The Masquerade Crew

Small as a Mustard Seed by Shelli Johnson Genre: Historical Book Synopsis As a child in 1960′s rural Ohio, Ann Marie Adler finds herself caught between her father, Frank, a veteran who survived the war in Korea but with devastating post-traumatic stress, and her mother, Adele, who is blindsided by the mental illness that accompanied him home. In a series of escalating dangerous episodes, Frank confuses reality with soul-searing memories, believing he’s still a soldier fighting for his life in battle-torn Korea. During the delusions, Ann Marie and her younger sister, Jolene, become the enemy, which leaves them fearing for their lives. Unable to fully protect her daughters, Adele scrambles to keep order while her husband’s threatening and unpredictable outbursts slowly tear the family apart.

Memoirs of a Dating Dad by Daniel Ruyter Genre: Memoir, Advice Book Synopsis Sometimes crazy, sometimes meaningful, always insightful – all of my experiences in dating as a single dad have taught me some very valuable life lessons. Memoirs of a Dating Dad is ten chapters of hilarity, sadness, anticipation and disappointment – all of the feelings and emotions that are inevitable when dating in today’s jungle.

Pterripus: The Awakening by Kristl Thompson Genre: Fantasy Book Synopsis Buthania waits for the child of Earth to choose her destiny... Between our world and theirs, a storm threatens the veil that binds them. Fate has decided there is only one who can restore the balance...she just doesn't know it yet. How can Lilly be the key to their salvation when she can barely control the dangerous magick within her, magick she never knew existed? There are those who carry the knowledge of her potential, and those who would stop at nothing to prevent her from reaching it. Until now, Her Majesty Dagana has been still, preparing in secret for the coming war, awaiting the day her adversary will arrive to be trained by the great Masters, when the forces of dark and light will collide. Beliefs built from childhood will combine with those never imagined to create an understanding that will prepare Lilly for her destiny, bridging the gap between what was...what is...and what will be. De...

Force of Habit by Marian Allen Genre: Science Fiction Book Synopsis Isobel Enid Schuster never planned to go into space. She almost wished there had been no Vatican III, and the clergy had not gone co-ed, or at least the Jesuits had not. But all those things had happened. The Galactic Union Space-Troopers teamed up with the St. Bennedetta Jesuits to form the Space Academy Preparatory School, and now Bel is a Professor of Extra-Terrestrial Humanities and Value Systems on a starship. Restricted shore leave on the planet Llannonn is better than staying on the ship, especially when Bel swaps clothes with a close-look-alike Llannonninn woman and slips out to see the sights. But the woman is the target of a criminal from another planet. The woman thinks Bel is a police agent, come to take her place. The criminal thinks Bel is his target. Yet another criminal thinks Bel is a VIP he can kidnap and hold for ransom. The only thing between Bel and a life of slavery in the provinces ...

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In the first part of this series, we presented five tips to help you develop characters. The following are the remaining five general tips from the crew.

The perfect character should not be very perfect at all, because when we get down to it, no one wants to read a story filled with Mary-Sues and Gary-Stus. So how do we do it? How do we create the (near) perfect character? The following are the first five general tips offered by the crew. Another set of tips to follow soon.

Zombie Bible: Death has come up into our Windows by Stant Litore Genre: Horror Book Synopsis 595 BC. God is weeping behind her veil in the Temple while the dead are eating her city, and her cries emerge through the lips of the prophet Yirmiyahu. Trapped in a dry well while his gaolers toss zombies in after him, the prophet will have to survive the hungry dead, dehydration, and some truly wrenching memories -- memories of atrocities witnessed, lives lost, and sacrifices made that shatter the heart. This is the first installment of The Zombie Bible; it's full of violence, passion, religious clashes, and the irrevocable moaning of the walking dead. Read this story. It has teeth. And heart.

Beneath by Adrian Price Genre: Horror, Short Story Book Synopsis An excellent bite sized read! A sudden string of disappearances at Buffalo Lake is enough cause for panic for the people of Buffalo Bend, but they have even more to fear when a far greater mystery is uncovered during the investigation at the lake. From Amazon Kindle product description

Trueblood's Plight by E.S. Lark Genre: Fantasy Book Synopsis Extract from ebook blurb : Thirty years have passed since the clan’s flight from Tesmar, their beloved gryphon city. Three decades spent searching for safer shores, a place to repopulate and for some, to bury the truth of an age-old prophecy. Until now. Ava always knew she was different, from her pale plumage to her silver eyes, but being a Trueblood—a giphen who can use all forms of magic—takes ‘special’ to a whole new level. With overprotective elders and the enemy advancing from the north, Ava struggles to balance her time on and off the battlefield.

I would like to start this post by saying thank you for all of the interest shown during our special month of Harry Potter material. From some of your comments here on the blog, on Twitter, and on Tumblr, we can tell that our reviews and analyses brought smiles to your faces. We are happy. We hope to continue this trend. With your help and suggestions we can do this. With the start of a new month, we eagerly look forward to new things on the horizon. From the title of this post, the most significant thing is the fact that Bec C. now has a Kindle. I've been hesitant about sending word out that we want books to review because I was unsure how many books we could handle at one time. That isn't as much an issue anymore. Bec is a voracious reader, so we should be able to handle a lot more than we could last month. Sharon Flood is also a heavy reader, so I suspect you will see lots from her as well. The rest of us will help out where we can. To handle the influx (hopefully) of b...