Book Review

Chubby’s Tale: The true story of a bear who beat cancer by Carola Schmidt

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Chubby’s Tale: The true story of a teddy bear who beat cancer gives you the facts about childhood leukaemia in a way that is easy for kids to understand. 

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Yes. Healthy bone marrow cells – stem cells! – are magical. When we put these cells into your arm, they’ll go directly to your bone marrow!

Chubby’s Tale: The true story of a bear who beat cancer – Carola Schmidt (pg. 29)
Book Cover of Chubby’s Tale by Carola Schmidt

As a pediatric oncology pharmacist, Carola Schmidt is on a mission to spread awareness about cancer, one kid at a time. She does this with her various children books about cancer. She has written many books for children about cancer, namely

  • Bald is Beautiful: A letter for a fabulous girl
  • When a Brave Bear Fights Cancer
  • Cancer Daily Life

Carola has also written Tell me a story, Babushka and Babushka is Homesick.

Chubby’s Tale (first edition) was on the BookAuthority list of the 81 Best Leukemia Books of All Time. The second edition of Chubby’s Tale: The true story of a teddy bear who beat cancer was published on 14 October 2021. 

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Kolkata Noir by Tom Vater

Kolkata Noir explores crime in the city of Calcutta during three different times. And tells a story of unfilled love between two people who have only encountered each other three…

Nerve Attack by S. Lee Manning

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In Nerve Attack, ex-ECA agent Kolya Petrov – still battling his PTSD symptoms – is racing against time to save American citizens from a deadly toxic nerve gas.

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Still, it wasn’t Kolya drinking out of boredom and physical discomfort that worried her, but that he was drinking because, despite his denials, he was continuing to struggle with PTSD. He’d seemed better, but then, he was a good actor, which had been an asset when he worked in the world of intelligence. It was less so in personal relationships.

S. LEE MANNING. Nerve Attack (Kindle Locations 547-549). Encircle Publications. 
Book Cover Nerve Attack by S. Lee Manning.

S. Lee Manning is a qualified lawyer and worked as the managing editor for Law Enforcement Communica-tions. She left to work at a New York law firm, then for the State of New Jersey, and had her own solo practice. 

As the chairperson for the New Jerseyans for Alternatives to the Death Penalty (NJADP), she campaigned against the death penalty by writing articles about the risk of wrongful execution and arguing against the death penalty. 

She lives in Vermont with her husband and cat Xiao and loves to visit her kids – a daughter in California and a son in New Jersey. 

The author used her interest in Russia and espionage to create her international Kolya Petrov thriller series. The first book, The Trojan Horse, has won many awards. 

– Killer Nashville Silver Falchion Finalist 2021
– Kops-Fetherling International Phoenix Award 2020 for Best New Voice in action/thriller Finalist National Indie Excellence Awards.
– Finalist, National Indie Excellence Awards.

The second book in the series is Nerve Attack, released on September 2021, with the third book in progress. 

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Killing Dragons by Kristie Clark

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Dolphins have always fascinated me. I used to pretend I was a dolphin as a kid. I even practised holding my breath underwater for two complete laps in our pool. It is why I’ve jumped at the chance to review Killing Dragons.

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Back in the Navy, Taffy was practically his shadow, and he knew that dolphins have excellent memory, superior even to an elephant. It had been too long since he’d last visited, but she never failed to recognize him. The thought tugged at his heartstrings.

By: Kristie Clark. Killing Dragons: Order of the Dolphin Book One (Kindle Locations 1454-1456). Delphi Imprint LLC.

 

Cover Killing Dragons by Kristie Clark

Kristie Clark’s background

Kristie holds a BS in biology and a BA in philosophy. Her research for her degree was about subspecies of tide pool fish, and the impact of pollution on dinoflagellates.

She is a paediatrician with a medical degree from Emory University School of Medicine. Kristie completed her internship and residency at the Children’s Medical Center Dallas. She also worked in the Emergency Department of Cook Children’s at Fort Worth, Texas.

 

Kristie and her husband pursued a career in frontier rural medicine. It is their passion to educate and motivate health workers to work in underserved areas.

Growing up, her family often moved since her father served in the US Navy. Her favourite place was Puerto Rico, where she learned to speak Spanish. She also enjoyed many hours of snorkelling in the Caribbean Reef. Kristie also acquired a Lionfish spearing license from Roatan Marine Park Bay Islands.

Killing Dragons are the first book in the Order of the Dolphin series. Other books in the series are Dragon Gold (Book 2) and Dragon Clan (Book 3). The author also published Hatching a Dragon and Dragon of the Sea. You get the prologues to the series free when you subscribe to Kristie’s newsletter.

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Liner by Chris Coppel

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After reading Liner, you might rethink the idea of booking a luxury cruise for your next holiday.

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

None of the passengers seemed even remotely aware that people were dying on the Oceanis. Three people were dead so far, and those were just the ones that David had witnessed. The doctor mentioned seven others. It seemed that no one had a clue as to the actual number. He wondered at what point the captain would declare an onboard emergency?

Chris Coppel. Liner (Kindle Locations 3029-3031). Kindle Edition.
Book Cover Liner by Chris Coppel

Chris Coppel was born and is currently living in California. He used to work for Warner Bros and Universal Studios. Chris was also Director of Operations at the UCLA film school, where he taught advanced screenwriting. He has written many screenplays, following in the steps of his father, Alec Coppel. 

He involved himself with the Best Friends Animal Society for many years and enjoyed drumming and playing the guitar.

The author likes to create different places and dimensions in his stories. It varies from gentle fable-like adventures to horror stories with spine-chilling evil. His previous novels are Lucy, Lakebed, Legacy, and the Lodge and Luck.

Liner is his most recent book, published in July 2021.

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Asylum by Tamera Lawrence

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After reading Asylum, you might very well decide to let bygones be bygones and not revisit your past.

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Instead of improving lives, Rose Hill stole their souls. It was disheartening not to be able to do anything about it, and now it was too late.

Tamera Lawrence. Asylum (Kindle Locations 102-103). Grizli777. Kindle Edition. 
Book Cover Asylum by Tamera Lawrence.

Award-winning author. Tamera Lawrence is passionate about writing and, her books entertain readers with tense thrillers and mysteries. As a mother of six children, she uses her personal experiences to create interesting characters in complex settings. Tamera enjoys interacting with her fans and writing book reviews.

 

Other books by Tamera Lawrence is The Pond and the two Mayflower books: 

Ghosts of Mayflower: A Pennhurst Haunting | Pennhurst Ghosts of Mayflower 2.

Asylum is her newest book, published in March 2021.

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Turtle Crossing by Malve von Hassell

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Turtle Crossing was written to help children with the realities of moving to a new home.

I have received this book as an ARC from the author for an honest review.

He didn’t want to leave his strawberry patch just when the strawberries were getting ripe. 

Turtle Crossing – Malve von Hassell (pg. 12)
Book Cover Turtle Crossing

Malve von Hassell holds a Ph. D in anthropology from the New School for Social Research. She writes, researches, and also works as a translator. She has published several books and journal articles and has edited her grandfather’s memoirs. Ulrich von Hassell wrote it in 1944, while in prison.

Her first children’s book is Letters from the Tooth Fairy, with a new edition published in 2020. She published a historical novel – Falconer’s Apprentice – for young adults in 2015.  

Turtle Crossing is a picture book for children from three to eight years and was published in April 2021.

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A Time for Violence- An Anthology

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A Time for Violence explores violence in its many forms, as well as what drives people to use it.

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

So why violence then? Well,  A Time for Violence was a cool title, which was where it began. But beyond that, it’s a simple theme that inspires edgy, transgressive material. And at the end of the day, that was the real theme  — edginess and transgression.  

Anthology. A Time For Violence 6 x 9 v6.5 Caliber Mobi Creation (Kindle Locations 23-25). Close To The Bone. Kindle Edition.
Book Cover A Time for Violence

Short story anthologies became popular in the eighties and were sold in supermarkets. It was riding the wave of the paperback horror boom. The starting point for this trend was the increasingly popular books of Stephen King. 

You might remember Night Visions and Shadows from that period. The A Time for Violence anthology aims to honour the many exceptional short story collections from times past. 

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Bald is Beautiful by Carola Schmidt

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Bald is Beautiful: A letter for a fabulous girl is written to inspire and encourage all girls (and women) who are bald or might go bald for various reasons. 

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Be strong!

Be powerful!

Be what you want to be.

Do whatever you want to do.

Bald is Beautiful: A letter for a fabulous girl – Carola Schmidt (pg. 21)
Book cover Bald is Beautiful by Carola Schmidt

Carola Schmidt is a pediatric oncology pharmacist and has written many scientific books about her field. Her books are listed in BookAuthority’s Best Pharmacy Books of All Time, Best New Pharmacy Books and eBooks, and Springer Highlights 2020.

Besides Bald is Beautiful, the author has also written Cancer Daily Life and

Chubby’s Tale: The true story of a teddy bear who beat cancer.

Book Authority listed Chubby’s Tale as one of the 81 best leukaemia books of all time. Carola also wrote the Babushka Series – the first time that she doesn’t write about cancer.

Dian Ovieta was responsible for the beautiful illustrations in Bald is Beautiful.

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Why Are You Here? by Radhika Iyer

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Why Are You Here? is a collection of short stories featuring women and their ability to survive despite difficult circumstances.

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

She could not return home, not like this. Abandoned. Useless. She could envisage the reaction of her family, who would not reject her, although deep in their hearts they would want to. She would be a burden for the rest of her life.

Radhika Iyer. Why are you here? (Kindle Locations 750-751). Castles in the Air Press.

Book Cover: Why Are You Here? by Radhika Iyer

Why Are You Here? By Radhika Iyer is the first book published by Castles In The Air Press. 

Radhika was born in Malaysia, a daughter to immigrant parents. They were Indian first and Malaysian second, and this is how they raised her. The Indian community represents only 10% of the total population. Radhika felt like a minority within a minority, being part of a smaller group within the Indian community. It leads to an identity struggle, made worse when she moved to England and later Dubai. 

Many of the stories in Why Are You Here? are based on this struggle. It represents Indian women in a battle for identity and acceptance. As well as complex topics like obesity, rejection, abuse, racism, and stereotyping.

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