Kid’s father agrees to coach his little league team. The gang of misfits first time baseball players shoot to win the league championship.
Additional Comments:
– completely predictable yet enjoyable.
– a lot unrealistic yet enjoyable.
– classic underdog vs the town bullies story
– I remember Gina but can’t remember the MC’s name. The characters are charming yet forgettable. They become their stereotypes.
– the performance worked.
– The kids parents are picture perfect living and supportive and understanding and insanely talented.
Conclusion:
Clean. Appropriate for middle age boys and girls.
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Audiobook Promotions …
Many of my 58 audible titles are listed on Audiobooks Unleashed.
Whether you’re looking for mystery or suspense or fantasy, I’ve got a title for you. Free codes are probably on audiobooks unleashed.
Normal links go to audible. *The Amazon labeled links are affiliate links. That means I get a very small payment from Amazon if you go through with a purchase.* Note: Filter by US if you’re looking for those codes as many titles are out.
Ones I think may still have US codes: Reshner’s Royal Ranger, Never Again, Innova, The Golden City Captives, The Holy War, Reclaim the Darklands, Eagle Eyes, Treachery Makes it Tense, Ashlynn’s Dreams Shorts, The Dark Side of Science, Ashlynn’s Dreams, Nadia’s Tears, Malia’s Miracles, and Varick’s Quest
There are plenty of UK codes, but not many US ones left.
Redeemer Chronicles (Fantasy)
Awakening – Redeemer Chronicles Book 1, MG fantasy (Amazon) (free codes)
The Holy War – Redeemer Chronicles Book 2, MG fantasy (Amazon) (free codes)
Reclaim the Darklands – Redeemer Chronicles Book 3, MG fantasy (Amazon) (free codes)
River’s Edge Ransom – Prequel to Redeemer Chronicles (Amazon) (email devyaschildren @ gmail.com for free codes)
Devya’s Children Series Links:
Ashlynn’s Dreams Shorts – short stories featuring Jillian. (Amazon) (free codes)
The Dark Side of Science – official prequel to Devya’s Children; Genetically altered kids fight for the right to live. (Amazon) (Please email devyaschildren @ gmail.com for free codes)
Ashlynn’s Dreams – Genetically altered Dream Shaper learns her gift. (Amazon) (free codes)
Nadia’s Tears – Jillian tries to awaken her sister, Nadia, from a coma. (Amazon) (free codes)
Malia’s Miracles – Jillian and her siblings try to save a friend’s mother. (Amazon) (free codes)
Varick’s Quest – Jillian and Danielle get kidnapped. Nadia’s also in trouble. (Amazon) (free codes) More Scifi:
Reshner’s Royal Ranger (epic sci-fi) just made it there. (Amazon) (free codes)
Guardian Angel Files:
Spirit’s Bane – Allister and Mina are training to be Guardians. Satan’s out to get them. (Amazon) (free codes)
Kindred Spirits – Mina’s exiled to Earth. Allister’s stuck in the Heavens. (Amazon) (free codes)
Featuring inspirational verses from the Bible, these coloring pages will help you relax, unwind, and enjoy some creative fun while hiding God’s Word in your heart! All the passages have a theme of thankfulness, so you’ll be encouraged to cultivate gratitude and be reminded of all you have to thank God for as you color.
The verses are printed in color-able word art with decorative borders, blank on the back to make them easier to remove and frame or display, if desired. Each coloring page is accompanied by thought-provoking journal questions that will help you dig into the Scriptures even more as you focus on their meaning and application in your life.
Hide it in Your Heart with Thankfulness is an ideal Scripture memorization aid for Christian schools, homeschool programs, Sunday schools, or your own personal use.
Children and adults will enjoy learning, practicing, and meditating on these artistically presented verses from the New International Version Bible. Order your copy today and start hiding God’s Word in your heart with thankfulness!
Author Bio:
Annie Douglass Lima considers herself fortunate to have traveled in twenty different countries and lived in four of them. A teacher in her “other” life, she loves reading to her students and sparking their imaginations. Her books include science fiction, fantasy, YA action and adventure novels, a puppet script, poetry, Bible verse coloring books, and a fantasy-themed cookbook. When she isn’t teaching, writing, or editing, Annie can often be found sipping spiced chai or pomegranate green tea in exotic locations, some of which exist in this world.
One Link to Rule Them All – Check out this lovely coloring book today.
If you want to get 5 clean audio promos a month. Sign up here.
Audiobook Promotions …
Many of my 57 audible titles are listed on Audiobooks Unleashed.
Whether you’re looking for mystery or suspense or fantasy, I’ve got a title for you. Free codes are probably on audiobooks unleashed.
Normal links go to audible. *The Amazon labeled links are affiliate links. That means I get a very small payment from Amazon if you go through with a purchase.* Note: Filter by US if you’re looking for those codes as many titles are out.
Ones I think may still have US codes: Reshner’s Royal Ranger, Never Again, Innova, The Golden City Captives, The Holy War, Reclaim the Darklands, Eagle Eyes, Treachery Makes it Tense, Ashlynn’s Dreams Shorts, The Dark Side of Science, Ashlynn’s Dreams, Nadia’s Tears, Malia’s Miracles, and Varick’s Quest
There are plenty of UK codes, but not many US ones left.
Review copies for many titles are available from StoryOrigin.
Redeemer Chronicles (Fantasy)
Awakening – Redeemer Chronicles Book 1, MG fantasy (Amazon) (free codes)
The Holy War – Redeemer Chronicles Book 2, MG fantasy (Amazon) (free codes)
Reclaim the Darklands – Redeemer Chronicles Book 3, MG fantasy (Amazon) (free codes)
River’s Edge Ransom – Prequel to Redeemer Chronicles (Amazon) (email devyaschildren @ gmail.com for free codes)
Devya’s Children Series Links:
Ashlynn’s Dreams Shorts – short stories featuring Jillian. (Amazon) (free codes)
The Dark Side of Science – official prequel to Devya’s Children; Genetically altered kids fight for the right to live. (Amazon) (Please email devyaschildren @ gmail.com for free codes)
Books 1-4 were re-released in audiobook form in 2021.
Ashlynn’s Dreams – Genetically altered Dream Shaper learns her gift. (Amazon) (Request a Review Copy)
Nadia’s Tears – Jillian tries to awaken her sister, Nadia, from a coma. (Amazon) (Request a Review Copy)
Malia’s Miracles – Jillian and her siblings try to save a friend’s mother. (Amazon) (Request a Review Code)
Varick’s Quest – Jillian and Danielle get kidnapped. Nadia’s also in trouble. (Amazon) (Request a Review Code) More Scifi:
Reshner’s Royal Ranger (epic sci-fi) just made it there. (Amazon) (click for sample)
If you’re all in and want to review the entire trilogy (~35 hrs!) go here.
Aeris Legends Books 1-3 ~17 hrs of epic fantasy. (Request a Review Copy)
Guardian Angel Files:
Spirit’s Bane – Allister and Mina are training to be Guardians. Satan’s out to get them. (Amazon) (free codes)
Kindred Spirits – Mina’s exiled to Earth. Allister’s stuck in the Heavens. (Amazon) (free codes)
I have Author Direct codes from Findaway Voices for the combo book that has Spirit’s Bane and Kindred Spirits. (Click here for a review copy.)
I’m a high school chemistry teacher who happens to write in several genres. My latest venture isn’t published yet, but that’s going to be litRPG. That series is far from complete, so I’ll focus on what’s currently available.
I grew up on a steady diet of The Boxcar Children, Nancy Drew/The Hardy Boys, Star Wars Expanded Universe stories (pre-Disneyfication), and Christian contemporary and historical fiction I borrowed from my mother’s extensive book collection. Things can be hard-hitting without being gory. One can also explore relationships without describing everything. Besides simply being used to clean fiction, I’ve always wanted to write stuff my students could safely read.
Nonfiction: 5 Steps to Surviving Chemistry and 5 Steps to School Success
Before I dive into fiction, I should mention the non-fiction stuff meant to help people in two specific areas.
The chem book is a broad survey of the topics one would hit in college prep or honors chemistry. It can also function as a review for someone entering first-year college general chemistry.
The school success book focuses on how to make the most of your high school years. The pandemic has changed a lot about the way school is run, but a lot of the book discussions are still relevant. Some are even more important. It talks about things like emailing your teachers, managing stress, and putting things in perspective.
I had my current students reading it chapter by chapter (1/week) for the last few months. Here’s some of what they said (Disclaimer – they got a grade for giving me feedback not whether the feedback was positive or negative.):
“I really enjoyed reading the 5 Steps to School Success book. Not only did it help me with school related things, but it also helped me personally. I think the amount written on each topic was perfect – at no point did I feel like the information was getting repetitive nor did I feel like any information wasn’t in depth enough. My favorite section of the book was Chapter 6: Learn to Read Your Teacher. Hearing this information from a teachers perspective gave me another insight and helped me greatly.” – AC
“I absolutely loved the 5 Steps to School Success book and all of the advice it gave me. It gave me ideas on how to deal with my stress, anxiety, and constant worry about school. Yes, my stress and all that is still there and school seems to love to do that but it had definitely gotten better just by reading this book. In Ch 3 of Persist and Persevere, helped me lower my stress levels by listening to music as a work and watch movies and TV shows as a “reward” after finishing an assignment. I also really took the advice of talking to friends more often and enjoying nature which took my mind off of a lot of things.” – MR
Literary/Contemporary: Beyond Broken Pencils
Target age: upper middle school/high school
Content Warning: focuses on a school shooting
This is likely one of my hardest-hitting books. There’s definitely a fine line between violence and gore. I don’t usually have to put content warnings on my books, but I’m aware this one has a topic that not everybody will be comfortable with.
School shootings crop up in the media every few years. The pandemic has changed this too, but once things revert to normal, it’ll likely happen again. It’s tragic and often senseless. What makes people resort to violence? What do ordinary people do in such a crazy situation?
YA Science Fiction: Devya’s Children
Ashlynn’s Dreams was one of my earliest stories. I set out to write a kidnapping story and ended up with a soft science fiction that focused a lot on the relationships that build around kids placed in extraordinary situations. Jillian and her genetically altered siblings each have special Gifts. She’s a Dream Shaper. Nadia’s been given a very powerful mind. Malia can control emotions.
I loved the characters in Ashlynn’s Dreams enough to see where the tale would lead them next. Nadia’s Tears, Malia’s Miracles, and Varick’s Quest came from that desire to know more about them. The Dark Side of Science is a prequel.
This series is written as letters and journal entries. Good for a discussion on epistolary works.
Children’s Short Story: Ashlynn’s Dreams Shorts
This is a prequel series of short stories set well before Ashlynn’s Dreams opens. Before Jillian learns of her Gifts, she’s just a kid dealing with some life issues like her parents’ divorce, schoolyard bullies, and the urge to explore creepy places.
YA Christian Fantasy: Guardian Angel Files
Spirits Bane and Kindred Spirits both feature a pair of guardian angels-in-training. There are a lot of Christian themes in here, but it’s also pure fantasy. Allister and Mina share a Kindred Spirit Bond. Satan and his minions know. They know they’ll need to either control or destroy Allister and Mina.
The angels write journal entries. The demons write letters. Stylistically, a wee bit like The Screwtape Letters.
MG Fantasy: Redeemer Chronicles and Aeris Legends
Redeemer Chronicles started as fantasy with the Chosen One trope and spun into so much more. When it begins, Victoria Saveron knows little more than that she’s supposedly the Chosen One, but she’s frustrated by the fact that her friends have cooler powers than she does. She glows when dark things approach. That’s it. She can’t even remember any fight as she blacks out every single time. Awakening shows Vic coming into her power. The Holy War has her and a few close friends trying desperately to keep the magic races from destroying each other. Reclaim the Darklands depicts Vic’s epic battle to save Aeris from the Dark Man.
Redeemer Chronicles is mostly first person, but one of the 3 perspectives that cycle is the Lady. As an immortal, her first-person accounts read more like third limited.
Aeris Legends is a prequel trilogy which is also preceded by River’s Edge Ransom.
The Huntsman and the Healer starts where River’s Edge Ransom leaves off. It’s basically the story of how Vic’s parents met and married. The Dark Man’s Wrath and The Lady’s Grace round out what happened before Redeemer Chronicles opens.
Children’s Fantasy
Princess Melia’s Plight
This one exists as a beautifully drawn graphic novel or an ebook or an audiobook. It’s about a princess trying to save her kingdom from a madman. It’s a very short, fun tale. I highly recommend the graphic novel version. My friend, Tim Spavero, did an amazing job with the illustrations. Kate Poels brought her lovely British accent to bear bringing the story to life.
The Golden City Captives
In The Golden City Captives, Keio and Clara are captured and sent to the Golden City, but it’s nothing like they’ve been told all their lives. There’s a prophecy, but what will it cost them to fulfill it?
Fun fact: This one was adapted to screenplay. I’ve seen the script, and it looks amazing. I may have to someday expand this one into a full novel.
Christian Inspirational Poetry
Last summer (2020), I got to travel to Michigan to record my poetry collection for audiobook format. Normally, I would hire somebody to do this for me, but most of the poems are also songs, and I didn’t have sheet music for them because they weren’t made with that in mind.
Thin Black Road, Just Like You, and My Champion are the individual collections. They’re also available as a combined volume called Made to Praise. I recommend buying the combo version if you want ebook. I need to create the individuals so they would be available as separate audiobooks.
Although a small number of the poems are stories, most are short thoughts about life, nature, the nature of God, and so forth.
Multiple Formats:
Most of my books are available in ebook, paperback, and audiobook. I’ll expand more on this process later (See the 3/17/21 post when available), but for now, suffice to say, audio’s one of the fastest-growing parts of the book industry. I’ve worked really hard on hiring awesome people to bring these stories to life.
If you want to check out my audiobooks, go here in the US and here for the UK site.
Unifying Theme:
Throughout my stories, you’ll find the idea that everybody has gifts. Often the main characters have magical gifts, but even the ordinary people have gifts they use to help others. That and kidnapping. Lots of kidnapping going on in my tales. Not sure why that is, but regardless of their gifts, my characters tend to be stronger together.
Conclusion and Connections:
No matter what kind of story you’re looking for, I probably have something that will appeal to you. Get on my newsletter to keep up with news and get access to exclusive content (coming soon).
Don’t Miss a Beat … Check Out All the Awesome Blogs to Come
Catch up if you missed any to date. Don’t forget to come back on March 17th to hear about Clean Indie Audiobooks.
Interested in a fun writing course designed for teens? Check out Storyquest Academy. (Note: affiliate link – if you sign up for the class through this link, I earn a commission … you get a great deal – win-win 😉 … seriously, most writing courses are a LOT more expensive.)
Audiobook Promotions …
Many of my 44 audible titles are listed on Audiobooks Unleashed.
Whether you’re looking for mystery or suspense or fantasy, I’ve got a title for you. Free codes are probably on audiobooks unleashed.
Normal links go to audible. *The Amazon labeled links are affiliate links. That means I get a very small payment from Amazon if you go through with a purchase.* Note: Filter by US if you’re looking for those codes as many titles are out.
Ones I think may still have US codes: Reshner’s Royal Ranger, Never Again, Innova, The Golden City Captives, The Holy War, Reclaim the Darklands, Eagle Eyes, Treachery Makes it Tense, Ashlynn’s Dreams Shorts, The Dark Side of Science, Ashlynn’s Dreams, Nadia’s Tears, Malia’s Miracles, and Varick’s Quest
There are plenty of UK codes, but not many US ones left.
Redeemer Chronicles (Fantasy)
Awakening – Redeemer Chronicles Book 1, MG fantasy (Amazon) (free codes)
The Holy War – Redeemer Chronicles Book 2, MG fantasy (Amazon) (free codes)
Reclaim the Darklands – Redeemer Chronicles Book 3, MG fantasy (Amazon) (free codes)
River’s Edge Ransom – Prequel to Redeemer Chronicles (Amazon) (email devyaschildren @ gmail.com for free codes)
Devya’s Children Series Links:
Ashlynn’s Dreams Shorts – short stories featuring Jillian. (Amazon) (free codes)
The Dark Side of Science – official prequel to Devya’s Children; Genetically altered kids fight for the right to live. (Amazon) (Please email devyaschildren @ gmail.com for free codes)
Ashlynn’s Dreams – Genetically altered Dream Shaper learns her gift. (Amazon) (free codes)
Nadia’s Tears – Jillian tries to awaken her sister, Nadia, from a coma. (Amazon) (free codes)
Malia’s Miracles – Jillian and her siblings try to save a friend’s mother. (Amazon) (free codes)
Varick’s Quest – Jillian and Danielle get kidnapped. Nadia’s also in trouble. (Amazon) (free codes) More Scifi:
Reshner’s Royal Ranger (epic sci-fi) just made it there. (Amazon) (free codes)
Guardian Angel Files:
Spirit’s Bane – Allister and Mina are training to be Guardians. Satan’s out to get them. (Amazon) (free codes)
Kindred Spirits – Mina’s exiled to Earth. Allister’s stuck in the Heavens. (Amazon) (free codes)
Leron, a high school freshman, gets bullied at school. He’s a talented composer who eventually takes the pain of being bullied and turns it into a beautiful song.
Additional Comments:
Pretty sure the book description tells the entire story, start to finish. It’s a tad confusing because it mentions Leron’s Song, which I’m guessing may be an alternate title??
22 minutes, with 3 something minutes being the song, means that the story itself is about 4K words. The cover and description give the impression that this was made from a comic book. Although I considered turning one of my comics into an audiobook, I elected to go with the full ebook instead of the comic adaptation since that medium relies heavily upon the illustrations.
The story itself is fairly standard kid-being-bullied tale. However, the cover kind of made me think middle school not high school. Also, bullying certainly happens, but with the climate of today, I don’t buy that nothing happened to the bullies. They would have at least been suspended. Many high schools have cameras.
Also, I guess it could happen, but it’d be a rarity for a civics class to have both freshman and “older” kids, at least all 3 of the bullies. One, sure. Kids transfer in and then have to make up a class. Social studies classes in general typically go by grade level though. It’d be more believable if it were a science class since those are offered in different order depending on the district. So, a physics class with mostly freshmen at one place could conceivably have a junior or senior taking it.
Narration’s decently done. The story itself didn’t demand much in the way of character variety due to the brevity of the story.
The song at the end is a nice touch. But if the MC is meant to be the one singing, the “voice” definitely doesn’t fit. It’s a beautiful song, but I’m not sure a high school freshman would have a singing/rapping voice that’s that deep. Senior, maybe.
Not sure I entirely agree with the take home message. The MC internalizes the pain of being bullied and uses it as a catalyst to make his music sing out his problems all the louder. While that’s beautiful and can easily be pegged as realistic, I was hoping for a bit more of a here’s-how-you-get-help-if-you’re-in-that-situation message.
Conclusion:
A nice short story meant to be inspirational.
Audiobook Promotions …
Many of my 44 audible titles are listed on Audiobooks Unleashed.
Whether you’re looking for mystery or suspense or fantasy, I’ve got a title for you. Free codes are probably on audiobooks unleashed.
Normal links go to audible. *The Amazon labeled links are affiliate links. That means I get a very small payment from Amazon if you go through with a purchase.* Note: Filter by US if you’re looking for those codes as many titles are out.
Ones I think may still have US codes: Reshner’s Royal Ranger, Never Again, Innova, The Golden City Captives, The Holy War, Reclaim the Darklands, Eagle Eyes, Treachery Makes it Tense, Ashlynn’s Dreams Shorts, The Dark Side of Science, Ashlynn’s Dreams, Nadia’s Tears, Malia’s Miracles, and Varick’s Quest
There are plenty of UK codes, but not many US ones left.
Redeemer Chronicles (Fantasy)
Awakening – Redeemer Chronicles Book 1, MG fantasy (Amazon) (free codes)
The Holy War – Redeemer Chronicles Book 2, MG fantasy (Amazon) (free codes)
Reclaim the Darklands – Redeemer Chronicles Book 3, MG fantasy (Amazon) (free codes)
River’s Edge Ransom – Prequel to Redeemer Chronicles (Amazon) (email devyaschildren @ gmail.com for free codes)
Devya’s Children Series Links:
Ashlynn’s Dreams Shorts – short stories featuring Jillian. (Amazon) (free codes)
The Dark Side of Science – official prequel to Devya’s Children; Genetically altered kids fight for the right to live. (Amazon) (Please email devyaschildren @ gmail.com for free codes)
Ashlynn’s Dreams – Genetically altered Dream Shaper learns her gift. (Amazon) (free codes)
Nadia’s Tears – Jillian tries to awaken her sister, Nadia, from a coma. (Amazon) (free codes)
Malia’s Miracles – Jillian and her siblings try to save a friend’s mother. (Amazon) (free codes)
Varick’s Quest – Jillian and Danielle get kidnapped. Nadia’s also in trouble. (Amazon) (free codes) More Scifi:
Reshner’s Royal Ranger (epic sci-fi) just made it there. (Amazon) (free codes)
Guardian Angel Files:
Spirit’s Bane – Allister and Mina are training to be Guardians. Satan’s out to get them. (Amazon) (free codes)
Kindred Spirits – Mina’s exiled to Earth. Allister’s stuck in the Heavens. (Amazon) (free codes)
The story starts with Ariah turning from a pony into a unicorn. She discovers that she has a destiny to fulfill, but first, she needs to go on a very long journey. As she starts, she collects others on a journey to fight the mysterious evil.
Tarran’s a hunter who wants to free the abused animals. Dariel is an elf (I think) who falls in love with Tarran.
Additional Comments:
It’s mostly a kid-safe fantasy story. I had trouble connecting with it though.
Maybe I just missed the part where they were coming together to go on their quest. I don’t get how they just happened across one another in the forest and each know they have a destiny to pursue.
The narrator did fine, but she had some very strange pronunciations for several words: Cohort, perseverance, undulating
Some story threads seemed superfluous. (The elven princess being captured. The inquisitor’s quest and fate.)
The Darkness doesn’t have much rhyme or reason. It takes over elves and enjoys causing suffering, but the world domination goal isn’t clarified much beyond that.
Pretty sure it’s supposed to be a metaphor for finding your own destiny. The blurb is pretty clear that love conquers all. In that sense, it just may be a tad more literary than I’m used to in fantasy.
The end was a tad anticlimactic. There’s a huge epic battle but the ultimate way they defeat evil just seemed simple.
There were some very cool battle scenes.
Audio may not be the best format for this book since there are enough terms to warrant a glossary, which isn’t included (for good reason) in the audio version.
Conclusion:
Even though it wasn’t my favorite, it has a lot of elements that I can see it appealing to many others who enjoy YA fantasy.
Audiobook Promotions …
Many of my 42 audible titles are listed on Audiobooks Unleashed.
Whether you’re looking for mystery or suspense or fantasy, I’ve got a title for you. Free codes are probably on audiobooks unleashed.
Normal links go to audible. *The Amazon labeled links are affiliate links. That means I get a very small payment from Amazon if you go through with a purchase.* Note: Filter by US if you’re looking for those codes as many titles are out.
Ones I think may still have US codes: Reshner’s Royal Ranger, Never Again, Innova, The Golden City Captives, The Holy War, Reclaim the Darklands, Eagle Eyes, Treachery Makes it Tense, Ashlynn’s Dreams Shorts, The Dark Side of Science, Ashlynn’s Dreams, Nadia’s Tears, Malia’s Miracles, and Varick’s Quest
There are plenty of UK codes, but not many US ones left.
Redeemer Chronicles (Fantasy)
Awakening – Redeemer Chronicles Book 1, MG fantasy (Amazon) (free codes)
The Holy War – Redeemer Chronicles Book 2, MG fantasy (Amazon) (free codes)
Reclaim the Darklands – Redeemer Chronicles Book 3, MG fantasy (Amazon) (free codes)
River’s Edge Ransom – Prequel to Redeemer Chronicles (Amazon) (email devyaschildren @ gmail.com for free codes)
Devya’s Children Series Links:
Ashlynn’s Dreams Shorts – short stories featuring Jillian. (Amazon) (free codes)
The Dark Side of Science – official prequel to Devya’s Children; Genetically altered kids fight for the right to live. (Amazon) (Please email devyaschildren @ gmail.com for free codes)
Ashlynn’s Dreams – Genetically altered Dream Shaper learns her gift. (Amazon) (free codes)
Nadia’s Tears – Jillian tries to awaken her sister, Nadia, from a coma. (Amazon) (free codes)
Malia’s Miracles – Jillian and her siblings try to save a friend’s mother. (Amazon) (free codes)
Varick’s Quest – Jillian and Danielle get kidnapped. Nadia’s also in trouble. (Amazon) (free codes) More Scifi:
Reshner’s Royal Ranger (epic sci-fi) just made it there. (Amazon) (free codes)
Guardian Angel Files:
Spirit’s Bane – Allister and Mina are training to be Guardians. Satan’s out to get them. (Amazon) (free codes)
Kindred Spirits – Mina’s exiled to Earth. Allister’s stuck in the Heavens. (Amazon) (free codes)
Kate’s socially awkward. She loves reading and books, but she always seems to say the wrong thing. Her parents want her to have real friends. Oh, and she can talk to horses.
Additional Comments:
It’s a good book for middle school girls.
Clean. Easy to read.
4/5 Main character: Has a relatable character. She’s as charming as she is socially inept. Though nothing’s mentioned because the MC is the narrator, she seems to fall on the spectrum. Could lead to some good conversations about accepting people who just don’t seem to fit in. She only annoyed me at one point when she was being bratty because she broke the rules and had to face the consequences.
3/5 side characters: There are a lot of side characters. Her mother’s a singer and arguably the most fleshed out of the characters. Her father’s a dentist, but kind of just there. The camp people are a tad harder to keep track of at some points if you listen to the audiobook because there are sections with both people and horses. I think the horses have more personality than the kids though. They seem to fall into types: popular boy, silly boy, mean girl 1, mean girl 2, etc.
4/5 performance: Kae Denino does an excellent job of coming up with unique characters. A few seemed to blend, but as noted previously, there were a LOT of characters and multiple scenes with a large number of those characters. She also fit the main character very well.
4/5 humor: There wasn’t much, but I did laugh aloud when the kid fell hard and rolled, thinking how her father (the dentist) would be proud she protected her teeth. The performance added some humorous moments with the narrator’s inflection.
4/5 plot: Typical kid-drama. Girl goes to camp and fits in better with the horses and the aged volunteer than her peers.
Given the MC, I can see this appealing more to middle school girls than boys.
Conclusion:
Clean, light read perfect for young readers (or older ones who love young reader material).
Audiobook Promotions:
33 of my 34 audible titles are listed on Audiobooks Unleashed.
Whether you’re looking for mystery or suspense or fantasy, I’ve got a title for you. Never Again (mystery, suspense) and Reshner’s Royal Ranger (epic sci-fi) just made it there. Note: Filter by US if you’re looking for those codes as many titles are out.
Ones I think may still have US codes: Reshner’s Royal Ranger, Never Again, Innova, The Golden City Captives, The Holy War, Reclaim the Darklands, Eagle Eyes, Treachery Makes it Tense, Ashlynn’s Dreams Shorts, The Dark Side of Science, Ashlynn’s Dreams, Nadia’s Tears, Malia’s Miracles, and Varick’s Quest
Devya’s Children Series Links:
Ashlynn’s Dreams Shorts – short stories featuring Jillian.
The Dark Side of Science – official prequel to Devya’s Children; Genetically altered kids fight for the right to live.
Ashlynn’s Dreams – Genetically altered Dream Shaper learns her gift.
Nadia’s Tears – Jillian tries to awaken her sister, Nadia, from a coma.
Malia’s Miracles – Jillian and her siblings try to save a friend’s mother.
Varick’s Quest – Jillian and Danielle get kidnapped. Nadia’s also in trouble.
Portia’s dealing with a lot. Like any kid, she really wants to fit in, but it gets complicated.
Additional Comments:
Secrets, betrayals, and discovering your real friends.
Deals with a lot of issues kids face: bullying, family drama, the hierarchy of popular kids, friends vs real friends, etc
It’s kind of hard to pin down the audience. Probably upper middle school age would be right, but not sure I’d give kids that age something with consistent hard language. Yes, I’m aware they hear and use it a lot, but that doesn’t mean they should be given more of such on a whim. Not sure the plot has enough pull to attract other age-groups.
Performance: Was decent, but the way the narrator said chapter numbers totally did not give me YA vibes.
These are supposed to be middle schoolers, but they talk like college-age kids.
Content warnings: contains 3 f-bombs (technically 2, but one chapter that contains it was repeated); a few other curses
Conclusion:
It was okay. Not really my thing, but it could be your thing. Check out the sample and give it a chance.
*I was give a free audiobook. I chose to review it.*
Audiobook Promotions:
33 of my 34 audible titles are listed on Audiobooks Unleashed.
Whether you’re looking for mystery or suspense or fantasy, I’ve got a title for you. Never Again (mystery, suspense) and Reshner’s Royal Ranger (epic sci-fi) just made it there. Note: Filter by US if you’re looking for those codes as many titles are out.
Ones I think may still have US codes: Reshner’s Royal Ranger, Never Again, Innova, The Golden City Captives, The Holy War, Reclaim the Darklands, Eagle Eyes, Treachery Makes it Tense, Ashlynn’s Dreams Shorts, The Dark Side of Science, Ashlynn’s Dreams, Nadia’s Tears, Malia’s Miracles, and Varick’s Quest
Devya’s Children Series Links:
Ashlynn’s Dreams Shorts – short stories featuring Jillian.
The Dark Side of Science – official prequel to Devya’s Children; Genetically altered kids fight for the right to live.
Ashlynn’s Dreams – Genetically altered Dream Shaper learns her gift.
Nadia’s Tears – Jillian tries to awaken her sister, Nadia, from a coma.
Malia’s Miracles – Jillian and her siblings try to save a friend’s mother.
Varick’s Quest – Jillian and Danielle get kidnapped. Nadia’s also in trouble.
Jem’s worried about her Earth people getting evil kittens. She’s also struggling to fit in with the other cool cats in the afterlife.
Additional Comments:
If you enjoyed the first book, you’ll probably like this one as well.
I think my favorite new part was flying with the ravens. It does make one wonder though, why the cats of the afterlife don’t interact more with other critters.
Talking cats is kind of a special brand of weird that some people love and others could take or leave.
Narration was handled well. The voices were distinct. I didn’t have any issues with weird pauses because I listened at 2.1 x speed.
Jem’s journey to navigate the new social scene involve several adventures and misadventures.
Kinda goes without saying, this book is 100% kid-safe.
I don’t really like some of the characters (i.e. Alistair) because they’re arrogant jerks, but I suppose every social scene has to have at least one popular being worth disliking.
Plot meandered a bit for me but that’s probably got more to do with this not being a genre I typically explore than anything. I’m used to thrillers and murder mysteries. I think the most dangerous thing Jem faced was a dog messing with her head.
Conclusion:
So, cat fantasy stories. Love ’em? Snap up this book. Don’t love ’em? Check the sample and see if you like it. If you do, give it a go anyway. It’s a good time to expand reading horizons. Besides, it gets boring if you only read the same type of story every time.
Audiobook Promotions …
If any of the links are broken (not sure what’s up with Audiobook Crave as of 3/7/20), please email me your interest in the book, I’ll see what codes are left.
Were on Audiobookcrave.com (which just went under). Ones with links are relisted at Audiobooksunleashed.com.
5 Steps to Surviving Chemistry
Spirit’s Bane (Guardian Angel Files Book 1)
Kindred Spirits (Guardian Angel Files Book 2)
Violence in Vegas (Eagle Eyes Book 1) – not relisted yet
Rescue in Reno (Eagle Eyes Book 2)
Danger in Dallas (Eagle Eyes Book 3)
Devya’s Children Series Links:
Ashlynn’s Dreams Shorts – short stories featuring Jillian.
The Dark Side of Science – official prequel to Devya’s Children; Genetically altered kids fight for the right to live.
Ashlynn’s Dreams – Genetically altered Dream Shaper learns her gift.
Nadia’s Tears – Jillian tries to awaken her sister, Nadia, from a coma.
Malia’s Miracles – Jillian and her siblings try to save a friend’s mother.
Varick’s Quest – Jillian and Danielle get kidnapped. Nadia’s also in trouble.
Check out my other titles available on Audiobooks Unleashed:
Beyond Broken Pencils – contemporary, literary
Shadow Council Combo (Books 1-4)
The Individual titles are available but not yet listed on an ad site
SC 1: Money Makes it Deadlier
SC 2: Revenge Makes it Sweeter
SC 3: Christmas Makes it Chaos
SC 4: Treachery Makes it Tense)
Eagle Eyes – mystery thriller
Scratched Off – mystery, thriller; FBI agent vs serial killer, more intense than Shadow Council/Eagle Eyes
Awakening – Redeemer Chronicles Book 1, MG fantasy
The Holy War – Redeemer Chronicles Book 2, MG fantasy
Reclaim the Darklands – Redeemer Chronicles Book 3, MG fantasy
The Collins Case – Heartfelt Cases Book 1, Christian mystery
The Kiverson Case – Heartfelt Cases Book 2, Christian mystery
The Davidson Case – Heartfelt Cases Book 3, Christian mystery
Other titles:
5 Steps to Better Blurbs – for authors
Innova – Christian Dystopia
The Golden City Captives – short fantasy
Fatal Interest – short mystery/thriller
I get that children’s stories often don’t make much sense, especially those in this style (legend/folk tale). Still, there should be some logic to them.
Disclaimer:
I am NOT the right target audience for these stories. Those more versed in children’s tales likely have a more practiced sense of suspension of disbelief.
Story by Story Mini-Reviews
2.5/5 Why the Sea is Salty (some titles may be slightly different because I heard the audiobook).
Lacked logic. So, the little mill is responsible, but if the sea captain chucked it overboard and nothing ever stopped it, then the entire sea and world would eventually be filled with salt. Also, if the brother knew of the fiasco with his own brother, you’d think he would have said something to the sea captain before letting that little mill out of his sight. And further back, if the little mill could do most anything, why were the dwarves working? Also, there should be a bigger emphasis on magic because mills grind stuff down to powder. They don’t conjure stuff.
2/5 Fox and Eagle story (definitely not the title, but I forget the title):
So, the Fox is harassing the Eagle and essentially asking her to throw down her children so he’ll go away. When she drops him off on the island, he tricks the sea creatures into helping him escape. Clever of him, but that’s not exactly the moral I’d want a kid coming away with. (If you’re being a bully and somebody fights back, just trick somebody else into doing your bidding.)
2/5 Beaver and Indian story (also certainly not the title):
An Indian chief visits talking beavers and falls in love with the daughter. He then proceeds to marry her. Oh, and by the way, the heavens smile down on the union and decide to turn the beaver daughter into a human woman. Not to delve into adult business, but there are certain really big issues I have with the initial idea of a man falling in love with a beaver in any story outside of shapeshifter romance – and it’s ridiculous enough there.)
3/5 The Swift Runner:
A deer wins a race. A rabbit is disqualified.
3/5 Brother Rabbit:
A rabbit helps and Indian find his way home.
3/5 The Bag of Winds:
Eolis (sorry about spelling); sailors set the bag of winds free. Cute but nonsensical
3/5 The Fairy Tree
Somebody ate Flora’s pet fish. She prayed for the fish to come back as a tree and it did.
2.5/5 Gray Mole and the Indian
So, this Indian is taking a gray mole home, but stops for a nap and gets scorched by the sun. Mad at the sun, he decides to set a snare for the sun. The mole becomes an accomplice. Sun’s not too pleased about this and takes his wrath out on mole…so the mole goes blind. Once again, not sure I’m fully behind the morals in this story.
2/5 Boy Who Cried Wolf (Original Story by Aesop)
Not sure what the official version is but it sounds pretty darn close to the original. I looked it up and it’s a public domain work, which means the author did nothing wrong, just shady.
3/5 The Lion’s Share
Donkey fox and lion go hunting
They kill a wolf… donkey divides the spoils evenly and gets killed. The fox chooses a different division. While not necessarily making sense the system and moral actually works here.
2.5/5 The Wolves and the Deer
Wolves eat deer. Okay… pretty straightforward. Bizarre.
3/5 The Frog’s Travels
Frogs travel from Tokyo and Keyoto. Look back and see where they came from .
3/5 The Merchant’s Caravan
Men traveling get lost… find water, get where they’re going.
2/5 The Bonfire in the Sea
Fish light a fire. Because it’s magic. That’s why the sea is warm.
2/5 Robinson Crusoe (original story by Daniel Defoe)
Boy ran away. Ship got hit by pirates. Ended up in Brazil. Kid end up shipwrecked. Plunders the ship. Lives on the island. Dude saves Friday. Get rescued. Note: This is a public domain work, so this is legal. However, it’s still shady to republish a story abbreviation under your own name.
Conclusion:
With the amount of moral issues I had with this book, I’d personally skip it. That said, the narrator did a lovely job, and I would check out other works she’s done.
Audiobook Promotions …
If any of the links are broken (not sure what’s up with Audiobook Crave as of 3/7/20), please email me your interest in the book, I’ll see what codes are left.
Feb Promos on Audiobook Crave.com (requires email sign in):
5 Steps to Surviving Chemistry
Spirit’s Bane (Guardian Angel Files Book 1)
Kindred Spirits (Guardian Angel Files Book 2)
Violence in Vegas (Eagle Eyes Book 1)
Rescue in Reno (Eagle Eyes Book 2)
Danger in Dallas (Eagle Eyes Book 3)
Devya’s Children Series Links:
Ashlynn’s Dreams Shorts – short stories featuring Jillian.
The Dark Side of Science – official prequel to Devya’s Children; Genetically altered kids fight for the right to live.
Ashlynn’s Dreams – Genetically altered Dream Shaper learns her gift.
Nadia’s Tears – Jillian tries to awaken her sister, Nadia, from a coma.
Malia’s Miracles – Jillian and her siblings try to save a friend’s mother.
Varick’s Quest – Jillian and Danielle get kidnapped. Nadia’s also in trouble.
Check out my other titles available on Audiobooks Unleashed:
Beyond Broken Pencils – contemporary, literary
Shadow Council Combo (Books 1-4)
(Alternately, the individual titles can be found on Audiobook Crave
SC 1: Money Makes it Deadlier
SC 2: Revenge Makes it Sweeter
SC 3: Christmas Makes it Chaos
SC 4: Treachery Makes it Tense)
Eagle Eyes – mystery thriller
Scratched Off – mystery, thriller; FBI agent vs serial killer, more intense than Shadow Council/Eagle Eyes
Awakening – Redeemer Chronicles Book 1, MG fantasy
The Holy War – Redeemer Chronicles Book 2, MG fantasy
Reclaim the Darklands – Redeemer Chronicles Book 3, MG fantasy
The Collins Case – Heartfelt Cases Book 1, Christian mystery
The Kiverson Case – Heartfelt Cases Book 2, Christian mystery
The Davidson Case – Heartfelt Cases Book 3, Christian mystery
Other titles on Audiobook Crave (but buried deep):
5 Steps to Better Blurbs – for authors
Innova – Christian Dystopia
The Golden City Captives – short fantasy
Fatal Interest – short mystery/thriller
Three royal children (Celeste, Jude, and Torrin) meet their eccentric (great??) Aunt Maggie. She’s an inventor who takes them on an adventure.
Additional Comments:
Aunt Maggie might be my favorite character.
Side note: Not sure if it was a narrator choice but Celeste was pronounced rather oddly.
The narrator did an okay job with the story. I had it going at 2x speed, so the slow factor didn’t really bother me.
Totally kid-safe story. The solution to the problem was rather heartwarming, but the reason for the conflict could have been stronger.
Maggie’s cool creations are fun to learn about.
I question some of the parenting skills of the king and queen, but that’s neither here nor there.
Probably the opening for a longer series featuring the MCs.
Conclusion:
If you enjoy children’s fantasy stories featuring princes and princesses, check this one out.
Associate links to follow…
Note: I’m starting to use a few ad sites for audiobooks, so codes are disappearing quickly.
Available Audiobooks: I have free codes for almost everything. That will change very soon.
New Release: The Shadow Council Series 1: Money Makes it Deadlier – An FBI agent gets caught up in a robbery gone wrong.
Shadow Council Book 2: Revenge Makes it Sweeter – A midnight summons calls FBI Special Agent Megan Luchek into a fight for a young girl’s life.
Shadow Council Book 3: Christmas Makes it Chaos – The FBI agent gets a strange ally in the quest to prevent chaos from rocking a lot of people’s holiday season.
Shadow Council Book 4: Treachery Makes it Tense – The agent and the assassin have to team up if they want to survive.
Shadow Council is also available as a ~13 hr bundle.
The Collins Case – 2 FBI agents track down a kidnapped family. Kid friendly.
If fantasy’s more your thing, go Redeemer Chronicles. The first, Awakening, is available as an audiobook.
Ashlynn’s Dreams Shorts – a kid deals with her parents’ divorce, bullies, and the wonder of discovery.
Try The Dark Side of Science – Genetically altered kids fight for the right to live.
Beyond Broken Pencils – Contemporary literary tale of a school shooting. Ian unleashes his inner demons on his classmates and teachers…
Scratched Off – FBI agent vs a serial killer. When Sam Kerman sets out to hunt a serial killer, he has no idea how personal the case will become.
