Book Review: “Dark Isle”

Posted: April 18, 2025 | Author: kayelynnebooth | Filed under: Book Review, Books, Dark fiction, Fiction, Ghost Stories, Gothic, Horror, Mystery, Review | Tags: Book Review, Curses, Dark Isle, David Longhorn, Ghosts, Gothic Mystery, Writing to be Read | Leave a comment

About Dark Isle

Mark Stine is an American academic enjoying his year as a visiting professor at Cambridge University. But when he starts researching the long-dead English writer, Monty Summerskill, he quickly discovers that truth is stranger than fiction. Turns out Summerskill’s ghost stories were based on horrifying reality. One that caused the author’s shocking death.

Mark’s journey takes him to dark places, where he finds himself haunted by a ghost from his troubled childhood. But that’s nothing compared to the terrors that await as he heads towards the Dark Isle, where the solution to an ancient mystery lies.

Something far more terrifying than any ghost is on his trail. Awakened after decades of hibernation, it is deadly, unstoppable and hungry.

Hungry for blood.

Purchase Link: https://www.amazon.com/Dark-Isle-Paranormal-Supernatural-Horror-ebook/dp/B01MRQZZL0

My Review

I purchased a copy of Dark Isle, by David Longhorn through FreeBooksie. All opinions stated here are my own.

It is interesting that I picked Dark Isle up now, while I’m in the midst of developing three stories about curses for the Curses anthology, scheduled to come out in September. As it happens, this story features ghosts, an ancient curse, and an ancient evil. I felt Longhorn did a spectacular job of putting readers in a dark and ghostly mood in the gloomy English setting. There are ghosts a plenty. Add to that the awakening of an ancient evil curse, and Dark Isle turned out to be just what I was looking for.

I loved the way the weather in the English countryside sets the perfect tone of doom and gloom, creating a lovely, eerie background mood throughout. The tale is built around a rich history of Mark Stine’s predecessor, Montague Summerskill, who met his demise under mysterious circumstances while traveling the area by bicycle in an attempt to solve the mystery and write a first rate paper to gain acclaim. What he discovered is an evil curse which Summerskill inadvertently uncovered in his travels, which has now been passed on to him. How does one thwart an ancient evil curse is then the question foremost in his mind, and Longhorn comes up with an interesting solution. No spoilers here though. If you want to know what happens, you’ll have to read the book.

A gothic mystery that will make your spine tingle. I give Dark Isle five quills.

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Kaye Lynne Booth does honest book reviews on Writing to be Read in exchange for ARCs. Have a book you’d like reviewed? You can request a review on the Book Review tab above.

Treasuring Poetry – Meet poet and author V.M. Sang and a review #poetry #poetrycommunity #bookreview

Posted: April 16, 2025 | Author: robbiesinspiration | Filed under: Book Review, Books, Poetry, Review, Treasuring Poetry | Tags: January to June, Poetry, Robbie Cheadle, Treasuring Poetry, V.M. Sang, Writing to be Read | 74 Comments

Picture caption: Treasuring Poetry 2025 banner

Today, I am delighted to Welcome V.M. Sang, author and poet, as my April Treasuring Poetry guest.

Welcome Viv!

Thank you, Robbie, for inviting me to come and chat about poetry. I am honoured that you asked me.

What is your favourite style of poetry to read?

I enjoy Haiku and Tanka. I appreciate the structure and the work that goes in to make the syllables fit. But I also enjoy sonnets.

What is your favourite poem in your favourite style to read?

I struggled with this. There are so many I enjoy. I like the 1st World War poets and their take on the war. Particularly poignant are the two lines from Yeates An Irish Airman Forsees His Death.

Those that I fight I do not hate

Those that I guard I do not love.

But one poem I’ve loved since studying it at College is the sonnet, Ozymandias, by Percy Bysshe Shelley. It is a warning to all who strive to get above themselves. I think it is particularly pertinent at this time.

Ozymandias

by Percy Bysshe Shelley

I met a traveller from an antique land,
Who said, “Two vast and trunkless legs of stone
Stand in the desert. Near them, on the sand,
Half sunk, a shattered visage lies, whose frown,
And wrinkled lip, and sneer of cold command,
Tell that its sculptor well those passions read
Which yet survive, stamped on these lifeless things,
The hand that mocked them, and the heart that fed;
And on the pedestal these words appear:
‘My name is Ozymandias, king of kings:
Look on my works, ye Mighty, and despair!’
Nothing beside remains. Round the decay
Of that Colossal Wreck, boundless and bare,
The lone and level sands stretch far away.”

What is your favourite style of poetry to write?

I enjoy writing most forms, but particularly those with a strict form, like the sonnet and the Japanese forms, but I especially like to write rhyming poetry. I know it’s not fashionable at the moment, but I find the discipline a challenge. Discovering words with the right sound and number of syllables can be quite a challenge.

What is your favourite of your own poems?

I have to admit that there are two, both related. ‘I Am Earth’ appears in my first poetry book, Miscellaneous Thoughts, and the second one ‘I Am Earth 2’ is in From January to June, February 7th.

I Am Earth

I am Earth.

I am your mother.

I gave you birth.

I gave you a nest.

A wonderful home

On which you can rest.

I gave you food .

Plenty to eat.

You waste all that’s good.

I gave you the seas

And forests and hills,

But you chop down the trees.

You think you’re so cool,

But you pollute the air

By the burning of fuel.

You heat up the air

And care not a jot

For the poor polar bear.

Animals die

Because of your greed.

You hear not their cry.

I teemed with life,

Both great and small,

Yet extinction is rife.

Like a cancer you spread

Throughout the whole world.

It won’t end till you’re dead.

But I’ll make you pay

For all you have done.

You’ll be sorry one day.

I’ll shiver my skin.

Your buildings will fall

And bury your kin.

The land I will flood

By raising the seas

And drown all in mud.

My mountains so high

Will belch forth their flames

And you will all die.

I am Earth.

I am your mother.

I gave you birth.

BUT I WILL DESTROY YOU.

I Am Earth (2)

I am Earth.

I am your mother

I gave you birth.

I told you

What will occur.

And now you will rue.

You ignore me

And take little heed

Of my anxious plea.

So I send you rain

To flood all your homes

And give you pain.

I send the drought

So no crops will grow.

There’s famine, no doubt.

I heat the world

And many will die

From the heat I have hurled.

Winds I will send

In hurricanes now.

Your lands they will rend.

Yet you will not learn.

To me you are deaf

So the world I will burn.

Fires in the summer;

Deep snow in the cold.

You get dumber and dumber.

My skin I do shiver

And make buildings fall

As the ground it does quiver.

I will belch forth fire

From deep in my heart.

Make Earth like a pyre.

Will you now learn?

Don’t exploit my wealth.

Or you I will burn.

I AM DESTROYING YOU.

Please tell us about your poetry books, One Poem A Day Series? How did this book come about? It is a big commitment to write a poem a day.

My daughter, when she was little, had a bedtime story book with a very short story or a little poem for each day of the year. It was amazing because when she asked for more, as children will, I could say that the next poem or story was tomorrow’s.

For some reason I found myself thinking about this book one day. I’ve no idea why. It was decades ago when she was so small.

Then I thought, “Why not try to write one poem each day for a year, just like that book.” So that’s how it began.

It was quite difficult. Some days I had no inspiration and had to search for it. Other days I just didn’t feel like writing.

The discipline was good for me. I tend to be a procrastinator. There were some days when I couldn’t write due to circumstances, but I caught up by writing two poems until I was back on track.

My review of From January to June (One Poem A Day Series Book 1)

Picture caption: Cover of From January to June (One Poem A Day Series Book 1)

I enjoyed this collection of poetry very much. It is very British in its content and language and the poems reminded me of the stories of my mother has told me of her childhood growing up in a small town in Suffolk, UK. The references and descriptions are all familiar to me and reading this book was like putting on a comfortable dressing gown.

The style of the poems is varied from freestyle, to rhyming verse, to syllabic poetry and I enjoyed this aspect. There were also several limericks to make the reader smile. The content is also wide ranging from nature, to a Roman gods theme, to friends and family. The poems are grouped by month and tell a story of the poet’s daily experiences during that month in terms of the environment, the holidays, and entertainment.

A few of my favourite poems with a short synopsis:
Grown Up – a fun poem asking about why the poet should do certain expected things in order to be deemed grown up;
The Peacock – a delightful descriptive poem of a male peacock;
Destruction – a sad commentary of the damage humans have, and continue to, inflict on the planet;
The Fishmonger’s – a delicious commentary on the yummy seafood enjoyed by the poet;
Robin – a gorgeous depiction of a robin in the poet’s garden;
Starlings – a tanka about a murmuration of starlings going to roost;
Tea – a poem about English tea;
Blackpool – a comparative poem between the Blackpool of the poet’s childhood memories and the modern Blackpool;
Mum – a very special tribute to the poet’s mother;
Boudicca – a poem about this famous historical queen. I was interested to note that the name of this woman has been changed from Boudicea which is the name my mom always calls her. It cleared up a confusion for me;
Son – a delightful poem about the poet’s son;
Rainbow – an interesting and unique take on the colours of the rainbow;
Spring cleaning – an entertaining take on spring cleaning which is very familiar to me;
I am a Writer – a poem about why the poet writes. I always enjoy peeks into why poets and authors write;
True Love – a romantic poem about a lost love;
Teddy – a delightful poem about the poet’s teddy bear from childhood. I also had mine until recently;
Fickle Muse – a commentary about when the words don’t come;
Gardens, I’ll quote this short poem:
“Gardens are bits of heaven
Fallen from above.
Gardeners are angels
Tending them with love.”
Ode to Beer – an amusing poem about the historical and modern joys of beer;
The Village Green – my personal favourite in this collection. A poem about British communal life;

This is a delightful collection that really warmed my heart.

You can purchase From January to June (One Poem A Day Series Book 1) from Amazon US here: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0CNW1NQPZ

And from Amazon UK here: https://www.amazon.co.uk/January-June-One-Poem-Day/dp/482418892X

About V.M. Sang

Picture caption: V.M. Sang author photograph

V.M. Sang was born and lived her early life in Cheshire in the north west of England. She has always loved books and reading and learned to read before she went to school.

During her teenage years she wrote some poetry, one of which was published in Tecknowledge,the magazine of the University of Manchester Institute of Science and Technology (UMIST). Unfortunately, that is the only one that is still around.

V.M. Sang became a teacher and taught English and Science at her first school.

She did little writing until starting to teach in Croydon, Greater London. Here she started a Dungeons and Dragons club in the school where she was teaching. She decided to write her own scenario. The idea of turning it into a novel formed but she did nothing about it until she took early retirement. Then she began to write The Wolves of Vimar Series.

Walking has always been one of V.M. Sang’s favourite pastimes, having gone on walking holidays in her teens. She met her husband walking with the University Hiking Club, and they still enjoy walking on the South Downs.

V.M.Sang also enjoys a variety of crafts, such as card making, tatting, crochet, knitting etc. She also draws and paints.

V.M.Sang is married with two children, a girl and a boy. Her daughter has three children and she loves to spend time with them.

She now lives in East Sussex with her husband.

Find V.M. Sang

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/23500375-vivienne-sang

Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.co.uk/sang0566/

Amazon Author Profile: http://viewauthor.at/VMSang

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Carthinal/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/v.m.sang/

Bluesky: @aspholessaria.bsky.social

Find V.M. Sang’s books

FANTASY

The Wolves of Vimar series.

The Wolf Pack https://books2read.com/u/m0lxEy

The Never-Dying Man https://books2read.com/u/3R6ozR

Wolf Moon https://books2read.com/u/mvWjXe

The Wolves of Vimar prequels.

Jovinda and Noli

https://books2read.com/u/mgjrO0

The Making of a Mage

https://books2read.com/u/mddNNO

Dreams of an Elf Maid

https://books2read.com/u/4ElDZg

Horselords:

https://books2read.com/u/31XQ0a

Elemental Worlds duo.

The Stones of Earth and Air

https://books2read.com/u/mYygKV

The Stones of Fire and Water

https://books2read.com/u/brwoVE

Historical Fiction

A Family Through the Ages

Vengeance of a Slave

https://books2read.com/u/3kLZxR

Jealousy of a Viking

https://books2read.com/u/bMYGKk

POETRY BOOKS

Miscellaneous Thoughts.

tps://books2read.com/u/38Pzpr

January to June. One Poem a Day. Book 1

https://books2read.com/u/bx6azJ

July to December. One Poem a Day. Book 2

https://books2read.com/u/3kXvDR

Non-Fiction

Viv’s Family Recipes

https://books2read.com/u/mVR7dM

All the books are available in many formats, including audio for several of them.

About Robbie Cheadle

Picture caption: Robbie Cheadle author picture

South African author and illustrator, Robbie Cheadle, has written and illustrated sixteen children’s books, illustrated a further three children’s books, and written and illustrated three poetry books. Her work has also appeared in poetry and short story anthologies.

Robbie also has two novels and a collection of short stories published under the name of Roberta Eaton Cheadle and has horror, paranormal, and fantasy short stories featured in several anthologies under this name.

You can find Robbie Cheadle’s artwork, fondant and cake artwork, and all her books on her website here: https://www.robbiecheadle.co.za/

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Did you know you can sponsor your favorite blog series or even a single post with an advertisement for your book? Stop by the WtbR Sponsor Page and let me advertise your book, or you can make a donation to Writing to be Read for as little as a cup of coffee, If you’d like to show your support for this author and WordCrafter Press.

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This segment of “Treasuring Poetry” is sponsored by WordCrafter Press and the Poetry Treasures series.

Get Your Copy Today!

Poetry Treasures: https://books2read.com/PoetryTreasures

Poetry Treasures 2: Relationships: https://books2read.com/PT2-Relationships

Poetry Treasures 3: Passions: https://books2read.com/u/b5qnBR

Poetry Treasures 4:In Touch With Nature: https://books2read.com/PT4-Nature

Book Review: “Deja Dead”

Posted: April 11, 2025 | Author: kayelynnebooth | Filed under: Book Review, Books, cozy mystery, Fiction, Mystery, Review | Tags: Book Review, Cozy Myatery, Deja Dead, mystery, Susan Kiernan-Lewis, Writing to be Read | 9 Comments

About Deja Dead

Things can get pretty dark in the City of Light.

Claire Baskerville is a 60-something American who finds herself alone in Paris when her husband is brutally murdered. Reeling from the onslaught of devastating secrets he left behind Claire is stunned to realize she no longer knows who to trust.

She only knows she can’t move forward until she finds out the truth behind who killed her husband.

In spite of a genetic brain anomaly that makes it impossible for her to remember faces – even ones she’d seen just moments before, and all alone in a foreign city, Claire doggedly collects the clues that will lead her to her husband’s killer.

Unfortunately, the closer she gets to the truth, the more determined that killer is to make sure she never leaves Paris alive.

Purchase Link: https://www.amazon.com/D%C3%A9j%C3%A0-Dead-riveting-thriller-American-ebook/dp/B07X4TRQ3F

My Review of Deja Dead

I received a copy of Deja Dead, by Susan Kiernan-Lewis through FreeBooksie. All opinions stated here are my own

Deja Dead is the first book in Susan Kiernan-Lewis’ Claire Baskerville mystery series. I chose Deja Dead because of the cover, which features a Paris cobblestone street, with the Eiffel Tower in the background cast in an eerie purplish light, indicating to me that this might be my type of mystery story. I was not disappointed. The mood and tone of the story keep things mysterious, with a feeling of danger lurking around every corner.

Another plus, from my point of view, is that the female protagonist is in her sixties, making her a relatable character for me. Claire has no superpowers, no magical protections, and she feels all the aches and pains that result from searching the streets of Paris for her husband’s killer, and getting too close. She may be older, but she’s also wiser, and driven to find out why the Paris police are trying to sweep it all under the rug. All while dealing with the discovery that her husband wasn’t the man she thought she knew. When she learns that her father died right after her husband was murdered, and her own paternity comes into question, she’s not even sure of her own identity.

Everyone seems to have secrets, and each that is revealed sets Claire reeling. Yet, she is determined not to stop until the truth is revealed, and her husband’s murderer is caught, even when her plans seem crazy, and maybe even fool hardy. She can’t do it alone, and can only hope that she’s putting her trust in the right people.

A superb cozy mystery. Claire Baskerville is right up there with Miss Marple. I give Deja Dead five quills.

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Kaye Lynne Booth does honest book reviews on Writing to be Read in exchange for ARCs. Have a book you’d like reviewed? You can request a review on the Book Review tab above.

Read and Cook with Robbie Cheadle – The Unbearable Lightness of Being by Milan Kundera and Filled Heart-Shaped Meringue Shells #bookreview #fiction #desserts

Posted: April 9, 2025 | Author: robbiesinspiration | Filed under: Book Review, Books, Fiction, Read and Cook, Recipes, Review | Tags: Milan Kundera, Read and Cook, Robbie Cheadle, The Unbearable Lightness of Being, Writing to be Read | 59 Comments

The Unbearable Lightness of Being, by Milan Kundera

Picture caption: Cover of The Unbearable Lightness of Being featuring a bra and panties in black against a blue background

I knew when I started reading this book that it was unusual and had a big focus on extramarital affairs and womanizing, but I decided to try it anyway and see what all the fuss was about. The Unbearable Lightness of Being is set in Prague, Czechoslovakia during the Prague Spring of 1968 and the subsequent Soviet invasion. The story revolves around four central characters who are all facing their own problems and difficulties with relationships. Both of the men are womanizers and unable to remain faithful to a single woman, even one they profess to love. One of the women is also unable to settle down with a partner and has a string of affairs with men, married and otherwise.

Tomas is a successful surgeon at the beginning of the book. He fears commitment and this has already led to one failed marriage. He does not have anything to do with either his ex-wife or his son. When Tereza arrives on his doorstep, huge bag by her side, he is effectively bamboozled into taking her into his home. She fascinates him and he does have feelings of great attachment for her which lead to him marrying her. He fights these feelings and continues to have his countless affairs, in particular, he has an on-going sexual relationship with Sabina, a beautiful artist. Tereza loves Tomas very much and when the Russian Invasion begins, she goes with him to Zurich where she expects him to give up his infidelities. This does not happen, and he continues to see Sabina who has immigrated to Geneva. Tereza decides to leave Zurich and return to Prague. Tomas, despite his desire for freedom, follows Tereza, knowing he will not be able to leave Prague again. His attachment to Tereza is strong but it does not result in a happy ever after due to Tomas becoming involved in a political situation that destroys his career.

Throughout, Tomas and Tereza’s relationship, Sabina has another on-going affair with Franz, a married man who lives in Geneva. Sabina and Franz don’t understand each other at all and when Franz ultimately leaves his wife to live permanently with Sabina, she disappears, leaving him alone with no-one.

The central theme of this book is the philosophical concept of eternal return which assumes that everything in life repeats itself continuously into infinity. The author, however, uses the characters in his story to dismiss the theory of eternal return while maintaining the view that it is the only path to true happiness and as each individual’s life path is a straight line, lasting happiness is not achievable.

This was not an easy read for me, and I returned to it several times in order to finish it. The philosophy is very different from my personal beliefs and while it was a worthwhile read in the long run, it is not a book that everyone will enjoy

A few quotes from The Unbearable Lightness of Being

“Anyone whose goal is ‘something higher’ must expect someday to suffer vertigo. What is vertigo? Fear of falling? No, Vertigo is something other than fear of falling. It is the voice of the emptiness below us which tempts and lures us, it is the desire to fall, against which, terrified, we defend ourselves.”

“Making love with a woman and sleeping with a woman are two separate passions, not merely different but opposite. Love does not make itself felt in the desire for copulation (a desire that extends to an infinite number of women) but in the desire for shared sleep (a desire limited to one woman).”

“There is no means of testing which decision is better, because there is no basis for comparison. We live everything as it comes, without warning, like an actor going on cold. And what can life be worth if the first rehearsal for life is life itself? That is why life is always like a sketch. No, “sketch” is not quite a word, because a sketch is an outline of something, the groundwork for a picture, whereas the sketch that is our life is a sketch for nothing, an outline with no picture.”

Filled Heart-Shaped Meringue Shells (copyright Robbie Cheadle)

To go with this rather extraordinary book, I am sharing a dessert from my children’s book, Sir Chocolate and the Valentine Toffee Cupid.

Picture caption: Heart-Shaped Meringues before filling

Ingredients:

• 4 large egg whites at room temperature;

• ½ teaspoon cream of tartar;

• Pinch of salt;

• 1 cup castor sugar;

• Pink food colouring (liquid); and

• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

What you need:

• Electric hand mixer or stand mixer;

• Baking trays;

• Wax paper cut to fit the baking trays;

• A large heart shaped cookie cutter;

• Pencil;

• Large piping bag or a strong plastic bag with the end snipped off; and

• Large star piping tip.

Method:

• Preheat the oven to 120 degrees Celsius.

• Combine egg whites, cream of tartar and salt in the bowl of the mixer (it must not be greased and must be clean and dry).

• Whisk the egg mixture on a low speed until the mixture becomes foamy.

• Increase the speed to high and gradually add the castor sugar, one tablespoon at a time. Allow for 20 seconds of mixing in between new additions of sugar.

• When the mixture is thick and glossy i.e. the spoon can stand up in the bowl, stir through the vanilla essence and a few drops of pink food colouring.

Instructions:

• Using a pencil, draw six heart shapes on the non-wax side of a piece of wax paper that fits inside the baking tray.

• Fit the star piping tip into the piping bag.

• Spoon the meringue mixture into the piping bag.

• Squeezing the bag, draw a thick line of meringue around the heart shape. Repeat twice to form three meringue layers, one on top of the other to form the sides of the meringue shell.

• Using the piping bag, fill in the bottom of the heart with meringue mixture.

• Pipe another layer of meringue around the sides of the heart.

• Pipe a few meringue stars to use up the last of the meringue mixture in the piping bag.

• Place the meringues in the oven and bake for 3 hours.

• Switch off the oven, and open the door half way. Leave the meringues to cool overnight.

Picture caption: Filled Heart-Shaped Meringues

Filling for the Heart-Shaped Meringues

Ingredients:

• A handful of chopped strawberries;

• A handful of chopped raspberries;

• Whipped cream; and

• Melted chocolate.

Method:

• Whip the cream and spoon a quantity into each shell. Don’t overfill.

• Add a small quantity of chopped strawberries and chopped raspberries.

• Drizzle tempered dark chocolate over the filling.

Tip:

Only fill the meringues just before serving or they will go soggy.

Sir Chocolate and the Valentine Toffee Cupid is available from Amazon US here:

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This segment of “Read and Cook” with Robbie Cheadle is sponsored by The Women in the West Adventure Series and WordCrafter Press.

Historical Women’s Fiction

Get Your Copy Today!

Delilah: https://books2read.com/DelilahWiW1

Sarah: https://books2read.com/Sarah-Women-in-the-West

Marta: Coming in 2025

Book Review: Stories from Juniper Flats

Posted: March 28, 2025 | Author: kayelynnebooth | Filed under: Book Review, Books, Historical Fiction, Review, Western, Women's Fiction | Tags: A.T. Butler, Book Review, Historical Fiction, Short Stories, Stories from Juniper Flats, Women's Fiction, Writing to be Read | 1 Comment

About Stories from Juniper Flats

Book Cover: A prairie landscape with mountains in the background. A covered wagon sitting in the foreground.
Text: Historical Women's Fiction Short Story Collection, Stories from Juniper Flats, A.T. Butler

1882, Juniper Falls, Wyoming Territory

In this first collection of short stories from historical western author A.T. Butler, love blooms and mysteries are solved. Strong men learn to be patient and cowed women lean into their strengths.

Purchase Link: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BYKF1LLB

My Review of Stories from Juniper Flats

I received a digital copy of Stories from Juniper Flats, by A.T. Butler through Freebooksie. All opinions stated here are my own.

Stories from Juniper Flats is a delightful collection of three short stories connected to A.T. Butler’s Juniper Falls historical women’s fiction collection. This half hour read is the perfect reader magnet, giving the reader just enough to get to know a little about the characters and make them want more.

A man makes assumptions about Martha, the local spinster, and gets a surprise in “An Unwanted Visitor”.
Silas decides to attend church after staying away for so long, and gets an extra blessing for his efforts in “Unexpected Blessing”.
Edith shelters a desperate young woman fleeing from an abusive husband, who lands on the steps of her boarding house in “Desperate Hope”.

An easy, quick read that is highly entertaining. I give Stories from Juniper Flats four quills.

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Kaye Lynne Booth does honest book reviews on Writing to be Read in exchange for ARCs. Have a book you’d like reviewed? You can request a review on the Book Review tab above.

Review in Practice: “Essoe’s Guides to Writing: Mood & Atmosphere”

Posted: March 24, 2025 | Author: kayelynnebooth | Filed under: Book Review, Books, Nonfiction, Review in Practice, Writing, Writing Resource | Tags: Essoe's Writing Guides: Mood & Atmosphere, Joshua Essoe, Kaye Lynne Booth, Review in Practice, Writing Reference, Writing to be Read | 3 Comments

I was received a digital copy of this writing reference as a part of the 2024 Novel Writing Story Bundle currated by Kevin J. Anderson, which also featured my writing reference, The D.I.Y. Author.

I recently started writing one of three stories that have been bouncing around in my head for the Curses themed anthology, which WordCrafter Press will put out in September of 2025, and I feel mood and atmosphere will be extremely important in telling the stories for this collection that I want to tell. The one I just started has a working title of “The Curse of the Death Clock” begins in France during the reign of Napoleon Bonaparte and the right atmosphere for the setting is going to be a challenge.

I read Essoe’s Guides to Writing: Mood & Atmosphere with the writing of the Curses stories in mind and I’ll be keeping them in the forefront of my mind as I write this first story. To try and set the right mood and atmosphere for these Curses stories, I’ve implemented the exercise in Chapter 3 and started a word list which aligns with the mood I’m going for, which is slight unease and a feeling of doom. As with all the tools in my writing tool box, I’ll keep all my new tools on hand as I write the other two stories.

However, as I read, I found suggestions that can be use to improve mood and atmosphere in by taking another look at my sentence structure and word choices, as well as my pacing, in my latest WIP, The Rock Star & The Outlaw 2: Seeing Doubles, which I just got back from my beta reader and I’m preparing to do a final edit. I’m using another exercise from Chapter 3 to help nail the pacing for this story, which is very fast, with lots of action, making a list of keywords from a story which evoked a strong emotional reaction, which I’m aiming for in my own tale. The book I’ve chosen is Velocity, by Dean Koontz. The man is a master of suspense and knows how to keep the pages turning. I’ll also be taking another look at the conflicts in this story for parallels and counterpoints to the main conflict. Essoe includes many useful writing exercises to illustrate his points and can be used with WIPs, to improve on current projects.

I found useful exercises in chapter four on setting and atmosphere which I plan to utilize with yet another story, an out and out horror for Midnight Oil. Robbie is helping me with the research on this one, since it involves zombie elephants. Because of the subject area, the setting will be one that I am unable to visit and experience for myself. Robbie’s expertise will be a great help in this area, but I’m going to have to work to achieve the right atmosphere, and “The Shorthand” exercise will be useful. I’ll be taking note of possible points of interest and the emotional impact it has on my characters when describing the South African savannah setting. Most of my characters move my stories forward through action and dialog, but I think in this story, their internal reactions will be particularly important.

I’m picking and choosing the pieces that I feel I need to work on in the stories I’m working on for 2025, but Essoe gives us a list of eight tools which make up mood and atmosphere, and suggests that we should use at least five of them in every story we write to develop a strong, purposeful mood. In The Rock Star & The Outlaw 2: Seeing Doubles, I think I have a few already in place, so I’ll be working on those I may be missing. With the Curses and Midnight Oil stories, I’ll be implementing these tools from the start. The other story I have planned for 2025 is the third book in my Women in the West adventure series, Marta, and while I’ve begun an outline for that novel, it requires such a completely different mood that I think I’ll hone my skills with the other stories first, but I know I’ll be referring back to Essoe’s Writing Guides: Mood & Atmosphere when the time comes to get that one on the page.

About Essoe’s Guides to Writing: Mood & Atmosphere

Mood and Atmosphere defines and delves into the 8 primary tools used to create the emotional framework of your story–its emotionality–by breaking them down into easy-access chapters on:

Plot and structure blueprinting your intended emotionality
Pacing that steers your story line-by-line and chapter-by-chapter
Language and word choice guiding your story in the most direct relationship with readers
Setting developing an atmosphere that will make readers experience your world
Character expression creating powerful moods that will make readers feel their traumas and triumphs
Conflict controlling the ebb and flow of your emotionality throughout your story
Theme acting as the conductor, setting your emotionality to a purpose
Reader expectation and what promises you must keep or can use to throw in twists

Purchase Link: https://www.joshuaessoe.com/product-page/mood-and-atmosphere-e-book-1

About Kaye Lynne Booth

For Kaye Lynne Booth, writing is a passion. Kaye Lynne is an author with published short fiction and poetry, both online and in print, including her short story collection, Last Call and Other Short Fiction; and her paranormal mystery novella, Hidden Secrets; Books 1 & 2 of her Women in the West adventure series, Delilah and Sarah, and her Time-Travel Adventure novel, The Rock Star & The Outlaw, her the first three books in her kid’s book series, My Backyard Friends, her poetry collection, Small Wonders, and her writer’s resource, The D.I.Y. Author. Kaye holds a dual M.F.A. degree in Creative Writing with emphasis in genre fiction and screenwriting, and an M.A. in publishing. Kaye Lynne is the founder of WordCrafter Quality Writing & Author Services and WordCrafter Press. She also maintains an authors’ blog and website, Writing to be Read, where she publishes content of interest in the literary world.

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This segment of “Review in Practice” is sponsored by the Women in the West Adventure Series and WordCrafter Press.

Historical Women’s Fiction

Get Your Copy Today!

Delilah: https://books2read.com/DelilahWiW1

Sarah: https://books2read.com/Sarah-Women-in-the-West

Marta: Coming in 2025

Book Review: Seventeen Days

Posted: March 21, 2025 | Author: kayelynnebooth | Filed under: Audio Books, Audiobook Review, Book Review, Books, Mystery, Review, romance | Tags: Audiobook, Book Review, Catherine Hein Carter, Linda Griffin, Murder Mystery, mystery, romance, Seventeen Days, Writing to be Read | 9 Comments

About Seventeen Days

Divorcee Jenna Scott moves to a quiet California fishing village during the first Gulf War to make a new life in a house inherited from her grandfather. Her next-door neighbor recommends widowed handyman Rick Alvarez to fix her leaky roof. Jenna is intimidated by his good looks and annoyed by his self-assurance, but disarmed by his affection for his young son. She is still hurting from her ex-husband’s betrayal and resists the attraction between them.

Rick has lived in the village for only three years and is still an outsider, friendly but not sharing his past with anyone. When an attractive vacationer is murdered, local gossip says he is the killer, and rumors spread about his wife’s death as well. Jenna is determined not to believe the gossip, but will she ever be able to trust Rick with her wounded heart?

My Review of Seventeen Days

I received an audiobook copy of Seventeen Days, by Linda Griffin, and narrated by Catherine Hein Carter, in exchange for an honest review. All opinions stated here are my own.

I’ve reviewed several of Griffin’s audiobooks, but this is the second one narrated by Catherine Hein Carter, and I have to say that this narrator does a smashing job. Carter is my favorite of Griffin’s narrators, to be sure. You can read my other reviews of audiobooks by Linda Griffin here:

Love, Death and the Art of Cooking

The Rebound Effect

Guilty Knowledge

Seventeen Days is a sweet romance about a woman learning to trust after a hurtful divorce, and a widower with a young son trying to fit in to the small California fishing village, where a murder puts him in the spotlight as the prime suspect. Griffin does a smashing job of drawing the characters in a way that makes them feel familiar, making it easy to care about what happens to them.

Jenna is hurt and reluctant to place her trust in anyone after her relationship with her cheating ex-husband. But when she meets Rick, the local handyman, her feelings are torn. Rick’s relationship with his son, Aiden, endears her to him, although he strikes her as being a bit forward, and she finds herself wanting to give him her trust. But when there is a murder in the small town, suspicions are thrown onto the widower, who is still an outsider among them, and Jenna doesn’t know what to believe.

A romance mystery that will steal your heart. I give Seventeen Days five quills.

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Kaye Lynne Booth does honest book reviews on Writing to be Read in exchange for ARCs. Have a book you’d like reviewed? You can request a review on the Book Review tab above.

Treasuring Poetry – Meet poet and author, Freya Pickard, and my book reviews #poetry #bookreviews

Posted: March 19, 2025 | Author: robbiesinspiration | Filed under: Book Review, Books, Collection, Interview, Poetry, Review | Tags: Book Review, Freya Pickard, Insides, Interview, My Mythology, Poetry, Robbie Cheadle, Treasuring Poetry, Writing to be Read | 42 Comments

Today, I am delighted to feature poet and author, Freya Pickard, as my March Treasuring Poetry Guest. Freya is a great supporter of the WordPress poetry community and runs a bi-annual haiku challenge on her haiku blog which you can find here: https://purehaiku.wordpress.com/.

Welcome Freya.

What is your favourite style of poetry to read ie haiku, ballad, epic, freestyle, etc?

I’m not sure I have a favourite style of poetry. I enjoy both modern and traditional haiku, as well as tanka and other short form poetry due to their ability to create startling, vivid images and contrasts. But I also enjoy other poetical forms, including free verse. I usually look for poetry that captures my imagination, that allows me to connect the dots without the poet telling me how I should feel or think or believe. I enjoy any kind of poetry that allows my inner being to connect with ideas and concepts too. My favourite reads from the last couple years include Linda Imbler’s “Twelvemonth” and Willow Croft’s “Quantum Singularity”. I’m also a huge fan of Italian poet, Claudia Messelodi and love her collections “Blue Moon” and “Sky-Blue Wisteria”. I also love JRR Tolkien’s epic poems, especially those in The Lays of Beleriand.

What is your favourite poem in your favourite style to read?

A poem I return to again and again is The Lay of Leithian by JRR Tolkien. It tells of a tragic love story between a human man, Beren, and an immortal elf woman, Luthien. Their love is forbidden by Luthien’s father and the story covers many years of suffering for both protagonists. There are horrendous monsters and dark peril for both to overcome. Beren’s task is to obtain one of the elvish jewels, a Silmaril, and in doing so, he loses his life. If you’ve not read it, I won’t spoil it by telling you the ending, but it really is worth reading! (No, I’ve not seen The Rings of Power because I can’t stream images. Plus, I’ve seen trailers for it and the characters are not how I imagined them to look/act!)

I suppose this Lay satisfies my need for both poetry and stories. The narrative is also dark, which suits me fine, and contains both vampires and werewolves amongst the monsters who tread the shadows! The romance isn’t cloying and the ending is bittersweet, which, for me, is a true reflection of life. The Lay of Leithian is incredible long, so here are just a few excerpts which I love.

The first excerpt sets the scene for Luthien’s dancing beneath the moonlight:

There darkling stood a silent elm

And pale beneath its shadow-helm

There glimmered faint the umbels thick

Of hemlocks like a mist, and quick

The moths on pallid wings of white …

The second excerpt describes the vampire that haunts the tale:

A vampire shape with pinions vast

Screeching leaped from the ground and passed,

It’s dark blood dripping on the trees …

And the last excerpt describes one of the many fight scenes:

From shape to shape, from wolf to worm,

From monster to his own demon form,

Thu changes, but that desperate grip

He cannot shake, nor from it slip …

What is your favourite style of poetry to write?

I write from my heart, how I feel, what I see, what I experience, so more often than not I write free verse. Sometimes this outpouring of poetry is rhythmical such as in

Down through the dewy woods, damp and leafy

Wading rivers that rush and whirl

Lost in the mist, in the moors and marshes

Stumbles at last to a steep-sided cliff…

Sometimes it rhymes:

I dream of mermaids, magic and myth,

Of silvery fish tails, immortal gifts,

Flaming red hair and liquid green eyes,

Of laughter and singing old sea-songs.

Songs that whisper of seaweed, wind-rippled sands

That tell of the monsters who walk on land,

That speak of Ancients who dwell in the deeps,

Hinting at languages no man can speak.

I dream of dolphins so free in the sea

Of the whale and the seahorse,

Of what might have been…

But normally I find a rhythm of words that reflects my emotion:

this blurred moment

when

hydrogen combines with

oxygen –

too much water

I drown

swiftly rising

I gasp

draw air

to resurrect myself

wavering

on the edge

I feel life

flickering

doused in moisture

I reach for the wind

bursting full

I skim, I dance

across this strange

ocean called

death

I do use poetic forms to express myself and have experimented with many different short forms in the past. My favourite styles are haiku, tanka and elfje because they are short and focus my attention on one thing at a time. I love haiku, particularly traditional haiku because it tests my ability to say something in just 17 syllables!

eggshell thin fragile

touch me and I will shatter

empty, blank inside

What is your favourite of your own poems?

My favourite poem, so far in my life, is I, Vampire from my most recent poetry collection, Vampirical Verse. I, Vampire sums up how I feel post cancer and encapsulates the experience of near death, open surgery and chemotherapy too.

I understand emptiness

I feel no fear

no pain

no joy

no sorrow

I am hollowed out

what used to live within

has long since fled

yet still, I am not dead

unable to care

to be concerned

no heart beats within my breast

no hormones surge inside

I feel nothing –

un-dead yet un-alive

Please tell us about your poetry book trilogy, This Is Me. What is your main intention with this collection of poems?

This Is Me boxset/paperback contains the frost three published volumes of my poetry. Each volume has a different reason for being in the collection.

Volume 1 – Insides

These poems were written between July 2014 and October 2015 and covers my near death experience of bowel cancer, open surgery, chemotherapy and the start of my recovery. Most days I wrote something in my journal, even if it was just one sentence. I found it hardest to write during chemo due to the utter exhaustion I experienced for 6 months. At other times I was lucid enough to experiment with poetic forms and often, some of my prose sentences became poems when I looked back in my journals during recovery. My intention in this section was to help people understand what it is like to go through the above-mentioned experiences.

Volume 2 – My Mythology

The poems in this section were written between 1990 and 2015. My intention was to allow readers an insight into the sources of my creative inspiration. Again I use free verse as well as poetical forms to explore biblical imagery, Nordic influences and tales of vampires, zombies and werewolves! These poems show others what is important to me as a prose writer as well.

Volume 3 – This Is Me

This section is a compendium of real-life and fantastical imaginings and were written between 1990 and 2017. I explore how important certain things are to me; dancing, writing, the seasons, being single, being married, having cancer, and, of course, reading! This volume gives readers a different kind of insight into my everyday life and routine.

All three volumes together form a poetical auto-biography that I think is more dynamic than a prose re-telling of my life so far. This Is Me was designed so that the reader can dip in an out of it as they wish, or read great chunks at one time if they so desire.

Anyone who reads this book will understand me, the real me!

My reviews of Insides and My Mythology by Freya Pickard

Insides

I have read several memoires of journeys through the horrors of cancer and its treatment and they have been very compelling. Depicting this journey using the short and powerful lines of poems took the poet’s experiences to a higher level of emotional involvement for me. Each poem is vivid and visceral and sliced right through my heart. I related deeply to the poet’s reaction to medical confirmation of cancer which took me back to my mother’s diagnosis of cancer. I couldn’t take about it for two weeks because the shock was so great.

This book comprises of four parts and I am going to share a poem or verse from a poem from each section to illustrate the gut wrenching power of these poems.

Part One Colostomy

Stoma-ached
“my insides on my outside,
red blancmange in jellied form,
dark innards encrusting
pale, tired flesh,
interruption of natural order –
raspberry flavoured belly belches.”

Part Two Surgery
“cancer;
cancer;
barren fruit
inside my flesh,
pierced through,
cut free,
removed from
within”

Part Three Chemotherapy
“frustration of not being able to do what I
want to do; no energy to do anything

this long haul of weariness seems never-ending

endless waiting, patiently sitting in three different
waiting rooms – checking my swollen arm for clots …”

Part Four Recovery
“fogged
landscape
reveals
my future path;
life”

The poems in this book depicting cancer in all its stark reality have stayed with me. They brought back my own memories of countless waits in hospital for news – sometimes good, sometimes not so good. It feels like I’ve spend a huge portion of my life waiting for outcomes. It was psychologically uplifting to me that Freya’s treatment process, unbelievably hard as it was, had a successful outcome.

Purchase Insides from Amazon US here: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01M2UQAWJ

My Mythology

My Mythology delves into the poet’s interest in mythology and legends which is an important aspect of who she is as a person, poet, and writer. My mother is English and I was brought up on a diet of dragons, unicorns, Arthur and the knights of the round table, and other British myths and legends. My mother’s home town of Bungay has an array of ghosts and the church my mom attended as a girl is home to a famous story about the Black Shuck of Bungay. I knew all of these stories as a youngster and as I grew older, I expanded my interest into Greek and Norse mythology. As a result, I recognised many of the figures and creatures featured in this book.

The poet has written beautiful and lyrical word pictures and stories incorporating elements from various myths and legends, all of which are vivid and a delight to read. The poems are divided into ten sections: Roots, Imaginate, Oceansong, Legend, The Lizard, Fringes of Fear, Blank Mirror, Spectral Visions, Time & Space, and Deity.

I am going to share extracts from a few poems that particularly captivated me under the specific section heading.

Roots
“I am the lifting of your heart
I am a candle in the dark.

I am the cry of a new-born child
I am a cub in the bitter wild.”
from ‘Hope’

Oceansong
“The sun was dying through the mist
And in the waves that kissed the beach
Bright blue and purple, grey and green,
Tails flickered with a rainbow sheen.”
from ‘Shifting Wave of Green’

Legend
“metalled
horn spirals up
gleams between dark, liquid
eyes contrasting with his pale coat
that shines
with starlight, moonlight – luminous’
from ‘Silvered Constellation’

Deity
‘Air is
Breath of my sould,
That which will last beyond
My body’s destruction, living
Always.’
from Substance

This is a book for the dreamers of this world. Those of us that revel in the possibility of a bit of magic and wonder around the next corner. A superb book of gorgeous poems.

You can purchase My Mythology from Amazon US here: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07NGQQ3DJ

About Freya Pickard

Picture caption: author picture of Freya Pickard

Pushcart Prize nominee, Freya Pickard is the quirky, unusual author of The Kaerling series, an epic fantasy set in the strange and wonderful world of Nirunen.

A cancer survivor, she writes mainly dark fantasy tales and creates expressive poetry in order to rest the prose side of her brain. Her aim in life is to enchant, entertain and engage with readers through her writing.

She finds her inspiration in the ocean, the moors, beautifully written books and vinyl music (particularly heavy metal and rock). Her most recent relaxation techniques to get her through lockdown include hatha yoga and painting landscapes and monsters in watercolour.

Find out more about Freya and her books at https://dragonscaleclippings.wordpress.com

Freya blogs at:

https://purehaiku.wordpress.com

https://nirunen.wordpress.com

https://dragonscaleclippings.wordpress.com

Her spoken word poetry and prose can be found at https://studio.youtube.com/playlist/PL9e82GWvh7Sxzb3LcN4iuHJjtZ0CVw3eB/videos

About Robbie Cheadle

Photo of Robbie Cheadle standing in front of trees.

You can find Robbie Cheadle’s artwork, fondant and cake artwork, and all her books on her website here: https://www.robbiecheadle.co.za/

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This segment of “Treasuring Poetry” is sponsored by WordCrafter Press and the Poetry Treasures series.

Get Your Copy Today!

Poetry Treasures: https://books2read.com/PoetryTreasures

Poetry Treasures 2: Relationships: https://books2read.com/PT2-Relationships

Poetry Treasures 3: Passions: https://books2read.com/u/b5qnBR

Poetry Treasures 4:In Touch With Nature: https://books2read.com/PT4-Nature

Book Review: Draakensky

Posted: March 14, 2025 | Author: kayelynnebooth | Filed under: Book Review, Books, Dark fiction, Ghost Stories, Gothic, Horror, Review | Tags: Book Review, Draakensky, Gothic Horror, Paula Cappa, Writing to be Read | 4 Comments

About Draakensky

**Readers’ Choice Book Awards Finalist

Jon R. Meyers at The Horror Zine writes “Draakensky is a powerful, timeless piece of dark fiction . . . beautifully haunting. A book that is unique and stands out loudly from the rest. Highly recommended.”

A murder. A wind sorcerer. A dark spirit. In the shrouded realm of Draakensky Windmill Estate—where magic dictates destiny—reality and the supernatural blur.

THE MURDER: Heida Mead is found dead in the thrashing Mianus River in Bedford, New York.

THE WIND SORCERER: Jaa Morland is the reclusive spinster of Draakensky estate, a commanding wind-witch and deeply attuned to ghosts—and, she knows the meaning of owl sorcery.

THE DARK SPIRIT: A ghost hurls whispers into the fabric of Draakensky, stirring up secrets of river magic and untold horrors.

Purchase Link: https://www.amazon.com/Draakensky-Supernatural-Tale-Magick-Romance-ebook/dp/B0DCKBVQTV

My Review of Draakensky

I received a digital copy of Draakensky, by Paula Cappa in exchange for an honest review. All opinions stated here are my own.

This story has ghosts and witches and everything a gothic fantasy story needs, but the thing that captivated me the most about Draakensky is the owl imagery and lore. Cappa does an excellent job of weaving owl symbolism into the story, adding meaning and driving the story forward.

When Heida Mead is murdered under mysterious circumstances, Charlotte Knight is commissioned to complete the illustrations on the book of Rilke’s poetry that she had been working on under the direction of Heida’s sister, Jaa Moorland. She accepts and comes to the Draakensky windmill, in Bedford Village, New York, in hopes of launching a new path in her career, away from the hustle and bustle of Chicago and a cheating boyfriend.

But Jaa is difficult to deal with, at times seeming deranged and unreasonable, with Charlotte’s career hanging in the balance. With nothing left to go back to, Charlotte is determined to stick it out, even as strange events begin to occur which could be downright dangerous. Voices in the cottage, a foreboding groundskeeper, a strange white wolf, menacing owl attacks, and speculations about the murder around every corner. There is magick in the wind, and in the river, and in the very soil of Draakensky, and it controls the animals and the elements, even from beyond the grave.

An outstanding gothic horror mystery. I give Draakensky five quills.

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Kaye Lynne Booth does honest book reviews on Writing to be Read in exchange for ARCs. Have a book you’d like reviewed? You can request a review on the Book Review tab above.

Everyone is a Critic: “Tale of Tales”

Posted: March 10, 2025 | Author: kayelynnebooth | Filed under: Dark Fantasy, Everyone is a Critic, Fantasy, Film Review, Horror, Movie Review, Movies | Tags: Everyone is a Critic, Fairytales, Movie Review, Tale of Tales, Writing to be Read | Leave a comment

Three kingdoms. Three horrific tales, braided into one tragically horrendous fairytale in the classic tradition, Tale of Tales is a skillfully crafted triple fairytale. Fairytales were used to frighten children into behaving themselves in days of past. They are supposed to strike fear in readers, or in this case, viewers, so the element of horror is no surprise here. Everyone knows fairytales are tales of tragedy and don’t always have a happy ending. Even when they do have a HEA, the characters must face gruesomely frightening trials to reach that point.

A King (John C. Riley) and Queen (Selma Hayak) of the kingdom of Longtrellis are barren and will stop at nothing to have a son. The Queen summons a necromancer to make her wish come true. Upon his instruction, the King slays the sea monster, but loses his life. None-the-less, she eats the sea monster’s heart and bears a son, Elias Christian Lees, with alabaster skin and hair. At the same time as the cook bears a son, Jonah (Jonah Lees), who looks enough like Elias to be his identical twin, and the two boys grow up to become fast friends who are inseparable. Enraged after the boys fool her, the Queen sends the cook and her son away, but the boys’ bond is stronger, and when her son, Elias, fears his friend is in trouble, he runs away to go to his aid. Desperate for the return of Elias, the Queen summons the necromancer once more. She will have her son back, but at what price?

The King of the kingdom of Strongcliff (Vincent Cassell) becomes lustful when he hears a beautiful voice and must have the singer as his wife. But the singer is one of two sisters, aged spinsters, Imma (Shirley Henderson) and Dora (Haley Carmichael), who fool the King and he unwittingly takes Dora to his bed under her insistence that it be in complete darkness. Enraged upon waking and discovering her true appearance, the King has his guards throw her from the cliffside castle window, but Dora survives and is found by a witch who suckles her, giving her back her youth. The King and his hunting party found the beautiful young woman (Stacy Martin) laying on the forest floor and he falls in love and makes Dora his Queen. But Imma is lonely and longs to have her sister back with her, threatening to reveal Dora’s secret. Dora turns Imma away, leaving her alone to suffer a tragic end.

The King of the kingdom of Highhills (Toby Jones) becomes fascinated with a flea and makes it a pet that grows to gargantuan proportions. When his daughter, Violet (Bebe Cave), wishes to be married, he develops a plan to make her happy without risking losing her by placing the fleas hide on his wall and promising her hand to any suiter who can guess the creature that it came from. But it leads to the loss of his daughter when an ogre (Guillaume Delaunay) guesses correctly by smell, and he is forced to give Violet to the ogre, who takes her to his cave in the side of a high cliff. She’s recued by a family of acrobats, but the ogre slays them all and Violet fools the ogre and slits his throat. She returns to the kingdom, to find her father ill, and presents him with the head of the husband that he chose for her.

Official Clip: https://images.app.goo.gl/pAFnUmGSwCHFgcXo6

The three kingdoms and their tales are brought together at Violet’s coronation, where representing Longtrellis, Elias is in attendance, as well as the King of Strongcliff and his new Queen. But the witch’s magic wears off and Dora loses her youthful appearance and sneaks away unnoticed.

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This segment of “Everyone is a Critic” is sponsored by the Midnight Anthology Series and WordCrafter Press.

Midnight Roost: Weird and Creepy Stories: 20 authors bring your nightmares to life in 23 stories of ghosts, paranormal phenomenon and the horror from the dark crevasses of their minds. Stories of stalkers, both human and supernatural, possession and occult rituals, alien visitations of the strange kind, and ghostly tales that will give you goosebumps. These are the tales that will make you fear the dark. Read them at the Midnight Roost… if you dare. https://www.amazon.com/Midnight-Roost-Kaye-Lynne-Booth-ebook/dp/B0CL6FPLVJ

Midnight Garden: Where Dark Tales Grow: 17 authors bring you 21 magnificent dark tales. Stories of magic, monsters and mayhem. Tales of murder and madness which will make your skin crawl. These are the tales that explore your darkest fears. Read them in the Midnight Garden… if you dare. https://www.amazon.com/Midnight-Garden-Where-Tales-Anthology-ebook/dp/B0DJNDQJD3