Wandering Thoughts of a Writer: scary

Showing posts with label scary. Show all posts

I give this book five stars *****

This futuristic story, set in the year 2152 surprised me because honestly I don’t read these types of books. However, as the story progressed, twisting around dark corners from scene to scene, I was pleased at how the author managed to sprinkle some horror into this stewing pot of illegal bioengineering and deception.

Nineteen-year-old Junco Coot is the main character in this imaginative tale. As a child she was trained to be a soldier in the Rural Republic where her father was ranking commander. She knows how to handle a gun and in fact is a trained sniper. I was hoping for more scenes displaying her sniper skills, but that’s just because I’m personally interested in expert marksmanship. But Junco is one tough chick who knows how to handle herself and has a foul-mouth that fits her character perfectly. And although she’s a capable person–a survivor who not only can put up a good fight but knows how to live off the land–she’s also emotionally fragile and harbors fears that grounds her and makes her a believable character.

After Junco crashes a military vehicle called a Goat, she meets Tier. He’s an avian which is basically a human with wings and talons for feet. He’s considered an alien because avians don’t live on earth. I liked his character except it annoyed me when he called Junco "darlin’" but that’s just my own personal pet peeve. Aside from that, I enjoyed getting to know him and the history of his people. At first, though, Junco views Tier as the enemy and attempts to kill him several times. However, circumstances bring them together, and Junco finds herself struggling to trust him.

Here–in my opinion–is where the story picks up and captures my interest. They end up in a cavern inside a mountain which happens to be a breeding ground for nightdogs. Those creatures freaked me out, and I shared Junco’s horror when they chased and attacked her. I was pleasantly surprised when the author threw this into the story. Another scene that chilled me to the bone was when the bots were chasing after them down underground tunnels. After Junco fires at them, they explode, then self-reassemble into more bots.

Holy, shit!

They cannot be totally eliminated.

This was one of many action-packed scenes throughout the book.

Junco also has a house that’s a sentient being.

How cool is that?

The author has a great imagination, and she skillfully intertwines these surprises without overwhelming or diminishing the story. I have to admit, I was hoping Junco and Tier’s relationship would develop more. It ran hot and cold throughout the story, leaving me to wonder if they truly have feelings for each other.

During the chaos Junco faces, she discovers she’s been betrayed by the people closest to her and just about everything in her entire life is smoke and mirrors. I’m not going to go into the whole sordid detail about how tragic it is to find out you’ve been manipulated mentally and physically by a sinister government for their own twisted agendas. You’ll have to read the book to find out. I don’t want to spoil it for you.

I was going to give this story 4 stars. However, the author’s awesome imagination and ingenuity deserves 5 stars. I recommend this outrageous book because it’s worth reading.

Here’s where you can buy CLUTCH and connect with this wonderful author:

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/CLUTCH-Just-Junco-Dot-ebook/dp/B009BIOJTU
Website: http://www.iamjustjunco.com/
Author Blog: http://jahuss.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/IAmJustJunco
Twitter: https://twitter.com/JAHuss
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6446815.J A Huss
　
　
　

avians, imaginative, nightdogs, scary, Sci-fi, thriller, 4 Comments

It’s kind of crazy here right now.

The first crazy thing is we’re still dealing with a health issue because the ultrasound results found a centimeter size mass below the right thyroid.

Yikes!

Another test will be preformed this week and possibly a biopsy.

The second crazy thing is I decided to self-publish, ‘Beyond the Eyes’ the first book in my series, hopefully sometime in March. The thing is though, I don’t know diddly squat about formatting my book to an ebook and paperback. Therefore, I have to find a computer savvy person to do it for me, or talk me through it and hold my hand.

I’ll admit; I’m a complete moron when it comes to computers. I did find somebody to do my cover art for me, which totally rocks. I’m excited about that and will post it here when it’s finished. I’ll also keep you guys up to date on my self-publishing journey so you can ride the wave with me. Just hop on my huge surfboard and we’ll ride it together.

I know.

I’m a dork.

But I want you to know you’re not alone, and I want to share my experiences with you so maybe you can learn from them and get a glimpse into the scary world I’m embarking upon.

Yeah, it’s scary. I mean, this is a HUGE decision that has the potential to crush me. I’m bombarded by so many fears that if I think about them, I start shaking like I would if I had to stand on stage and give a speech in front of a room full of people.

So why am I self-publishing then?

I’m doing it because I believe in my book(s) and I’m tired of the query process and agents saying they like my story, I write well, my story is intriguing, please don’t give up, but sorry it’s not right for their list, or regrettably they can’t take on another client–blah, blah, blah.

I have nothing against agents and totally respect them. I understand they’re busy and have constraints they can’t slip out of, but I’m not going to let another year go by while my story goes unread. I love it too much and want to share it with the world.

Yesterday I emailed Createspace and Lulu so I should be hearing from them sometime this week. For those of you who aren’t familiar with them, they do POD (print on demand) books, along with other things. I’m not sure which one to use to do a trade paperback of my book(s). My critique partner told me a lot of the self-publishing books she reads and reviews go through Createspace, so I’m leaning toward them. But we’ll see. There’s another company a fellow writer of mine told me about called Bookbaby, so I think I’m going to check them out as well.

There’s SO much to do. I’m trying not to get overwhelmed or think about how crazy, scary this is. It’s a lot of hard work and time consuming, but I’m enjoying it. And although I’m scared to death (not that I haven’t already mentioned that) I’m excited as well. I figure if I take it in baby steps, I won’t end up in a little ball, sitting in the corner, rocking back and forth, mumbling gibberish.

Anyway, I better get back to it. If anybody that’s reading this knows how to format a book to an ebook, I’d love to hear from you. :)

I’m going to work on my blurb now, and go through some sketches the girl that’s doing my cover had sent me. I’ll be back on Friday with hopefully some good news.

*fingers and piggies crossed*

Have a good Monday and week. Be safe and happy.

decision, scary, self-publish, 0 Comments