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Anila H.

Books & Rome

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Hello bookworms

I hope you are doing well on this fine Wednesday. I had this idea long time ago about 

incorporating my travels and books in one post. I love travelling. It is a recent passion of mine. I didn't know I had it, until I realized that I truly do love travelling. I love different cultures, and since I spend most of my free times learning about them, travelling is like a haven to me.

Therefore I decided to start this new series called "Anila's Travels", where I will be talking about book culture in these cities, or countries.

For this episode we have Rome. I have lived in Rome for two years and a half, and now I go every three months there for my medical check-ups.

I've noticed that in Rome, there are a lot of libraries and bookstores. When I say a lot, I mean too much! Wherever you go, you will find a bookstore near. I have a library in the hospital I go, and there is a shelf full of books in my hospital room.

When I take the subway, I love to look at people, and make up stories about them. Most of the people in the subway are reading, no matter if they are reading hardcovers, or ebooks. Don't get me started on those newspapers.

There are a lot of talented Italian writers, and I have noticed that people tend to read their writers, rather than translated books. Though that is just my observation! There are a lot of religious bookstores in Rome, and you find them everywhere. You can even buy nonfiction there.

Unfortunately, I have noticed that young people don't read much, not as much as the others.

But God, having a conversation with a middle aged Roman woman is like heaven. You discuss about a lot of things, jumping from one conversation to the other quite naturally, and most of their speeches start with "I've read a book...”

Of course, I am not implying that only Italians read books, or that all Italians are book lovers, but this is an occurrence you find in Rome.

My favorite bookstores have to be the modern ones. In particular I love the bookstore in Euroma 2

,and "Borri Books" in Roma Termini Railway Station.

I hope you liked this post. Until next time my dear bookworms.

Have a great day!

Happy Scary Reading!

Guestpost ~Eric Turowski for "Inhuman Interest"

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Hello Bookworms

Today’s post is a bit special. Please welcome our talented writer Eric Turowski.

Title: Inhuman Interest (Story by Tess Cooper #1)

Author: Eric Turowski

Description: Thirteen words in a want-ad turn Tess Cooper’s world upside down after she signs on as a paranormal research assistant to the mysterious Davin Egypt. He reveals a world of grave robbing, clockworks artifacts in blue amber, antique revolvers that fire strange ammo, and powerful forces beyond human comprehension.

As ancient occult energies threaten to destroy her city, Tess must use her journalistic instincts to stay one step ahead of the public works director, Drew Dawson, whose agenda seems bent on destruction rather than maintenance. And possibly murder, but will anyone believe her?

Yeah, right. When garbage trucks fly.

If Tess teams up with the hunky police lieutenant, Kirk Gunther, and the pale, oddball Mr. Egypt, they might be able to save the city in time. That is, if Egypt even wants to. And if Tess overcomes her phobias long enough to do battle in Granddad’s 1983 Subaru Brat.

Things are about to get icky."

The Guestpost:

Why did you write that?

How does a book about the inability of the Western mind to successfully cope with paranormal phenomena due to the cultural blinkers of Science and Christianity sound? Really, really boring, right? Well, you’re in luck. I didn’t write that book.

While I like the idea that the unknown remains so due to the culture we live in, some dry, vaguely philosophical oeuvre didn’t seem like a book that would attract many readers. Probably rightly so. I could’ve gone on and on about how our belief in the strange hinges on what we can measure, collect and quantify; or what we can (or cannot) shoehorn into a belief system.

Instead, I wrote Inhuman Interest: Story by Tess Cooper. Tess is a reporter, a skeptic, and frequently clumsy. Her new boss, Davin Egypt, is an occult researcher, didactic, and consistently spooky. Together, they investigate bizarre events that threaten to destroy their city. Tess wants to stop it. Egypt just wants to observe it.

I chose a zany, scary, fun quick-read thriller for a bunch of reasons. The first reason is kinda dumb. My friend Julia Park Tracey sent me an e-mail: “Write a short, snappy novel in February and we’ll promote it in May. It’s a thing,” she said. Prior to this, Julia had offered other insane-o ideas. “Write an entire novel in November. It’s a thing.”That thing turned out to be NaNoWriMo, and I wrote Willing Servants, my first novel, which got snapped up by a publisher. So despite my usual misgivings, I went ahead and did it. Dumb? Yeah, dumb like a fox!

The second reason is that my first professional sale was “Thingies in the Hills,” a short science fiction horror story told from the point of view of a teenage girl. It was easy to write, it was fun to write, it got sold for pro rates, it only took a couple days. It was funny, and scary, and snappy. I wanted to try it again, in a longer work.

The most important reason was that I wanted to write something accessible to a broad spectrum of readers. I learned the hard way that straight horror is not for everyone. As I proudly hawked my first novel, a young guitar student of mine wanted to read it. She was thirteen at the time, and while I thought she could handle it just fine, I didn’t want an angry call from her parents. I told her to read it when she turned eighteen. I didn’t want to write books I couldn’t recommend to everyone. So I picked two of the most popular writers, and mashed their stuff together.

In this case, I chose the unlikely pairing of Janet Evanovich and Stephen King. They’re not as different as would appear from the high concept. One writes about crime in a Trenton, NJ suburb, the other about horror in small town Maine, both write character-driven novels, both are hugely successful, and, c’mon, is it really that hard to imaging Stephanie Plum picking up a skip in ’Salem’s Lot?

Hopefully, the big takeaway, other than plain old fun, is that readers consider the occult in a new way, argue with my undefined version of the paranormal, and consider their own stand on things beyond comprehension. That, and that you’re dying to read the next one.

Book Links:

 Goodreads

Contact the author:

Website / Twitter / Facebook / Goodreads

Have a great day!

Happy Scary Reading!

Haunted by Heather Beck Review

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*This book was given to me, in exchange of an honest review.

Title: Haunted (The Horror Diaries #1-5)

Author: Heather Beck 

Description: When darkness falls and the air turns cold, ghosts come out to play. Heather Beck presents Haunted, an anthology of ghostly encounters and paranormal events. *Haunted contains The Horror Diaries Volumes 1-5.

Ghost Park
After discovering a mysterious playground in the woods, Chase is stalked by angry ghost children.
A Haunting Past
Truce’s class trip to an old native reserve turns deadly when Bear, an infamous chief who died two hundred years ago, blames him for the tribe’s extinction.
The Manor On The Rocks
Grey, damp and surrounded by jagged rocks, Calla Lily’s new home isn’t only unpleasant, it’s also haunted by the world’s most evil boy.
A Medieval Nightmare
When Ellie and Brandon get trapped in a medieval museum that’s a bit too real, they fall under a spell and become pivotal players in a ghostly regime.
A Watery Grave
A camping trip becomes a heart-pounding race for survival when Justine meets a ghost who’s determined to change her fate by trading bodies with a living entity.

Review:

While reading the book: 

This was an interesting light horror read. It wasn’t that bone-chilling, or extremely scary, but it was quite interesting. The stories started getting creepier, and honestly I don’t know if that was what the author intended. The book starts with a not-so-scary story, but as the stories go on, I see some rising of the creepy factor. If this book was read by a normal reader, he would have found it incredibly scary, but for a horror lover not so much. I actually enjoyed the last story.

The extra element:  

All these stories included ghosts, and even though some parts were the usual cliché scenarios (only some parts), overall I enjoyed reading about the legends. The legends included different cultures and time periods, making the stories differ from each-other. In the first story the ghost children can't handle sunlight, because their skin will be burnt. (Do I sense some vampires here?)

What I didn’t like: 

I feel like the stories had potential. If only some cliché parts were removed, and some interesting plot twists were described better, I think that the stories could have been much creepier. It is a shame, because I really liked the stories, the legends, and the uniqueness of the ghosts, but sometimes the writing style made it less scary.

Recommended To:  

 I think that this would be a perfect book for readers, who want to enter the dark side (those who want to start reading horror). If you are transitioning into the horror genre, I would recommend this book.

Rating:

Links: 

Goodreads / Amazon

Have a great day!

Happy Scary Reading!

In Search Of Monsters #13: Vampires VS Ghouls

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Hello bookworms

How have you been doing? For this “In Search of Monsters” I decided to talk a bit about ghouls. Now, I am not a ghoul expert, just like for example I am a vampire expert, but I did see all the episodes of “Tokyo Ghoul”, I did read the manga, and also I did my research on ghouls. So, here we go.

Firstly, people tend to confuse vampires with ghouls, and vice versa. Both of these creatures look somewhat human, they feed on human flesh, and they do have extraordinary hearing, smelling, fast reflexes, and stuff.

Well, not really! Vampires do not eat human flesh, they just drink human blood. The victim of a vampire usually turns into a vampire, unless he is burned, or his head is cut off and filled with garlic (What Van Helsing did to Lucy, not to let her Dracula control her anymore, and save her soul.) Ghouls just eat human flesh, they are carnivores.  Their victims die, they don’t transform into ghouls.

Vampires are dead people, whether they are bitten by other vampires, risen from their grave because of their sins, or maybe their soul is transformed in lugat, when the death rituals aren’t respected (Albanian Legends). Ghouls aren’t particly dead people, they are just monsters. Vampires used to be human at some extent, while ghouls no. They are born this way.

Basically let’s say that vampires are sophisticated creatures, while ghouls are all about violence. Vampires are immortal, and they don’t age, while ghouls do age.

If you try to kill a vampire, you might need special weapons, you know, you can’t just run them in your knife. When you stab a ghoul, your knife will pierce through his flesh, but still it will heal itself. If you want to kill a ghoul, you have to stab him several times, until he can't heal anymore

Have a great day!

Happy Scary Reading!

April's Guide To Reading: Spring Reading Music Playlist

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Hello bookworms

It's me, Klejda. This is my spring reading playlist. This is what I plan to listen to when spring eventually comes. For those of you who are enjoying the lovely, spring weather I hope you like it.

All of Shawn Mendes’ songs. Trust me they are all awesome. Check out Stitches, and Never Be Alone.

Sam Hunt – Take Your Time (it has a nice combination of spoken voice and singing)

Scorpions – Wind Of Change

Sam Tsui – Don’t Want An Ending

Robin Schulz feat. Jasmine Thompson – Sun Goes Down

Bruno Mars – Young Girls

Lewis Watson – Into The Wild; What About Today

Kodaline – Honest; Autopilot; The One

Ben Rector – Song For The Suburbs

Lumineers – Ho Hey

Have a great day!

Happy Scary Reading!

First Chapter First Paragraph ~ Tuesday Intros -

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Hello Bookworms

This is a feature hosted by Bibliophile By the Sea.  We have to share the first paragraph or (a few) of a book we are reading, or thinking about reading soon.

I am currently reading "Haunted" by Heather Beck (Goodreads)

"Fifteen-year-old Chase Macmillan looked expectantly at her father from across the dining-room

table. She’d been doing so since his arrival and subsequent

announcement that he’d just received some

good news. Chase’s dinner, which consisted of meatloaf

and broccoli, was getting cold as she watched

Mr. Macmillan eat his own meal in a hurry."

Have a great day!

Happy Scary Reading!

Best Vampire Books

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Hello bookworms

Happy Monday! Haha! I am so evil!

If you don’t know about my obsession with vampires, then I guess you are new here.

My greatest achievement is being Dracula’s #1 fan.

Anyways, here is my take on “ Best Vampire Books”. Please note that this is my opinion.

Manitou Blood by Graham Masterton

I love this book, because it features ancient Romanian legends about strigoi (vampires). I just love legends. We have an apocalyptic theme, vampire apocalypse to be more exact, unique vampires traveling through mirrors (as if mirrors alone weren’t enough creepy), a group of different people fighting the vampires (it gives me a Draculesk vibe… Yes, I invented that word right now), and BAM! Such an awesome book! Some scenes are incredibly scary, and bone chilling.

(Goodreads)

The Vampire Diaries by L.J. Smith

I know what you are thinking.  This is like Twilight! But, it is not! I have read both “Twilight”, and “The Vampire Diaries”. Guess what? They are not the same. Do not be fooled by the TV show. (A lot of people love the TV show, but I haven’t watched it.)

In this book we have vampires surviving the daylight thanks to  a special stone, we have some really scary scenes, and the mystery basically eats you alive.

(Goodreads)

Blood Games by Chelsea Quinn Yarbro

This novel was set in Nero’s Rome. It is a historical horror novel. What else do you want? You have “The Gladiator” and “Dracula” mashed together. Super scary, and super dramatic! This book was a present from my sister. She saw it in a book market, and the moment she read the words “horror”, “vampire”, “Rome”, she bought that book for me.

(Goodreads)

The Thirst Series by Christopher Pike

Where was I before these series? In what world was I living before discovering Pike? I always blame Roberta (from Offbeat YA) for presenting me to his books. Real talk though, I want to thank her now. Pike’s books are like the world’s wonders carved in words. Sita is not just a badass vampire girl. She is the badass vampire girl. She is the real deal!

(Goodreads)

'Salem’s  Lot  by Stephen King

It is Stephen King we are talking about! While reading this book, I swear, there were moments, where I closed it, and I looked around to make sure I was in my room, not in the creepy cellar. I recommend this to Dracula’s fans.

(Goodreads)

Dracula by Bram Stoker

Duh! My love for this book has gone so far, that before going to bed, I open “Dracula” in a random page, and I read it. This was what I used to do with the “Harry Potter” series. That’s how much I love these books.

(Goodreads)

Have a great day!

Happy Scary Reading!

I'm a Different Type of Apple by Kevin D. Elliott Sr. Review

*Say hi to my new reviewer Arisa! Click here to learn more about her. *

Title: I'm a Different Type of Apple

Author: Kevin D. Elliott Sr.

Description: “I’m a Different Type of Apple” is a biography written by Kevin D Elliott, who is the main character of this book. This is a true story about a boy who stops following his father’s tragic footprints and starts walking in his own direction. He faces with everybody’s judgments about his father’s bad menace. They would see him and call him “Little Ted”. Despite all the maltreatment from the others, he found the strength to move forward. Furthermore, with his “Superheroes’ help”, he turned himself into a better person, into a worthy citizen, completely different from the education his father gave to him.

Review: 

While reading the book: This is a one of these books that you find easy to understand and really quick to read. I personally finished this book for exactly one hour and a half. This book will give you the opportunity to face with the main characters problem in a unique and original way. 

Main Character: In one hand Kevin Elliott has that kind of personality that you find easy to understand, but in the other hand you find it difficult to accept such major thoughts from a ten year old kid. I personally don’t like the way how the author describes the ability of a little boy , to make the comparison between GOOD and BAD. 

The extra element: I really like the way how the author describes the scenes of the book. It makes the reader be familiar with his story and his problems. By studying the way of his writing we can get close enough to his point of view about pretty much every situation. 

What I didn’t like: I think that the repetition of the same story over and over again, is kind of boring for the reader. Maybe the author wants to put a high note to that story, by rewriting it again and again, but I still would prefer it to be showed in a special and unforgettable way, so that the reader would be impressed by it. 

Recommended To: 

Readers who obviously love biography books and to the one who don’t like adventures, mysteries or exciting books.

3 Cats!

Links:

Goodreads / Amazon

Have a great day!

March’s Guide To Reading : Library Organizing

Hello bookworms,

Spring is here! And you all know what time it is:

Spring Cleaning Time! I know, I know, it is tiresome, but essential. For this month’s guide to reading, I will be helpful, and give advices on how to re-organize your home library.

Thirst No.2 by Christopher Pike Review

Hello Bookworms,

It’s been a while since I have done a review of a book purchased by me. These kinds of reviews are so laid back. It’s like talking with your best friend about the book you both love. When I am reviewing books for book tours, I have to be strict. But here, oh I can fangirl as much as I want. Please let me welcome you to:

The “Thirst Vol.2” Review Fangirling (Thank you again Roberta for making me buy almost all his books, LOL. You will have to repay me now, haha. Not kidding!)

For the first volume review click here.

Title: Thirst No.2

Author: Christopher Pike

Blurb: What Alisa has desired for five thousand years has finally come true—she is once again human. But now she is defenseless, vulnerable, and for the first time in centuries, emotional. As she attempts to reconcile her actions as a vampire with her new connection to humanity, she begins to understand the weight of life and death decisions. Can Alisa resolve her past and build a new identity,

Wolves of the Northern Rift Book Tour: Review

Title:  Wolves of the Northern Rift

Series:  Magic and Machinery #1

Author:  Jon Messenger

Published:   March 10th, 2015

Publisher:  Crimson Tree Publishing

Genre:  Steampunk

Content Warning:  Non-graphic gore/violence

Recommended Age:  16+

Synopsis:  In a world of science, magic is an abomination.

February's Guide To Reading: Find time to read

Hello bookworms,

Welcome to February’s Guide To Reading!

Today I am going to talk about time organization, more specifically reading time. Reading has always been a hobby to me, that’s why it is so difficult to include it in my daily planner, because then it will become just a chore. Trying to squeeze some time to read in your hectic day can be quite frustrating.

In Search of Monsters #10 The Face Powder Hag? Oshirobaba

Hello Bookworms,
Today we are going to talk about Oshirobaba. Now, here’s the thing, there exist a lot of legends about Oshirobaba. Firstly she is seen as the servant of "Goddess of Cosmetics". She is supposed to go around, tricking young girls in trying her face powder.

In Search Of Monsters #9 Deadly cotton? Ittan-Momen

Hello bookworms,

How have you all been doing? Today we are going to talk about a deadly roll of cotton. Yes, you read it right, a deadly roll of cotton. Making creepy creatures out of ordinary objects, that, my darlings, is a talent.

The Ittan-Momen is a roll of cotton that just flies around in the wind at night but if you happen to be around there, it will either wraps itself around your neck and choke you, or wrap itself around your head and suffocate you. It sounds like the alien movie, where those wrap their legs around your face. Yes, my alien pet told me that.

But wouldn’t it be funny, if you would decide to have a nice evening walk, and in you find yourself being chased from a deadly roll of cotton. 

If in case this Ittan Momen would attack a stranger, and I would be there, chances are I wouldn't even notice...

Have a great day!

Happy Scary Reading!

January's Guide To Reading

 Here’s to an amazing year! Now let’s get to our Guide To Reading:

January is all about starting fresh, starting new, new possibilities, new dreams, plans and goals. What kind of reading is suited for us?

Reading Challenge:

Usually during January we are very determined to accomplish our goals. That is why this month should be inspiring, this way we know there is going to be an awesome year ahead.

In Search Of Monsters #7 : Spider Woman? Jorōgumo

Hello Bookworms,

I know, I know, you are confused! Spider Woman? What do I mean with that? Spiderman or The Black Widow? No, the Spider Woman is not a hero at all, in contrary she is a creepy villain. Spiders are creepy (I am not a big fan of them)

The Spider Woman or Jorōgumo, is a kind of Japanese yokai, known for her ability to transform into a beautiful girl and luring humans, especially men.

Now imagine if a beautiful lady was holding a baby wrapped in a sheet on her arm. She seems so sweet and she asks you to hold the baby for two minutes. You, of course, accept, because you are kind. I mean, everyone would accept to help a mother, no? You are a bit stressed, because you are holding the baby of someone else, and you have to be extremely careful. The moment you take the baby, you see that inside the sheets, there is no baby, but a bunch of little spiders, whom take over your body. In your peripheral vision, you see the lady transforming into a spider. In a second you are dead.

Even though I handle monsters, this is something I can’t interview. I hate spiders. My interview with her would be like this:

Now on to some self promoting: I just uploaded my first video. Yes, yes, that girl is me. It was kinda awkward, but I will get better at this :D

  

 Have a great day!

Happy Scary Reading!

Book Blitz: Maia and the Secrets of Zagran

Title:  Maia and the Secrets of Zagran

Series:  The Lightbound Saga #2

Author:  S. G. Basu

Published:  December 15th, 2014

Publisher:  Vinayaka Publishing

Word Count:  100,400

Genre:  YA Sci-Fi Fantasy

Synopsis:

Thirteen year old Maia thinks she has seen it all.

She has survived an assassination attempt, she has been threatened by a chancellor, and she has faced off with saboteurs trying to bring down a nation. She lets nothing get to her anymore-not the ominous nightmares she has been having lately, not the fear of being targeted for another soul extraction, not even the memories of her dead mother’s terrifying communique.

More than ever, Maia wants the Initiative to resume. She longs to visit Zagran-the undersea capital of the Jjord. She wants to ride the underwater transport lines, learn about the Jjordic energy farms and most of all-she wants to goof off with her friends. But, around the charming city of Zagran, evil is gathering. Maia and her friends do not know it yet, this is just the beginning of a terrifying end.

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | GoodReads

About the Author:

S. G. Basu is a telecommunications engineer by profession, but she likes to call herself a dreamer. Imagination, fueled by a voracious appetite for books, has been her steady friend since childhood. She discovered her passion for writing quite by chance and there has been no stopping her since then.

Amazon Author Page | Facebook | Twitter | GoodReads | Blog

Giveaway Details:

There is a tour wide giveaway. Prizes include the following:

·        One signed copy of  Maia and the Secrets of Zagran

Giveaway is open to the US, UK, and Canada.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Have a great day!

Happy Scary Reading!

Follow And Feature #11

Feature and Follow

Hello Bookworms!

Happy New Year everyone! Hopefully this year will be full of happiness, love, prosperity, and tons of horror books. (Finger crossing for Stephen King publishing some new ones)

I stopped doing Feature and Follow for some times, but here I am again!

The Feature & Follow is hosted by TWO hosts, Parajunkee of Parajunkee’s View and Alison of Alison Can Read. Each host will have their own Feature Blog and this way it’ll allow us to show off more new blogs! The goal is to increase blog followers and make friends.

This week’s question is:

What was your favorite book of 2014 – or books if you can’t name just one?

 “Doctor Sleep” by Stephen King. I know this book was released in September 2013, but I read it in 2014, after I finished “The Shining”. Also “The Last Vampire Series” by Pike were awesome. 

Have a great day!

Happy Scary Reading!

In Search of Monsters #6 : Are Aliens Cute?

Hello bookworms,

How have you been doing these fine days? I was sick with flu; therefore I was stuck at home, doing basically nothing at all. :(

Anyways let's get straight to our topic . In my last “In Search of Monsters”, I mentioned that the “aliens” are pretty cute. Roberta (OffbeatYA) suggested  to talk about these creatures in my next episode. So here you go! 
I am quite sure, that everyone knows the "alien", from “The Alien” movies (duh!) In this episode of "In Search of Monsters", we are going to talk about the creatures featured in these movies.

Not all of these creatures are what I like. I prefer the "dog aliens", the four legged ones, because they are cute. Well, not having the movie plot in my mind, and not having to witness how they kill, I think they are pretty darn cute, aren't they? Imagine if you had a pet like that. Imagine if that scary creature would be just a harmless pet! Wouldn't it be cool? This creature would scare away anyone, who dares to approach you. And they could kill anyone, whom is considered a danger to you. Like for example…

Walking all alone in a dark empty street? No problemo, I got my pet to protect me! 
Thieves just broke into my house? Puh-lease, I am not scared. I wouldn’t want to be in their shoes.

 Someone drank the cappuccino I ordered for myself? Get ready to die!

 (Ok, I was a bit overreacting there. I mean who would kill the thieves, just because they broke into your house? About the cappuccino thing, I am serious.)

Have a great day!

Happy Scary Reading!