Review: Lost + Found by David Trotter

I won a copy of this book through Library Thing's Member Giveaway as a giveaway from the author.



About the book

After 10 years as a pastor, David was burned out and stuck in a life and marriage that lacked passion. His desire for an intimate partnership led him to leave his mistress of ‘ministry’ and run into the arms of a real-life mistress — his wife’s best friend. After moving in with one another and spending forty days together, the woman abruptly left to go back to her husband and four kids, and David’s life hit rock bottom.

This first-hand account of what led to his burnout and life implosion takes the reader on a raw and intimate journey…from illicit affair to hospitalization and ultimately to reconciliation with his wife and family. This is a powerful story of redemption that will leave the reader both challenged and inspired

Visit David Trotter's website.

Follow David Trotter on Twitter.

My Review

This was a really good book. I can only imagine the hurt that writing this book brought back to Trotter. But I have to say he did a great job.

I always find it hard to review books written about actual events and/or people. To me the people in the stories are just characters while I'm reading, even though I know that they are real people and that these things really happened to them. I want to say that these were great characters, they seemed so real, because they are real. This was so emotional, there were the highs and lows. My heart truly ached for David as he tries to put his life back together, only to have it smashed to pieces again.

The story was so emotional, I'm actually surprised I didn't cry through the entire book. David's breakdown was so raw, being able to describe what he was going through to someone who was not there is no small feat. I was able to understand what was going on in his head and how he rationalized his decisions. Having been in a similar place in my life before I guess I have a better understanding of what he was going through. Had I not been in a similar situation before would I have understood as much? I would say yes, I think you have to go into this story with an open mind. If you look at it as he had an affair and that makes him a horrible person I don't think you will enjoy this book at all.

What I really liked about it is that I didn't get the sense that he was leaving anything out. He threw everything onto the table and really explained what was going on in what had to be the darkest time of his life. I can't say that there is ever a good reason to have an affair, and I think this book really shows the dark side of affairs. Movies tend to sensationalize affairs and this is a real look at the damage that is done to all parties involved.

Lost + Found: Finding Myself by Getting Lost in an Affair

Review: Audiobook: Private by James Patterson and Maxine Paetro

Thank you to Anna at Hachette for sending me a copy for review.



About the Book

Former Marine and CIA agent Jack Morgan inherits his father's renowned security and detective business--along with a case load that tests him to the breaking point. Getting to the bottom of an NFL gambling scandal and an unsolved LAPD investigation into 18 school girl slayings would be enough. On top of all that, Morgan takes on solving the horrific murder of his best friend's wife.

As Morgan fights the urge to exact brutal revenge on that killer, he has to navigate a workplace imbroglio that could blow the roof off his elite agency. And it's an especially explosive situation . . . because the love affair is his own.

Get more information about Private by visiting Hachette Book's website.

You can also visit James Patterson's website.

My Review

The story in this one was pretty good. There were a few things going on in the story, and I felt like if they had focused more on less of the plots that this could have been so much better. Not that it was bad, it was just a little disjointed to me. Private is a P.I. firm that seems to have their hands in everything, apparently all across the globe.

I liked the characters in this one, although I didn't really connect with any of them. Jack was so confident and strong. He was the glue that seemed to hold a few different lives together. Yet he had his own "glue" so to speak. Each character had some "quirks" (for lack of a better word) that added to the team from Private's ability to solve their cases. There were so many characters, and since I was listening instead of reading, that I can't fully remember all of them. (Sadly I'm even having trouble remembering most of their names).

I liked the story, and I think that this would make a good series. I kind of get the feeling though that maybe this is going to be a series and Patterson and Paetro wanted to introduce us to many characters in setting up for later books in the series. I could be totally wrong on this, but I get the feeling that this was a set up for a series...

The narrator was pretty good also. Peter Hermann apparently has appeared in many shows that I watch (watched) but I can't place him in any of them, which helps add to the ability for me to connect to the book rather than the narrator. His voice is very good for reading, he's not monotone, but he's not "perky". He had different voices for each of the characters, and does a good job of relating the feelings of the characters through his voice.

Overall I think this was a good book, but that it could have had a few less story lines. Like I said this had the feel of the start of a series and maybe some of the story lines could have been saved for later. I liked it and at the same time I was a little disappointed in it.

Private

Guest Blogger: Stephanie Draven

Today I am happy to have author Stephanie Draven as a guest blogger. Her latest book Poisoned Kisses came out earlier this month. Here is Stephanie to talk about how her books come together.



Sometimes the Sex Comes First

Usually, when I’m writing a story, the first thing that comes to me is a premise. For example, when I wrote Midnight Medusa, I knew I wanted to write a story about a modern day gorgon. Other times, I’ll get a character voice in my head and I want to know more about him. But sometimes, when it comes to writing paranormal romance novels, it’s the sex scene that comes to me first.

This is important, because the way an intimate scene unfolds can tell me more about the people I’m going to write about than any character study might. The setting of the sex scene tells me if my characters are desperate people or hedonists, if they’re exhibitionists or very private. The position they choose often tells me who is sexually dominant and who is uninhibited. The way in which my characters will fall into bed reveals either a slow and steady seduction, the mark of self-control, or an animal hunger. If there’s any whiff of taboo about the love scene, anything
subversive about it at all, I try to deconstruct what it says about my heroine’s deepest fears and desires. In short, a sex scene should never just be a sex scene. It’s another opportunity to give the reader insight and to develop your characters at their most raw.

Another reason to start with the love scene is to make sure that it’s something I can appreciate as an author. What turns my characters on doesn’t always have to be what turns me on--but it can’t be anything that bores me. And in a romance, it can’t be anything that repulses me, or else it will repulse the reader too.

To that end, I’m of the firm opinion that a love scene should be as hot as an author can make it within the confines of the genre, or else close the bedroom door. But the heat comes from the scenario--the set-up, if you will. Otherwise, it’s all about inserting tab A into tab B and that’s not very exciting, which is exactly why starting with the sex scene might actually be the best way to
begin writing a romance novel.

Stephanie, I think you make a great point. I've always wondered about love scenes in books. Even when following the same author the love scenes are usually so different from character to character. I can't imagine that every scene is one that the author is turned on by, because they are so different. And I like the idea that the sex scenes give you a better idea of who the characters are. I've never really looked at those scenes as giving insight but to see if from your point of view I get it now. Thank you so much for sharing with us. I have my copy of Poisioned Kisses in hand and am now eagerly waiting to get to it!

You can get more information about Stephanie and her novels at her website.

Thank you for reading!

Closed: Giveaway: The Wild Series by C. Fern Cook

Thank you to Fern for doing a guest post for me this week. She has also graciously offered to give one lucky reader a set of the Wild Series books!

About the Wild Series:
Wild Evolution:
"Wild Evolution" could be described as a paranormal-thriller or horror-police procedural, either category you pick would work fine.

A brief description of "Wild Evolution":
When Dan defends his livestock against a wild dog attack, he is put in a 'kill or be killed' battle. When he takes the head of a wild dog in to be tested for rabies he discovers he has the head of a human male instead of a wild dog. Now he is forced to cover up a self-defense killing because no one would believe he killed a wild dog when he has a human head.

A werewolf by contamination, Dan's life spins out of control. All his senses are heightened including his passion for the wild. His passion for the wild compels him to try to stop a new housing development that threatens the local wildlife from loss of habitat, but things don't go according to plans and now he has a second body to dispose of.

While under investigation for murder, Angela gives Dan her unflinching trust. Because of an abusive father, Dan has never been able to trust anyone, but now he has someone he wants to start a family with, someone to build a future with.

Wild Justice:
In Book II, Wild Evolution, Colorado rancher Dan Tucker’s life is turned upside-down.

After surviving a mutant canine attack, Dan discovers the animal he killed is not a wild dog, but a man. To protect himself even though it was a self-defense killing, he covers up the murder.

A werewolf by contamination, Dan finds his attitudes and appetites changing. His love of nature and the wild increases as he runs at night with a wolf pack in the nearby national forest. As a man, he becomes more bold and amorous, winning the heart of Angela Connor, a waitress at the local café.

Meanwhile his best friend, Grand County Sheriff’s Deputy Tony Ramirez, becomes increasingly suspicious, especially after Dan has several public run-ins with his cantankerous old neighbor, and the man later turns up missing. When the remains of two bodies are discovered some time later in a remote cave, Tony ceases to be Dan’s friend and goes to great lengths to prove him a murderer.

With his quiet life as bachelor rancher transformed into a constant battle of wits to keep his deep, dark secret safe, Dan finds himself at odds with everyone, including his girlfriend and his former best friend – and most of all, himself.

Narrowly escaping Tony’s murder investigation, Dan goes about eliminating threats to his future. Now all he wants is to pursue his dream of running a dude ranch with his soon-to-be wife, Angela. But as the wedding gets closer, he wonders how he’ll keep his nocturnal life a secret. He soon discovers that’s the least of his worries…

You can also get more information by visiting Fern's website.

Giveaway Info



The giveaway will end 10/12/10 at 11:59pm (EST)

From here on out I will only be taking form entries. Comment entries will no longer be accepted. Thank you everyone for helping make the forms a success!

Rules:
1) Only winners from the US and Canada
2) No PO boxes

To enter:
1) Fill out this form.
2) Get an extra entry for following my blog.
3) Get a third entry for mentioning this giveaway: On your blog, facebook, twitter... anywhere (Make sure to leave me a link or your SN so I can verify!)
5) "Like" Just Jennifer Reading on Facebook.

Please RT: @JustJennReading: New Giveaway: Wild Series by C. Fern Cook

Remember to use this form. Comment entries will no longer be valid entries into the giveaways.

You can see the current entries here.

The winners will be randomly drawn and notified by email.

Good Luck and thank you for reading my blog!

Guest Blogger: C. Fern Cook

It's another guest blogger day! Today we have author C. Fern Cook author of the series The Wild Series including Wild Evolution, Wild Justice and Wild Legacy. So let's see what Fern has to share with us today!

Fern's post:

The Wild series began when I was a patrol deputy in the Colorado Mountains. I worked in a county that was cattle country. As charming as that seems, many of the ranchers killed anything that crossed their property they didn't like.

This did not sit well with me, the great animal lover that I am, I believe all animals have right to live on this planet. As a patrol deputy, I could do nothing about it unless it was an endangered species or poaching involved.

I have always been the storyteller, I imagined a rancher that shared his land with all creatures including the dreaded wolf. This turned into a skin walker or werewolf story. A good story always takes on a life of its own. While I was writing the series, the story developed in ways I had never imagined when I first set out to write the first book.

What would happen if you were attacked by a vicious animal? What if that animal turned out to be human, a changeling? Would you tell the cops about the person you killed in self-defense? Would you hide the body and tell no one? Who would believe your story?

How would this affect the rest of your life? How could you put this behind you and just forget about it? Wouldn't you be on edge? Suspicious of everyone? How could you live a normal life from then on, especially if you became the creature that attacked you?

Wild Evolution is about how Dan chooses to hide the body because he thinks no one would believe his story. He worries that if anyone found out, he would be charged with murder. It is hard to be a mellow when you are obsessed with keeping your secret a secret.

Wild Justice is the continuation, how Dan tries to live a normal life and get married and have family. How he tries to live the American dream of owning his own business.
Wild Legacy continues with Dan's attempt to raise a family and try to blend in with the rest of the community. This is how the Wild series evolved.

The characters are composite of people I have met through my real life experiences. The first in the series has a great deal of crime scene processing in it. The law enforcement officers are composites of officers I had worked with. The crime scene processing is as real life as possible; this comes from my experience as a crime scene investigator when I worked with Boulder PD.

Just like my books, I have also evolved as a writer doing this series. I have learned a lot from the feedback from readers. I enjoy hearing from readers and hear about what they think. I invite any questions you might have about the series, my writing, or experiences in law enforcement.

Thank you Fern for your post. I too LOVE animals and it hurts me to hear that about people who kill animals without justification. I would imagine that having to deal with those kinds of issues on a regular basis was difficult to deal with. I also love that your love of animals is what lead to this series!!! To all the readers, please feel free to leave comments for Fern and when she returns to JustJenniferReading for another blog post on October 12th she will be answering your questions. In the mean time you can learn more about Fern's books on her website.

Fern has also agreed to give one lucky reader a set of The Wild Series!!! So look for the contest post (link will be added later today)!