Declared Dead for 44 Minutes

Jools Sinclair had me reading at high speed until I saw the final period of the novel 44. Abby, the main character of the book, was officially dead for 44 minutes when she woke up. After the seeing the blackness of the afterlife, she awakes to a world that holds no color, stuck color blind from her death.

And Abby has a secret.

She has nightmares in which she watches other people being murdered, all by the same man. Her sister, Kate, is a writer for the local newspaper and covers the "accidental" deaths. When Abby finally reveals her secret to Kate, it's a race against the murderer to discover who he is and convince police that the recent deaths are anything but accidents.

This book is a paranormal thrill ride and is the perfect book for anyone who loves a good mystery! The only thing that bothered me was the lack of connection I felt with the characters. The bonds I formed with the fictitious people were those of thin, shredded string. The novel was an absolute fantastic read, but stronger character connections would probably have me rushing off to read the sequel. But, for a quick read that is incredibly unpredictable and fast paced with no time to catch your breath, this should be next on your reading list!

44 on Amazon

rating: 4/5 cups

As Many Twists as a Maze

Erica James does more than surprise the hell out of her readers with The Queen of New Beginnings. When Clayton Miller is accused of a more than horrendous act - he goes into hiding and he meets the voice-over actress Alice Shoemaker whilst in the middle of his current illness, writer's block.

When she opens the door to his creative mind, both Clayton and Alice receive more than they've bargained for. With as many twists as a maze and gruesome confessions, The Queen of New Beginnings evokes a diverse array of feelings from the reader that will leave them looking to their own past to find their future.

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The plot of this novel was wonderfully laid out and kept me guessing as to what I thought would happen next. Alice was an amazing true to life friend that I had the pleasure of relating to. Hiding behind a faux self-image to protect herself from a world that had shown her just how harsh it could be, Alice fought back against the world, hoping that someday she would find the perfect person that would allow her true-self to shine. 

The other characters in this novel were unique, quirky, tornado representation of people. Erica James didn't hesitate to give each person good and bad qualities. I found myself searching for a mirror to hold up to each character just to ask them: "What the hell are you doing?"

The only problem I had with this novel was the pace. And I know this because it took me more than a week to read it. When I read a novel, I sit down and in (usually) two days time, I'm finished. However, with novels that have a pacing problem, I find the novel drawn out to nearly a week. I can't be too upset with this small detail because I feel that the plot was drawn out to give the readers a chance to connect with the characters. Which worked out rather perfectly. 

The Queen of New Beginnings on Amazon

rating: 3/5 cups