understand that her hope had been like her father's erstwhile faith in the Party, like her mother's belief in the man she'd married: fragile and fallible and misplaced.


What books have you been reading lately? Would you pick up a collection of short stories with a fairly literary, even academic bent?

Would Your Kids Read The Apple Grove Gang?

I'm pleased to feature a series of books by Hamilton C. Burger on Amlokiblogs today. Rebecca Forster, a USA Today Best Selling Author, had this to say about this series for kids: 

"Even though my boys are grown, I found myself wishing they were young again so they could read NO EXIT (The Apple Grove Gang). This book is beyond refreshing -  a great story about kids who still play outside, know people in their town and  have an adventure that makes a difference in their lives. Hamilton C. Burger's obvious delight in his  craft shines through on every page. The kids in this book have real voices and  real lives."

Book 1: NO EXIT

Benny Churchill and Bug Beetle are off and running on the last day of school. They are ready for a great summer of fun with the Apple Grove Gang. Instead, they learn a lesson in politics. When the Apple Grove Community Center is closed, the Gang finds out just how hard it is to fight city hall. Finally, when their backs are against the wall, and they find out that there is no exit, the real fun and excitement begin.

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Book 2 : GOLD FEVER

It’s the dog days of summer and Benny Churchill and Bug Beetle are back and still running! The Apple Grove Gang has caught gold fever, and they find that it’s too hard to bear. When they try locate the cure, things don't go as expected and not everything pans out. Only an earth shaking experience will lead them to the depths necessary to cure GOLD FEVER.

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Book 3 : AMAZING JOURNEY

The Apple Grove Gang's biggest adventure yet! Faced with a problem of historical proportions, 'The Gang' turns back the hands of time, in an effort to solve it. Join Bug, Benny and the others in this fun, action packed adventure, sure to have you turning the pages. 

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Author Bio: 

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Always a reader, I inhaled books during my days of extensive world travel. Before the Nook and Kindle, even before laptops became the norm, I would pack six or eight paperbacks for an extended trip. I have been married 32 years. My wife and I have two beautiful daughters, Katie and Maddie. Besides writing, I love to cook, travel and drive my Corvette. I have a dog and two cats.

Follow @HamiltonCBurger

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What are your kids reading this summer? Would you recommend a series like The Apple Grove Gang to them?

Why is it that Women Outnumber Men at Fiction Writing Workshops?

Fiction writing workshops in Singapore are as rare as carnivals must be, in inner Siberia. Good writing workshops? Fuggedaboutit.

In the sort of torpor I'm in these days, I wander into them just because (or maybe because any workshop at all is rare), not really caring whether they would add anything to my admittedly limited writing arsenal. (Most don't.)

But there's one thing I've noted in all writing workshops I go to (including the one I went to this Saturday): the women outnumber the men by 10:1. But, there seem to be more published male writers than female in Singapore. Not 10:1, maybe something like 10:6 (Okay, I pulled that last publishing stat out my hat. But seriously, that's what it seems like.)

So where do all these (aspiring) women writers taking workshops disappear? And where do these men who get the stories and novels out there learn their craft from? Big mystery, as far as I'm concerned.

What is your experience, if you're from the US or UK? If you're local, what has been your experience? Do women outnumber men at Writing workshops? Or is it vice versa?

Grieving is a Lot Like Dealing with Acne

Grieving is a lot like dealing with acne.

There's a lot of advice floating around on treating acne, not much of it works. You can use make-up to hide the miserable little zits, but they still show. No two people are hit by the same kind of acne, nor even at the same age. And then, just as suddenly as it hits you, it withdraws.

(None of this is to belittle the grieving process, just give it some perspective. Tell myself, this too shall pass. It may not be as harmless as acne, but it too shall pass. Promise.)

Down the years, I've lost relatives and friends to the grim reaper, as is only natural. Each time, I've taken shelter in books. Books are always the best. They don't fumble about with 'the-right-thing-to-say-under-the-circumstances', they neither court nor avoid you. They usually take your mind off things, and you can put one down and pick another if it doesn't do its job. As easy as you please.

These last weeks, I've read "The Reluctant Fundamentalist" by Mohsin Hamid, "Gone Girl" by Gillian Flynn, and am now into  "In One Person" by John Irving. All very different books, with very different themes, but very strong, unsettling voices, which have kept me from thinking how unsettled I personally am.

What books have you been reading lately? Any suggestions for some out-and-out funny, laugh-out-loud books? I think I need to get me one of those next.